August 10, 2020

Minute of Transparency: Making Memories...

Intro: Last week we talked about there being 2 outcomes, 4 categories and many lifestyles. 

This week we net it out and talk about the fact that everything we experience in life - what CT refers to as the Human Condition - is actually because of the controversy.

Today’s Basic Assumption: The Human Condition Is Controversy Related

1. The Human Condition

2. Why Human Disturbance is different

3. Labels, labels, labels

4. The Treatment Tripod

5. Who can we blame for this?

// 1. THE HUMAN CONDITION

This week we come full circle…and return to the Human Condition. A concept we introduced at the very beginning of the TH Podcast and the Controversy Theory series. 

Hopefully, as we’ve walked through this series called Controversy Theory together it has become obvious to you that this concept we defined as the Human Condition was set in motion by the “controversy.” 

• The Human Condition IS Controversy related…

• It’s not the other way around

• It didn’t come from somewhere else

• It is a direct result of the Sin Virus being found in Lucifer’s heart, which led to war in heaven, which led to Satan banished to Earth, which led to humans being infected with the virus

• This led to the Human Condition

• We’re all born into it, and must deal with it throughout our lifetimes

So quick recap: 

We defined the Human Condition as: “The totality of the human experience” as seen in these three areas:

1. The Life Journey: From birth to death

   • Major Milestones: Things like childhood, education, graduations, relationships, marriage, divorce, children, retirement, etc.

   • Everyday Life Experiences: And everything in-between the milestones. Things as simple as a positive interaction with a stranger, to something as traumatic as causing a car accident where someone in the car dies

2. Our Medical Condition: It also includes any medical issues we may or may not experience during our lifetime. And if there are medical issues, the impact it has on our ability to function and remain emotionally stable

3. Our Mental Health: The way we think, feel and behave in response to the life experiences we go through, and the medical conditions we face

So the Human Condition is:

• Our state of existence

• It’s “life” as we know it

• When people use the phrase, “It is what it is” they’re referring to the fact that some things happen regardless if you want them to or not

• And though we do have some level of control over our response to the human condition, the condition itself is largely made up of the things that happen to us - both positive AND negative things

Of course, we’ve probably spent a lot more time focused on the bad things - mainly because CT was written for hurting people - not for happy people:

• It was written to help people identify where bad things come from, why we experience them, and what our response can be

• And in discussing the negative side of the Human Condition we were able to clump them into the following three buckets:

  • Human Nature: Which comes through birth. Being born with the Sin Virus and being “bent” in that direction 

  • Human Suffering: Which is caused by the workings of the Sin Virus through us, through others and through our physical environment

  • Human Disturbance: Which is caused when the Sin Virus impacts our thinking, behaving and feeling

// 2. WHY HUMAN DISTURBANCE IS DIFFERENT

However, one of the things we learned about these three buckets is that we have a higher level of control over one of them…

Human Nature and Human Suffering seem to be things that happen to us. But when it comes to Human Disturbance - we start to have a level of control over the impact the Sin Virus has on us and our functioning.

We said Human Disturbance effects three major areas of our functioning: Our thinking, our behaving and our feeling:

• We have Direct control over two of them: Our thinking and behaving

• We have Indirect control over the other: We can regulate our feelings by changing the way we think and behave

This is why Human Disturbance is different - because we get to choose - we were given this thing called Freedom of Choice, and it is one of our weapons in the controversy.

Think about how powerful this is in life. 

In the book Conscience Driven Therapy, this becomes one of the themes, an overarching piece of the puzzle. Learning how to leverage your Freedom of Choice in order to address Human Disturbance in your life.

It’s easier said than done of course - as it is with anything good in life. It’s complicated, it requires practice in order to get better at it. But in the end it’s worth the struggle.

Not only are you able to rise above the Human Condition, but you are then able to help others do the same - and push back against the darkness that exists in the world.

// 3. LABELS, LABELS, LABELS

Psychology is the study of the “psyche" - or the human mind. And when you study something as part of your life’s work - you research, propose, theorize, hypothesize, test, experiment, document, and eventually make statements of fact about the thing you studied. 

And in this process, a lot of documenting was done of the “problems,” “issues,” or “neuroses” found in the people they studied. 

These documented issues were eventually published and accepted by the scientific community as fact. And it became a way of categorizing, defining and labeling people based on their thinking, behaving and feeling.

• This list became a book, or manual called: The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - or the DSM

  • As of now, this manual is in its fifth revision - so it is referred to as the DSM-5

• The DSM-5 exists, and is helpful for a variety of reasons:

  • Just like any other medical or scientific work, it attempts to define and document Human Disturbance - something that was not well understood

  • Documenting it helps people understand it better

  • It creates a common language within the medical/mental health field - making it easer for two clinicians to work with the same patient or client

  • It helps to define the problem being solved in treatment and what needs to change in order to be successful

  • And yes, a diagnosis is required in order to get an Insurance company to pay for treatment

• That said, there is also a dark side to the DSM-5:

  • These documented diagnoses have become labels that are slapped on people

  • They are labels people have slapped on themselves

  • And the danger is that once you have a label - it’s very difficult to get it off of you

  • We’ve seen how dangerous labels can be:

    • Back in the 80s and 90s - numerous kids were diagnosed with ADHD and placed on medications like Ritalin and Adderall

    • Looking back now, we can see that many were over-diagnosed which led to:

      • Kids being labeled as troublemakers

      • Kids choosing to stop working in school because there was no point

      • Kids taking strong medications that they may not have needed

      • Kids stigmatized because of the label with teachers and other students

      • And in the worst scenarios - kids viewing themselves as damaged, or broken in some way. Kids feeling like they were not capable of normal activities

• At the end of the day - the DSM-5 is here to stay, so we need to be sure to use it the way it was intended to be used:

  • Labeling symptoms and behaviors

  • NOT labeling people

  • And not allowing people to label themselves

• Another important thing to understand about the DSM:

  • It is only capable of describing observable symptoms

  • It can’t identify where the problem came from

  • And it doesn’t tell you how to resolve the problem

  • Again, this is why it can be so dangerous. It’s a book that can tell you exactly what’s wrong with you - but not why, or how to solve the problem...

// 4. THE TREATMENT TRIPOD

For years, people who were experiencing Human Disturbance were treated in ways that we view now as inhumane, sub-human and often barbaric. 

https://online.csp.edu/blog/psychology/history-of-mental-illness-treatment

https://sunrisehouse.com/research/history-evolution-mental-health-treatment/

I won’t go into it in detail, but things like Trephination (removing small pieces of the brain), Coma Therapy, Shock Therapy (or ECT), Bloodletting, the use of Asylums, etc.

All things we did to people because we didn’t understand them, or the things they were experiencing. 

But before you get all arrogant and say, “Thank goodness we don’t do that any more - we are so much smarter today!”

Understand that there are still remnants of this that exist to day. 

They just don’t appear to be as flagrant. 

Two examples:

• Medication only: Medial Doctors and Psychiatrists can get pretty arrogant in their belief that there is a pill for every ailment. That they are able to fix you with the right pharmaceutical concoction. But there is nothing more sad than a person on a mind altering drug for no good reason. The danger is there just as it was with some of the more barbaric methods mentioned above

• No medication - just therapy: And the opposite is also true. There are times when a medication is the only thing that can help keep a person stable enough to even talk about their situation. Refusing a person this medication because you think you can “therapy it out of them” is equally barbaric

And so - the current “best practice” for the treatment of Human Disturbance is a combination of mediation and therapy.

Two things working in tandem to help a person get through what they are experiencing.

But CT thinks there is one element missing. A third element that would create a tripod approach. 

Do you know what a tripod is? If you’re a photographer - you should for sure. A tripod is a device with three legs that come together at the top to hold a camera. 

Based on the geometric fact that the triangle is the strongest shape there is. These three legs provide a level of stability that two just can’t.

Enter the Treatment Tripod:

1. Leg #1: Medical/Medication: There is no getting around the fact that peoples mental health issues can be “caused” or “made worse” by an ongoing medical condition. Because of this you should NEVER begin therapy without first understanding the medical condition you’re in. Based on this, medication may be a solid recommendation. This includes the use of psychotropic medications for things like Schizophrenia, extreme Bipolar, Depression and Anxiety, PTSD, etc. Medications have been proven successful in getting a person to a level of functioning where therapy can be successful

2. Leg #2: Controversy Theory: This is the piece left out by most of the mental health professionals working today. And obviously - if you’re not a Christian, or of you don’t really have spiritual beliefs - this would not be part of your practice at all. But CT suggests this is crucial in understand the Human Condition, the Big Three Questions, and the fact that there is a battle going on behind the scenes for your life specifically!    

3. Leg #3: Conscience Driven Therapy: I say this specifically because CDT dovetails into CT so well. But traditional forms of therapy would fall into this category as well. Things like Reality Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Brief Solution-Focused Therapy, etc. Talk therapy is important. Not only in questioning and understanding the controversy, but then in taking what you’ve learned and applying it to the struggles you are facing. Having another person agree with you on the best way forward. And in CDT terms: Understanding the PTPs Satan has stacked against you, and the plan you’re going to put into place to combat those PTPs

And that’s it! There is so much more I’d like to say about the Treatment Tripod, but it will have to wait for another day…

// 5. WHO CAN WE BLAME FOR THIS?

So let’s finish up by playing the blame game. 

Of course that sounds funny - because we tell people all the time that blame is a dangerous game - and that the sooner you start taking responsibility for your role in things the sooner you will have the upper hand - the sooner you will gain a level of control back over your life.

But in this case - there are a few things we can blame when it comes to understanding Human Disturbance:

1. Genetic and environmental predisposition: DNA is passed down. So are medical issues, mental health issues and addictive predispositions. We have no control over this - but must understand that our past can have an impact on our future 

2. Living oblivious to the controversy: Thus Leg #2 we talked about above. If you live your life as if the controversy doesn’t exist, you won’t see your issues in their true light   

3. Failing to answer one of the "Big Three Questions” appropriately: Similar to the above. If you don’t fully understand/believe the three statements below, you won’t be starting on the right foundation when addressing Human Disturbance in your life: 

   1. God created you

   2. He wants to rescue you from the Sin Virus

   3. And that the antidote to the Sin Virus means living forever with Him in Heaven

4. Riding the fence: This really refers to voting in the Eternal Election, or accepting the antidote to the Sin Virus. The longer we ride the fence - choosing not to choose - the longer we will experience Human Disturbance at a level that is more difficult than it would be after making that decision

5. When our conscience is in conflict with our thinking and behaving: This one is HUGE! And is really the main storyline when jumping into Conscience Driven Therapy. Human Disturbance is a direct result of your conscience telling you one thing, but you choosing to think or behave in the opposite way 

6. Failing to achieve sincere worship: This is another one that people have a hard time understanding. We talked about it back in the 4th Basic Assumption: To Be Human Is to Worship. CT suggests that we all have an innate need to worship the Creator. This is sincere worship. However, if we put other things in place of it - worldly worship - like worshiping sports, money, sex, fame, or even good things like our family - we are choosing a path that includes Human Disturbance on some level

7. Trying to work our way to heaven: Back to the grace vs. works debate. CT suggests that accepting the antidote to the Sin Virus is the only way to get to Heaven. So people who don’t believe this, and try to be good all of the time in order to win their way into Heaven are fighting a losing battle. And there is nothing more frustrating - Human Disturbance causing - than trying to be good enough for a perfect God

So let’s land the plane:

This week: Ask yourself the following:

• Are you starting to understand the Human Condition?

• If so, do you see how Human Disturbance is really a byproduct of it and the controversy?

• And do you see that Human Disturbance is different based on the fact that we have some level of control over it?

• Have you been labeled before? Or have you labeled yourself?

  • If so, this needs to change!

  • You are you - and that’s exactly what God created you to be

  • A mental health diagnosis is something you are dealing with - but it is NOT you

• What are your thoughts on the Treatment Tripod? Do you believe this approach could help you overcome some of the things you’re dealing with?

• And finally, in looking through the list of things we can blame for Human Disturbance - the only one we have no control over is the first one:

  • So aside from that, are there other items on that list that apply to you?

  • If so, what could you do this week to start the process of changing that in your life?

And there you have it! The final Basic Assumption!

I can’t believe we’re already through the Basic Assumptions. I’ve had so much fun walking through them with you. And I want to thank each and every one of you for going on the journey with me.

Next week we’re still in the CT Series, but we’re wrapping things up by offering an overview of Conscience Driven Therapy - the book that was to follow CT. Now that we understand the Human Condition, and how it impacts the Human Disturbance we experience - what do we do? How do we fight back and live using the power that is offered by God through our conscience?

CT16: Applying Controversy Theory

Thanks again for being with us this week. Have a great week ahead, and as always, keep Transcending Human!