blogging, Philosophy

The World in Our Mind

Forestwood

Experts lay the origin of certain mental health complaints squarely at the foot of one’s early life experiences. That said, can they really account for as much as is suggested? If not, should psychological interventions be tailored to take this thought into account?

responsibility quote Gabor Mate

Environment and Genetics – Nature versus Nurture.

Marsha hosts a Writer’s Quotes Wednesday Writing Challenge –#WQWWC which I am joining in a little early today – as it is Wednesday here, already.

I believe the theme this week is Trustworthiness. My take on this theme is a little skewed, but I thought – Can I trust my intuition, my own thoughts? Should I trust my intuition?

Yesterday two things came to mind, nothing serious, just thoughts and today, those two things were most significant in events, both, in my house and the larger region where I live.

Intuition or coincidence?

Does this ever happen to you?

If you have pre-cognitive thoughts, do you or should you, trust them?

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Published by Forestwood

A philosophic Aussie writes here at StPA, one who will readily admit to loving Scandinavia. I'm interested in global politics and what drives us to be who we are. Scratch the surface and you'll find a practical Environmentalist with an egalitarian bent, trying to unleash a little creativity via the written word. Scandinavian culture, literature and traditions are close to my heart, even though I'm Australian. Travel and courteous discussions greatly broaden the mind, so I travel if I can and am always up for a vigorous, respectful discussion. I'm an avid reader, a writer and I enjoy photography and crafts, particularly traditional art forms. I hope you'll find 'Something to Ponder About,' in my WordPress Community.

66 thoughts on “The World in Our Mind”

  2. When I was a teenager, an aunt told me “you’re your own best friend. No one knows you better than you do and no one should tell you who you are.” In the 1980s and 90s I had an older friend who regarded me as his little brother. He once told me he’d come to trust his instincts and first intuitions about things; having developed such feelings after a stint in the U.S. Navy and years of battling drug addiction and leading a rough life. I last heard from him around 1997 and have longed to find him, if he’s still around.

    As I’ve matured (read: gotten older) I’ve learned to trust my own instincts as well. I’ve noticed sometimes even minor thoughts will pop up in my mind, and then they’ll materialize in one form or another. A friend from several years ago (the one from whom I’d adopted my mini schnauzer) told me he felt I’m psychic or clairvoyant, which I’ve always thought was dubious. I just call it instinct. After all, psychic is just 2 letters away from the word “psychotic”.

    Regardless, I’ve taken the advice of my aunt and the words of my long-ago friend to heart. As we pass through life, we just come to know and understand some things. It’s up to each individual to apply those experiences and all of that knowledge as best as possible to the appropriate circumstances.

    Liked by 4 people

    1. Well said, Laurie. That is a sound recommendation. I often doubt my intuition thinking I am imagining things, but it seems 80- 90 % accurate which I suppose are pretty good stats. I should listen more. I will.

      Liked by 1 person

  6. I try to listen to my intuition, the gut feelings. When I don’t follow that inner voice, the outcome is usually not good! Sometimes we try to drown out that voice, confusing ourselves, creating doubt. But that voice is usually your best guide.

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    1. True words, Dorothy. We often think those gut thoughts must be codswallop, we simply cannot imagine them to be real or predictive of the future. Yet when turn out to be right, we kick ourselves that we didn’t heed their innate advice. Are we influencing our own fate by thinking such things or is there something to intuition? I tend to think the latter.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. I have always believed strongly in intuition. I think we are wired to take in a lot more information than we consciously are aware of, our focus is often so limited. But our mammal senses function all the time, gathering information, collating with past memories, like a remarkable subconscious thinking machine.

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      2. I think you are right, Dorothy. I just couldn’t articulate something that we don’t know enough about, and called in intuition. We observe lots of things yet process only so much. Past memories can sometimes be pivotal in what happens next. At a conscious or subsconscious level.

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  7. Oh my crickey how many times have I not listened to my own intuition & paid for it, one of the things I have taught my kids, my daughter especially. Trust your gut, that quiet little voice in your head. If I’m not sure I pray & ask my closest friends we are very honest with one another.

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      1. Yes, definitely for her safety as she trekked off on some beautiful isolated camping spots down the coast for a few months on her own, some with no phone reception. But also for my son too as some life decisions with jobs & friends & being autistic it is something that you have to teach them how to recognize what that gut feeling is & how to manage that feeling. Have a great shady week, lol shaded from the heat that is.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Love a shady week. We are getting some beautiful showers this week, so I am thrilled! Gosh that is brave og your daughter, camping alone!
        Autism adds an extra layer of difficulty for your son too.

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  8. I do have precognition and in 2019 I had a vision of myself struggling to breathe with some illness. So far, I have been unaware if I had Covid-19.
    As for nurture/nature, both sides of my family have mental illnesses across the spectrum. I met my father’s relatives in my 50’s and was surprised how similar one cousin’s illness was to mine despite being brought up on different continents.

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    1. Wow. I am also constantly surprised by the similarities with different relatives and the mannerisms that my Father or Grandparent had that I notice has come through in my children. It is astounding that traits have come down through many generations. Both good and bad. Nurture was thought to be 80% and nature 20% – studies have now shown it is closer to the reverse!

      Liked by 2 people

      1. My husband was adopted at 3 months old and although he has many mannerisms of his late adoptive parents, he is ‘different’. They gave him a fantastic structure to allow his genius to develop into a career instead of spiraling the other way. I met his adoptive mother 12 hours after we met and she knew I was the one for her son, although she might have liked a different daughter in law. We have been married 38 years plus.

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      2. There is intuition in action! More nature than nurture. Sounds like she knew her son well. Sometimes genes are the important thing in relationship. Families may be close genetically but individuals get on better with their friends than their own siblings or parents. Well done on the 38 years! Was he curious about his biological parents?

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      3. He was very curious about his parents but despite social work helping he was unable to find them. His recent DNA results have found some second cousins but he is still not absolutely sure who his mother was. The records were destroyed… Peculiarly, we lived very close to where his ancestors came from in North East Scotland. It is as if we were drawn there as we could have lived in a 60 circumference.

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  9. I don’t have pre-cognitive thoughts. But I let “things” tell me their story. I had a market research agency, and I used to tell my executives not to worry: the data speaks for itself. Provided you organize it and structure it. That’s how I do my posts: I select 15-20 images. Sequence them and let them talk to me… 😉 The words then come easily. Maybe that’s “pre-cog”?😉

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Well it may be, Brian but I am thinking more like knowing something intuitively.
      Before it is processed. Pre cognitive dreams= predictive dreams, perhaps?
      Having said that, I do know what you mean about writing. Sometimes nothing comes to me, then I’ll read other blogs, an idea forms and the words then tumble out and just flow. It is nice when that happens.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Not sure dreams can be predictive. Read freud for 2 years at the U. so I’m a bit biased. For what we think we know, dreams are a re-construction of the day’s or recent past events, a reprocessing that allows events ot be digested. Nightmares for instance. If you are stopped from dreaming you go batty in a few days.
        And yes, the idea floats in the air and lands on your lap. Lovely.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Yes. I was aware that this is what dreams are and how essential they are. Our brains ‘filing’ system trying to sort through the days events. There must have been some connection with predictive dreams as so many people worry about the potential for them to come true. I once dreamt of the lotto numbers and got all but 2 of them correct. I even had put in a lotto entry as everyone said I should. I could have won $80000 but doubted my dream’s ability to predict the numbers accurately thinking I might get lucky if I put some of the numbers I dreamt of in each games. I never play the lotto incidentally. Consequently, I only won a minor prize…
        Coincidence?
        I also once drove past a house in a rural area that I had seen in a dream. I doubt I had ever be in that area before. The house was nothing special but a little different to the standard. I was flabbergasted when it was exactly how I pictured it in my dream.
        But then, I often have intuitive thoughts. It may be just coincidence.

        Liked by 1 person

      8. Well, he came out well. If it’s at the cost of bad sleep. That can be taken care of with a few meds… Glad he’s ok. And old senior high friend of mine had a stroke last year, and she is in a very bad shape. Can’t walk, cant’ talk. Even with a lot of rehab, I don’t have high hopes.

        Liked by 1 person

      9. There are such variations with strokes. Some do rehabilitate well though. I hope your friend is one of those. It takes time and determination as well as physical attributes. A former boss’ father was in the same way as your friend. He could write though and would scribble notes how he wanted to die as he didn’t want to live in that condition. Several years later, he is walking and talking again, albeit with a few deficits.

        Liked by 1 person

  10. Amanda, thanks so much for participating in #WQWWC. I did not get a pingback for some reason, but was heading through my list of friends to visit tonight and yours was right at the top. I had not linked intuition to trust, but what a great spin on the idea. I don’t always trust my intuition, but there are times I hold fast to my stand because I do trust it. I don’t know how to tell the difference between when I should and when I shouldn’t, to be honest. Thanks for these great thoughts! 🙂

    Liked by 3 people

    1. It is tough to know the difference between trusting one’s own intuition and wishful thinking. It depends on the people involved too. I think that is also where trust comes in. How do you decide you are going to trust someone? Maybe that will help you in your decision whether to trust your intuition?
      I will check the pingback again. Sometimes WordPress is erratic with pingbacks.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I am not an expert on them. I may have overlooked it, too. It seems that I have to go to the post to see them – rather than the notifications.

        Liked by 1 person

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  13. Another thought-provoking post! Love your take on this age-old Nature v Nurture discussion.
    And as you know, it takes me a while to mull over your questions and ideas.

    I will say, at a gut level (I am right on topic this morning, right?), I allow myself to be more intuitive now. For some peculiar reason, I was very mistrustful of my instincts when younger. Clearly it is in my genes, because my mother and both my siblings are highly intuitive. I suspect my Dad is, too, but like me, the drive for logic masked our natural inclinations.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Logic can sometimes override intuition. At least with me, it often does! As I get older, I will tend to followor listen to my instincts more, especially if logic does not help me solve the problem.
      I also think families can have a hereditary tendency to intuit. Listen to it, Ju-Lyn. This sense will also tell you when it is safe to follow the logical path.

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      1. Remember when we were told, “wait till you get older and you will understand”? I obviously rolled my eyes and scoffed. But I think with experience and with more time to listen to our bodies, it is easier to understand.

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  17. Recently I was actually thinking something along this line. I pondered about how much are we really in control of creating with what we are able to choose from. Which I concluded to be very limited options most of the time. But yes we definitely have an incredible power to mold the world we walk through and share.

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      1. I would dare say nothing is entirely limited and there’s always a subtle mix to choose from. But nature doesn’t truly care about giving you what you may consider to be your preferred options. On the other hand, what we nurture is not necessarily what’s best for us until we understand it wasn’t in a bit too late moment. So what do we do? Just walk, make mistakes and attempt to avoid making the same ones again. Life is so simple to do yet so complicated to actually do.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Yes indeed, so much is easy to say and theorize whilst being harder to do in practise.
        The paradox. Life is so simple – A simple, uncomplicated life without clutter may be a happier one. Yet we in the WEIRD (ie. white educated industrialize rich democratic), world crave more material possessions, more of everything – money, friends, love, shelter, affection, challenges, leisure time, etc. Yet this “more” fixation doesn’t necessarily bring with it more happiness. So is a simple life more desirable and is it possible that it could bring us more happiness?

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  18. I think you are right on target here because intuition is a matter of the highest of trust. It’s the only thing I trust and it’s directly related to precognition. I know things that have no reason but it always bears out with resounding truth. As far as mental health issues go, so many of us are still dealing with major PTSD from early and even later trauma. And our parents and their parents suffered the same kinds of trauma. I think I have helped to break the chain to some degree but no one goes through life unscathed. I can always count on you to bring up a great topic. I’ll pop over to Marsha’s in a minute. This is just the end of a day where I am once again considering giving up blogging. I think the time has come.

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    1. Intuition a matter of the highest of trust – how well you articulated my thinking! I also think about previous generation of sufferers with PTSD, especially after the war when they used to call it battle fatigue or nerves. Often they turned to alcohol to self medicate. Yet when I look back on those previous generation I also see hope. Without a diagnosis for their health status, they “soldiered” on and found a way to cope, even though some did fell off the wagon or choose to leave, along the way. The majority coped somehow. Their quality of life would not have been optimal, yet I feel that with some lesser aspects of mental health, we aremuch more responsible for finding what works for us individually. The solution cannot always come from a pill packet (notwithstanding some serious illnesses such as Schizophrenia). There is so much of the brain we don’t know about and playing around with the distribution of brain chemicals is still in such early stages of research.
      Marlene, I am also so sad to hear that you are giving up blogging as you always have so many interesting things to say. I hope you will still pop in to visit us every now and again?

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I obviously can’t give it up completely yet but with the clock ticking, I have to use my time very wisely, Amanda. I think they are finding that pets help those who are struggling with PTSD a great deal better than pills or alcohol.
        You would think by now they could come up with a resolution for Schizophrenia. I think they are making too much off the pills to cure it or anything else.

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      2. I feel sure I replied to this comment, Marlene but sometimes I click off the screen too quickly and the comment does not get posted but disappears into cyberspace. Totally understand that you have to use your time wisely. Prioritise the most important is definitely sensible. There is a long wait list here for assistance/therapy dogs for those folks suffering from PTSD and I so agree it is much more effective than pills or alcohol, especially alcohol which so often triggers a deeper depression.
        As for Schizophrenia and other complex brain disorders, the fields are in such infancy, still. The brain can repair itself in some instances, but schizophrenia goes to the heart of brain chemistry and thinking. I do wish they would research it more so that progress could be faster and perhaps more treatments emerge. I guess the fact that there is organic Schizophrenia and drug induced schizophrenia makes it more difficult to study.

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  20. The heart’s thoughts can be deceiving, although intuition is great when a pattern of repetitive behavior or events are in place. The again, at times we need thoughts that are higher than our thoughts. Thoughts of a higher power.

    Great read! Loved it!

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    1. Thank you for a great comment. My intuition doesn’t always occurr with repeated actions or behaviour but randomly, so I tend to pay attention when it arises. You are absolutely right about the heart. It can be deceiving and doesn’t always decide on one’s best interests.

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