How Much of It Do You Have?
I often refer to mental static in my posts and I mention briefly what sorts of things cause it: uncomfortable emotions, such as anxiety, depression, irritation or anger, guilt, or shame; unsolved problems and ambivalence; and stress. But how do they cause it?
Perceptions and their Responses
Every perception we have, every sight, sound, smell, taste, and feel, is a stimulus; and every stimulus requires a response. For most stimuli, the response is that they are insignificant because there is nothing that we have to do about them. The things that we see in our room (the walls, the ceiling, the floor), the sound of a ceiling fan, the feeling of the breeze it creates, elicit the response that they don't matter; there's nothing we have to do about them. Our response to the fragrance of a bouquet or the taste of a meal is simply one of enjoyment.
But we also have stimuli that require a different response. We respond to an error we've made with anxiety, and perhaps guilt or shame; to a loss with sadness or depression; to an inconvenience with irritation; and to an insult with anger. These feelings are our initial response, but they become part of the stimulus, too, and we strive to find a solution both to the initial stimulus and to our uncomfortable emotional response to it.
When we think of a solution, the discomfort lessens; and when we act on the solution, we have solved the problem. For instance, when we think of how we can fix an error, we feel somewhat better, and when we actually do fix the error, we feel relief.
Problems Take Up Mental Space
When a troublesome stimulus occurs and elicits an initial response of a painful feeling, it takes up mental space in our mind. We are preoccupied with it to a greater or lesser extent. For instance, if we forget to put an important appointment in our calendar and miss a meeting, we will be quite disturbed about it; but if we realize that we forgot to do a small chore and that we can do it tomorrow, the disturbance will be minimal. But even the small disturbance takes up space in our mind and interferes with our ability to think clearly. All of these disturbances, great and small, constitute mental static.
The more problems you have, the more mental static you will have. "That isn't fair!" said one of my patients. No, it isn't. But fortunately, there is something that we can do about it.
How an Inner Guide Can Help
An Inner Guide is a special mental pathway in the mind that is composed of three, and only three, pathways: the pathway of comfort, the wish to help us, and a sense of its own identity. Because it is composed only of comfort; by definition, it has no discomforts, and therefore, no mental static. This is why it is able to access our entire memory bank, and all of our subliminal perceptions, to find solutions for our problems.
If you don't yet have an Inner Guide, you can acquire one here: https://emotionalcomfort.com/blog/post/you-can-acquire-an-inner-guide-part-4
