We Judge Life Looking Backwards, But Can Only Live It Going Forwards.
Kierkegaard’s insight points out the fundamental thorn in the side of living a thoughtful existence; basically, a “Well, crap!” realization.
Fundamentally speaking, the deck is stacked against us if we believe in rationality and fairness. In a court of law, the other side can pick apart a situation using slo-mo, cell phone video, and all manner of things assembled after the fact. But in the moment, we can only deal with what we have at our fingertips.
Healthcare is like that.
When something goes south — a heart attack, a cancer diagnosis, a major injury — there’s a flurry of retrospective analysis. Thinking of the years of poor diet, high stress, and ignored warning signs. The chain-smoking. The advice to get back to activity gradually; to drive slower, and never after drinking. “Clearly!” in retrospect.
Yet nobody wakes up and says, I’m going to crash my car today, or I’m going to throw myself down the stairs after dinner. Or do anything else that’s deliberately self-sabotaging.
When the obvious, isn’t
If the danger was Clear and Present, the conventional wisdom goes, a reasonable person wouldn’t do XYZ.
Conventional wisdom is an interesting concept, like the idea of a reasonable person.
Very few of us act based on reason and careful thought, including ourselves.
In his book, Atomic Habits — highly recommended — James Clear summarizes the learnings of habit science: we do the unreasonable (while insisting we are paragons of rationality and virtue) because of neurobiology.
“We can only be rational and logical after we have been emotional. The primary mode of the brain is to feel; the secondary mode is to think. Our first response—the fast, nonconscious portion of the brain—is optimized for feeling and anticipating. Our second response—the slow, conscious portion of the brain—is the part that does the “thinking.” Psychologists refer to this as System 1 (feelings and rapid judgments) versus System 2 (rational analysis). The feeling comes first (System 1); the rationality only intervenes later (System 2). This works great when the two are aligned, but it results in illogical and emotional thinking when they are not. Your response tends to follow your emotions. Our thoughts and actions are rooted in what we find attractive, not necessarily in what is logical.” (Clear, James. Atomic Habits (p. 261). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.)
As a patient, your greatest challenge is that most of the factors affecting your health are microscopic or molecular, and therefore hidden (you can’t feel your HMG Co-reductase, can you?). If you’re unaware of something, it’s hard to convince yourself to act on it.
The greatest challenge to doctors is the hidden nature of important factors — like sharks in the Atlantic, we know they’re there — COMBINED WITH the unreasonableness that is human nature. Even when we point out the sharks, most folks will say, Look at the pretty fishies! Or Man, I’m glad I don’t swim in the Atlantic like those other people I’ll never understand! Or Sharks are a thing, but how about this amazing aphrodisiac that Joe Rogan and my favorite influencer recommend!!!
The nasty, hooky thorns are hidden, and even when revealed, we frequently look elsewhere.
I bring this up because
…because it’s critical to progress. Poor health (and life) choices are rarely due to an information deficiency.
It’s frequently from being stuck in a loop.
There’s a scene in one of the Matrix movies, I can’t find the YouTube for it. Keanu Reeves as the protagonist, Neo, is literally stuck. When he runs offscreen to the left, he appears immediately back onscreen to the right, and vice versa.
Until you come to grips with the inherent duality of existence — we think we value and act according to X, gravitate to the instinctive, emotionally appealing Y, and justifying Y with pretty language from the higher brain afterward — you are destined to be grinding your gears. Running stage left and reappearing stage right. And repeatedly being frustrated as a result.
- I have to lose weight, but I can’t stop snacking
- I know I should get that cancer test, but I’m afraid of what it might show
- I know get-rich-quick plans are scams, but I investigate every 6-figure offer to work from home
- I love my mother despite her driving me crazy, but can’t seem to find the time to go visit her
All the recurring things I alluded to last time, and more. Persistent issues are a sign of important work needing to be done.
And one of the most important insights is that we have a big brain that thinks in terms of reason and ideals, but that sits on a jazz-hands focused lizard brain. And that the two are inseparable — there is only one brain. Our higher selves can no more leave our dinosaur brain behind that we can grab our pants and lift ourselves out of our chairs.
Are ideas and ideals pointless? No, they give us direction, motivation, and a model to improve our circumstances.
Is the so-called lizard brain bad? If it wants you to sleep with everyone in the bar after declaring drinks are on you, it’s being so very bad, yes. But wanting what you want more strongly than any thought could motivate you is undeniable. Water is wet, and emotions are strong; sometimes biology isn’t rocket science.
So…
So, this is why developing habits and systems is so important.
Your goals are important. But kind of not important.
There will be times when your goals, from your thinking, insightful mind, will be magically in line with your emotional wants. Your lizard brain does not want to die, so will graciously permit your efforts to avoid death.
Other times, the two will have different priorities. Your higher brain knows the importance of sleep to stave off dementia, but your lizard brain wants to go to that concert, that after party, or to stream the latest episode of your favorite series.
And sometimes, the two will be in complete opposition. You know it’s a crap idea to go to that casino, look up that pretty young thing, or have even one drink, so why are you taking that offramp or sitting down at the bar?
Your list of Important Stuff will always have higher and lizard brain sources.
Making progress is about having a method that works regardless of who sends the marching orders.
I can’t believe I’m touting this, but think political operatives in DC. Senators and administrations come and go, but admin assistants and chiefs of staff are forever. Whether their directives come from Greenpeace or Standard Oil, they get the job done, if they want to keep eating in the halls of power where the Real Stuff happens.
More to come, have a safe and quiet weekend. And maybe do some earthquake prep.
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