Self control

 Self control is sort of a vague term. It can mean different things to different people. The theories regarding those is also context specific. Theories on what it is, what are the components are many and very interesting.

 I believe one of the things which can be cultivated and can learned is that, I remember when i lose my self control- i spiral out of control- losing my self, leading to more lose of self control. Well, the brain can learn- so we can learn self control. I think Sidharth was correct in many aspects of Psychology - from our sensory organs dont give us correct picture to self control. 

So what part if self control do i have to improve to be successful. Again you can define success as you like it.  So what do i have to learn to control- delay gratification. If you want you can google marshmallow effect . The experiment was replicated in different cultures and seem to have got the same results.

Marshmallow experiment is a funny experiment- you give a child a marshmallow and say- if  you eat it after a certain amount of time (say 15 minutes) you will get another or more. The researcher leaves the room. Most of the child just eat eat them. some after sometime of looking at it. Some children have patience- and dont eat it. Well these children develop into do better in life. 

This self control of not looking for instant satisfaction- joined phd , tell them you have to plan for 2 years to plan the study, you know people who dont do it- are key board phds. looking for short cuts- dont worry your success if going to come through other ways, we are a very corrupt society so we can achieve success also through other means. But if you want to succeed with a different definition- delay your gratification. 

There are many parts to self control- but this is one important factor and i think it can be learned and taught to our children. Well, in the middle age i dont know how many in my age group can learn- but our children can be taught. But please note- one factor of a complex phenomenon- the self control.

I think when we buddha said, there is no self and if we can get a epiphany there is no sense - i think self control is easy. That guy had some wonderful insights than any other human- well may be darwin.

o, the tea is read- i cant delay that- cold tea is just ehhhh   

Self esteem

 I lost my self esteem some years back. It is a by- product of depression and well depression and self are in a vicious circle. The influence each other and make it worse. It is not that, it is always in the low- it feels like a cyclic weather. It goes up, down, plateaus and then it rains- thats the worst period- not the weather. 

I am reading and learning more and about these things and learnt something new and interesting. People with high self esteem, well as we assume over estimate what they can do- well i never did, probably my self esteem was not always high in the first place. Some of my friends have pointed out i have always been afraid to be "positive". I could not believe- well it seems so true.

The advantage of depression is - "we" see the world for what it is. We dont over estimate. We see the true picture it seems. What a depression thing isnt it. The POV from my mind when i am depressed is sometimes bleak. I see the world as a horrible place where we are all hunting each other- well thats the true picture isnt it. 

If you think you have a higher self  esteem- you are lucky - you may be more happier. But that does not guarantee any success.  People have pointed out i always see the "flaw" in what they try. I dont encourage them. Well- sadly thats true. I dont- I rarely something positive about what people have achieved- this is relation to PT and all walks of life- hahaha. One of the reasons i hate all politicians, I am assuming (cant stop writing in passive voice). I usually or have rarely said positive things about people achievement. It may stem from my bleak way of seeing the world, but also i am not impressed that easily. That includes what i think i have achieved- weather real or perceived. It seems I like to ruin self esteem of people.

I used to have high self-esteem, but it was lost as a result of depression. This depression and self-esteem are intertwined, influencing each other and making things worse. It's like a cyclic weather pattern that goes up, down, plateaus, and then crashes. The worst part is when it rains.

I have been learning more about these topics and discovered that people with high self-esteem are often assumed to overestimate their abilities. But this was not the case for me, as I never overestimated my abilities, which suggests that my self-esteem was never really high to begin with. My friends have pointed out that I have always been afraid of being positive. I couldn't believe it at first, but it seems to be true.

One advantage of depression is that it allows us to see the world for what it is, without overestimating. Our perspective becomes bleak, and we see the world as a terrible place where everyone is hunting each other. Although this may not be a positive viewpoint, it is a true one.

If you have high self-esteem, you are lucky, as it may make you happier. But it does not guarantee success. I have been told that I always see the flaws in others' attempts and rarely say anything positive. This is true in all aspects of my life, including my relationships and my opinions about politicians. I don't like to ruin people's self-esteem, but I rarely praise others' accomplishments, even my own. This may stem from my bleak view of the world, but it also means that I am not easily impressed.

So people have accused that i am ruining the self image of students or PTs. Well guilty as charged. I have tried, but as they say the mouth wants to say the frontal brain is not allowing. There are few people i have said or told in my lectures as PTs who have done good work and achieved professional excellence. The common PTs i have named in many talks are: Cynthia, Prakash and Vasanthan. Sadly Vasanthan has still not achieved what he should.

To achieve something it seems you dont need a good self esteem- it is self control. How true was Siddharth. He said you can learn self control and see the world for what it is. but i am digressing- self control is what makes people achieve. I think the success of Prakash is because of his self control. I know the rejections, the not so moving professional life, not so successful studies- he had the self control not to lose his self and keep on. So if you want to achieve true greatness not some IAP- best PT award or some toilet paper publications - learn self control.

I think the first step is for us to learn whats sef control- lets start       .    

50 years and still dont deserve it

I entered the car, waited for a while, and then curled up in a foetal position, placing my head on my wife's lap and closed my eyes. It took some time for my heart rate to calm down and for my mind to stop shaking. The reason for this was that I had stepped out of my comfort zone by going back to college. Teaching with patients, which I usually don't like doing, went well. I had gone two days without any anxiety attacks.
The day ended with more love, but unfortunately, my inner system couldn't accept it. It was yearning for an escape room. As the day went on and more love was shown, my system couldn't handle it anymore, and I had an anxiety attack when they asked me to cut the cake. I wanted to enjoy the love, but my system wouldn't let me. Maybe I didn't see myself as deserving of it, but I'm not entirely sure. Even after all this time, I still don't understand why my system rejected the love.
Perhaps I need more time before I can interact with people again. Even though it was embarrassing to run away from love, it was my limit. I'm learning more and more about myself. I'm broken in many ways, and I've been denying it, which only makes the cracks worse.
My wife helped me calm down by reminding me to breathe while I was hyperventilating. It was quite a predicament, but luckily, it went away when I fell asleep that night after having a north Indian meal in Karaikudi. It was a shame that they didn't have Karaikudi food where we stayed, and we made fun of them for it. The next day, the wedding went smoothly, and then I ran back home to go to the escape room.
What's next for me? Probably limited social participation. I'm also worried about the suffering of children that I love. It's unlike me to worry about others, but my system is acting strangely. It's telling me, as the Waterboys said, "This is the sea, you idiot, and you are untethered. Hold on to your limbic system."
I know that I might be playing the victim, but I did enjoy the attention. However, my system thinks it's too much.

shut up self

These are the thing i think is what it means not to have a self. The self accumulates a trillion identities and truths.  The self thinks these identities and truth are true- that's a weird sentence. As time goes by it assumes these truths and identities are the same as the self. identifies some truth which it mostly does not have any empirical evidence to say it true. Even if it empirically true why should the self think that is same as the self. I know these are all abstract and everyone keep on telling me- what is wrong with you can you write clearly.

Well, most of us identify self with loved ones. I get angry if someone says something about my wife or my son. Why? that is not me. When they do something spectacular- " I" am more than proud to say "they" are "my"  wife, son student. As though if i was not there they could have not done it. I am the parasite which is happy when the host is happy.
Wider. Most of our self identifies with the school, the college, some teacher- and happy when they are praised as a group. OO you went to IIT, oo your daughter cleared NEET- the self is so happy- as we are part of a elite group of people who did clear those exams. I am proud when my friends chidden clear those exams. That good you might say. You are proud for something you are not part of it- it may be less selfish. well there comes the problem.

The problem comes when "my" people my "creed" is attacked. If i say the PM is doing a bad job ( i know thats the softest i can go) or the CM is just horrible as the last one. I know some of our self is immediately jumping up and down- and saying, " this idiot will criticize everyone" or  " how dare you criticize mudi (no not a typo). well why are you defending someone who is not "you". why is your self offended when i say mudi is useless or the sun tv mafia is that and the earlier one just a joke. Why? we have become the group. we think our group is offended- i need to defend it- otherwise my ego will cry.

Well in recent times- i have understood if you tell the "truth" someone will be offended. Go and tell a person with a self which is stuck with a party, a creed, a god, a religion or a treatment cult- not they are wrong just say something innocuous like- are you sure this is the truth? they will pounce on you. well if you are the person who pounces on that- sorry the self is sticky- very sticky. My groups have gone- my sticky groups i have to kick off. thinking i have done these is making my self happy and me - come on you stupid ego. 

I think if you are not offended when someone "offends" your caste- which is the first thing we need to learn to understand illusory self- the self is on the right path. When i go to marriage from my mothers side the "proud" of being in a caste is so overwhelming you could think they discovered penicillin. When you leave that as a good person once told "u can make fun of my caste i have left it long ago. I think that a guy whose self is going towards being one. 

I should add making fun of my home town- i always thought part of my self- then i found, really no. it is just a town with people and poor waste management. It should not define my self- hence should not get hurt- you see that is what i think happens if the self is a illusion. That does not mean i am going to be quite if someone is acting like a little evil dog- as it does not affect me- we fuck no- but i should be aware i am a not going to change anything.

 

If someone makes fun of your religion- well i dont want to offend your self by actually saying it. get it? If you are defending a book by some bronze age uneducated people needs defence- i am peaty sure that book is not the truth. Truth should shine and make us happy- should not need social media wars or real wars. I slowly need to understand losing self is not going to happen- but i know how far i can go. leave it self- leave it- you will be alright. love everything- hate everything, but dont think thats your self 

leave the group- the self is slightly liberated. leave the group from political parties caste and others- well why is my self telling these things- it need to shut its mouth  

 

sick so some angry, very angry rant

 When i went to trichy I was talking with a friend, one of the dedicated PTs in pediatrics. If it was any other country the man could have been hailed as a innovator in bringing leisure activities in children with disabilities. I usual dont say someone is doing good work- as find in our country if you do your work it is such a outlier people think they should be great, I dont. You can disagree, thats okay.

I met B!@#$ when i went to deliver my yearly lecture in neuro-rehab at my alma matter- what a honor going back to where you read and now say "well all those are wrong".  Any how- every year i go and Bala will invariably come- listen, answer question, not show anything when i say - thats not the right answer. From my personal change- if you are not willing to  get your ego hurt you are not learning- you are in a echo chamber. 

After years- discussions with him- i know it sounds patronizing- but became mature. He was eager and was studying and doing course which most of paeds PTs dont. I mean most of them are idiots who learn NDT and think thats PT- sorry dear that is some wonderfully useless cow urine. He became well versed in classification to to the "f" word in paeds- no no not the f word which came to your mind- f for family. 

This alone is impressive- but as i said i think these are just the basics- i appreciate someone doing it- but thats not still makes you a real PT in my books. Some years back he called me and said he is going to organize cricket for children with cerebral palsy. I was completely floored. What a great idea- what a innovative thinking from the Childs point of view. You know the IITs come up with some innovations and it will be in papers and all- but if you see the project it will mostly be vanity project with zero inputs from patients. But this was a truly proper patient value based activity.

I am not going into the details- you need to talk to him understand the hard work and thinking he put into it. He has a team- so he himself will tell you it is not just him- that again a hall mark of a PT who works for patients. 

Well enough with B!@#, This blog is not about his achievements alone. The problem is with why have none of your heard about any of this. There is a uneducated idiot who teaches NDT and he is treated as some sort of "expert" basically because he learnt and works in white country. Why have you not learnt any thing in cp management which is useful- what you learn in college or in NDT workshop people like asha teach is used toilet paper.

Why dont we in TN call him for lectures and his idea?  Even useless colleges from Madurai to Madras dont invite experts from TN. They want someone who is not from TN and preferably from other state so that they can call it national level seminar or conference.  Then we have colleges like SRMC, savitha, and others who pretend to be a university will never call anyone who does not work in a college. Why? what do you mean why? then he will come and talk and he will not call me to his college- has he has no college- as a expert or as a examiner- he has zero value. Call someone from punjab or mumbai- they will call me back and i can say i was invited to talk- do you think otherwise anyone wants to hear what rubbish i have to say? come on man last time i opened a book  from 1990 and say the last patient when i went to canteen and got a glimpse of the  waiting room.

We have courage less lions, with deep seated insecurity- who dont want to promote anyone from our state- but like the useless women cell of TN call the "president" of the cell to talk and also the whole of IAP conference by the TNIAP- most of the speakers were even good enough to speak in kindergarden school for the hearing impaired.  And then there are the SIP guys- they all come in suit and they all shit like its iap national conference- just the attire is different. Same is true in movies also- just look at the new mani movie- every tamil king looks like he has never seen the son and all the women look like a advert for fair and lovely - but there i can understand mani only concern is money, but we should be more than that.

So have some courage- promote local talent- find people who work for the patient. Not some idiot with a useless certificate. you can put national in anything, dont worry. I know no one will call you as a expert- thats okay dear, we know you are not, you also know it- why do you want it to be known to all the students also. Students - poor students- you are all fucked- nothing is going to change you are going to listen to idiots - o well i completely forgot you are never inside the conference halls and sleep at the CME

 

  

pain as emergence

Pain exemplifies emergence because it is a complex output of the system and cannot be reduced to its elementary parts that cause it. Although reductionism helps in understanding some aspects of pain, it falls short of explaining the whole experience. For instance, people who have been in violent accidents may not lose consciousness and seem to feel no pain, which is a strange way pain arises. 

We know the examples of how people who have been in violent accident. don't lose consciousness and seem to be in no pain.  Search for mannequin hand pain experiment you will see weird way pain arises (you can watch one of it here ) . While we can comprehend some features of emergence, such as the activation of nociceptors and the involvement of chemicals, we are stuck when it comes to understanding how pain emerges in the system and is felt by us. 

Reductionism is a way to study complex systems by examining their subsystems. For example, we can study the nerve endings that are activated by a "painful" stimulus, identify the activated structures (nociceptors), follow the signal pathways, and trace where they end up in the brain cortex. However, this reductionism falls short of providing a complete picture of pain, as it is merely one pathway among many.

Unfortunately, many doctors and physical therapists reduce the complex system of pain to one muscle dysfunction, one tissue issue, or inflammation, thinking they have found the cause. However, this is reductionism of the worst variety, stemming from poor teaching of physiology in exercise therapy. Exercises do not merely change muscle strength, but the whole system from the brain to the endocrine system, resulting in a complex output.

Pain emergence involves numerous indivisible parts, such as central sensitization, nociception, acute changes in pain chemicals, innumerable pathways, inhibitors and excitatory chemicals, the complex psychological state of the patient, and the physical context that alters the biochemistry. Although we can read about these parts in a reductive manner, they are complex systems that are never merely parts, as the philosopher Nagarguna explained.

Therefore, we should never consider parts as causing factors, as they are far more complex. Exercise therapy leads to complex changes and seems to work in many instances of painful conditions. We should discard our exercise therapy books and disregard those who teach rubbish as "clinical reasoning," such as the cup boys and muscle impairment dorks.

Let us embrace the complexity of pain emergence and enjoy it.

What's a strong emergence

 Some more explanation on emergence will be nice- no one said. But as usual i thought why cant i give it anyway. I do love telling people what they absolutely never need or asked for. Well in a way all these blogs are that, but hopefully it amuses some.

From thin air- which we can see we get produce or get water. we might have even observed this when we put a cold glass of water and in sometime viola droplets appear on the outside like magic. You see there is even phase shift- from air to liquid. Is this emergence- apparently not. It is important for us to know this can be deduced - that is the chemical reaction of how this happens. The second reason are the most important reason is emergence is usually reserved for complex systems as simple systems are easy to figure out for scientist 

When we see magic- we see something emerge out of thin air. like money, a beautiful women or even cards which you thought in your mind. When we try to deduce it, it seem impossible, like Jesus turning water into wine or Krishna opening his mouth to show the universe. Well if it is not impossible to produce the end product, to its constituting ingredients- then it is emergence. So a women or the card you thought or the wine cannot come from the materials available isnt it. I mean wine without grapes, women without - well you get the point. But again this is not emergence -as we know these are either perceptual tricks - and well if you still think magic is real- i dont know weather to be jealous of the kid inside you or think whats wrong with your frontal brain.

But sometimes in a complex system it is difficult to see how something emerges.  How did we happen to get friends in FB who we have no way of knowing, geographically divergent, divergent interest and so on. How did a "guru" or televangelist get- that too after be exposed for all the sexual adventures and seemingly childish sermons- difficult to know how the huge following emerged? not really it seems. Unlike us smart people can deduce to some extent how these things emerge- some call them weak emergence. There is a some causal pathways but not perfect. But we will come to understand better when we get more data- like what mark and his mafia are doing with the algorithm in FB.

Well now the only strong emergence according to many philosophers, physicists, biologist and mathematicians is conscious. From the underlying material- the brain tissue- how is it we are developing conscious- the ability to think move and tell our loved ones- you ruined my life. Can materialism failing us? it seems so- i dont have any idea how it is failing us as i am none of the above scholars. But i can imagine the marvel of brain. When i talk i know i am doing it without thinking and sometimes people are amazed with what comes out of my mouth especially children and then sometimes it is so vile people are astonished- all these without much of planning. Only when i am mindful i seem feel like i am planning. No one plans to drive a car it seems to emerge from our brain- where to brake, go faster, slower, look around when something happens without losing control and like  saravanan- driving the car without any awareness of potholes and speed breaker and when we all complain smile sheepishly and reply " hahaha, I did not see". All these emerge and we have the faintest idea how all these happen. That is emergence- a strong emergence- from a complex system of chemical system with so many parts we walk, talk, think - that for now is magic. No explanation is complete clear and able to explain. 

Others like walking on water, showing the universe in the mouth are for children who will believe rajinikanth is a actor, and I am Santa Claus with dyed hair. Children dont have a developed frontal brain.

      

experience

Experience has taught me that every day, I realize how much of an idiot I was the day before. The illusory passage of time, which the brain perceives as experience, constantly reshapes its neural connections, leaving me feeling foolish for my previous ignorance. Despite my belief that I am getting closer to the truth, time always manages to remind me how far I truly am. 

Every day, I realize that I was an idiot the day before, even in instances where objective truth is easy to discern, such as in medicine or physics. The illusory passage of time allows the brain to make changes in its network, making me feel like I was foolish in the past. For example, the other day, I learned about how electricity travels, and I immediately thought about how foolish I was before. I even questioned the quality of education that my physics teacher received. In the early 2000s, I was very confident in my knowledge of stroke rehabilitation, and when I wrote my book, I felt that I was very close to the truth. However, now I realize how naive I was. It's not that my basic premise was wrong, but there is so much more to explore before I can confidently close the book.

If experience does not change us- it is either a seer life or an idiotic life.  If we achieve equanimity i suppose we dont have to change and feel let down by our self. But i am sure we are not going to. If we have given up or our mind is closed with self and have faith- then the brain is fucked up. If you have no feeling for others like many PTs in GH and you think sitting and cleaning the chair you sit in with your ass is important - then well probably you dont need to worry about your brain, you are already in heaven. If you are teacher and your notes are older than your child, or ppt is from website dont worry you are brain is fully developed you have achieved nirvana.

The illusion of time is real for the brain. It has to change as the context keeps on changing. It keeps on looking for ways to keep the person safe. So it is always finding ways to keep you safe, well as i keep on yapping not about finding the truth. So if you are doing the same thing again and again and people think you are working diligently the self will assume you are safe- why should it look for truth or challenge and waste energy. If you do for quite sometime the brain will change in such a way i will be resilient to change so there you go- you have achieved nirvana and the big ape you are have become a tortoise. 

Experience does not make us better- it is just time it can lead us in any random direction. Sometimes that random direction makes useful for others- sometimes for ourselves sometimes a useless tortoise. Of all these experience has a way of making your ego- the self larger and larger, hmm, i had those feeling- what a wonderfully useless feeling. The self is so happy but it is fleeting and you fall down with a thud.

Beware of time and experience is what I think is closure to truth. well as i said, i am pretty sure thats wrong, i will regret writing this. But now it seems closure to truth. The self wants to say this out loud even though it know it will regret it later. 

  love

Hariohm

out of Africa

Many of the world's major religions were founded in Asia, including Judaism which gave rise to Christianity and Islam, as well as Hinduism which played a role in the emergence of Jainism and Buddhism. Other religions in Asia either gradually declined or were absorbed into Buddhism.

It seems that ancient religions often claimed to be chosen by God, as if they were God's favorite flavor of ice cream. This may be because they were created by Bronze Age shepherds who were scared of everything and had no understanding of the universe.

But nowadays, it's hard to believe that any group of people can be God's chosen ones. It seems ridiculous to think that God would have favorites when even most mothers don't have a favorite child. However, if you visit a temple in India, you may still encounter this belief.

This is not another critique of religion, but rather a discussion about human evolution and migration. The first humans, including Homo sapiens and other hominids like Neanderthals, are believed to have originated in Africa. This conclusion was drawn through genetic testing of the global population, which showed that African genes are the oldest. As humans migrated out of Africa, they interbred with Neanderthals, resulting in the presence of Neanderthal genes in most populations outside of Africa. Even today, traces of Neanderthal genes can be found in some populations. Considering this, perhaps the term "God's chosen people" should be applied to those who walked out of Africa, rather than to people from a specific Asian or Central Asian region.

So it is believed that humans originated in Africa and eventually migrated to the Middle East, where we began practicing agriculture. This development, as Robert Sapolsky has pointed out, has been both a blessing and a curse for humanity. By storing food for the future, we gained more free time, which allowed us to think about and contemplate the mysteries of the universe.

No group is special as we all migrated from Africa and learnt and adapted to different environment  from siberia to the hot and Humid Madras. In between we invented languages, measurements, and tools. So no language is fucking gods language- it is all evolved. So Indo- European languages like Latin and Sanskrit is not special- some idiots told they were and we like good monkeys said ok my lord. Now the big apes in Europe have told Latin to fuck off and started talking to invisible friends (i mean god) in mother tongue. And behold as he is invisible and imaginary he was okay with that also- anyway what is he going to do cure cancer in children or make spastic children walk? But even though some humans said- naa to Sanskrits poems and god chosen people we did not change as a matter of fact we exported them to all of Asia and completely remove them in India.

Well the other thing which is interesting is the genetic materials inside the mitochondria. They come from our mothers unlike other genes which is a combination of both parents. Well long behold when they went back even in fossil DNA- it is all same- we all come from "a " mother from Africa- the Mitochondrial eve 

Why do we have bigotry, caste chauvinism, racism, colorism, and other forms of division? We are all human beings, with different skin colors but the same basic humanity. Why do some people think they are superior to others? If you truly believe in a higher power, shouldn't that lead you to humility and selflessness, rather than arrogance? This is why we need to rely on reason and empathy, rather than blind faith, in order to be good to each other. Faith should be reserved for our loved ones, who we trust to support us even in difficult times. But ultimately, we are all part of the same global family, sharing the same planet and the same mother earth. Let's remember that and treat each other with kindness and respect.

• Early Indians: The Story of Our Ancestors and Where We Came From
• WHO WE ARE AND HOW WE GOT HERE EPZI P: Ancient DNA and the new science of the human past
• The Gene: An Intimate History

are few of the books you might be intrested in if you want to know more

This is my nihilistic politics

I leave left to the centre. What it means in my mind is- the fucking government should build 100 more colleges and 1000 more schools and probably nationalize all hospitals. The centre leaning in me think no one should have tenure. It means all government employee will work if not put we can ask them to be a swiggy executive- no skill required and every middle class dork will write about how those people are working hard and sweating- shutting there useless eyes to every class four worker in the hospitals, every nurse they have every encountered in the private hospital they go, every one who works for them. See i am angry because they are just fucking impervious to the suffering of people. I understand we cant do anything- but at least have some courage and be a big ape rather than a cockroach. 

leaning to centre - i think many things the government seems have trouble running it also we need competition to grow- say- telecommunication, electronics and much more. Sadly these right wing ideas have a problem- crony capitalism- which you can see around you. Just read the adverts for real estates, the telecom mafia, the TV media, private colleges etc are all text book crony capitalism. also the way the workers are treated in private sector makes the socialist in me think - really is it worth it? Just look at the way PTs are treated in star hotel hospitals or so called universities 

I am also a liberal- which means i think we should move from the evil society we have made- which made Dalits, gods who are jealous -read Abrahamic religions. become more human without any difference is what i think a liberal is. In indian context- I believe in marrying anyone, believe my son can say get lost- i want to do what i want, caste chauvinism, language chauvinism, bigotry should be next to shit, eat what the fuck you want- for your info- unlike 99 .99 %  of people i have eaten horse meat- so. the list goes on  

I hate all the political parties from bharat matha ki ja party to the sun tv mafia to the corruption queen of TN. I do hate BMKJ party more than others because - well because i hate them- who cares i do. I hate the actor who acts like a politician and keeps on yapping about Tamil -equally to BMKJ party- as both think we are all not equal- so they can go and cry in the corner if they dont agree. I dont hate people who support them- i just think they are just sad. Does it make you think- he thinks he knows everything and behaves as though others are stupid and he is always correct. OO you are exactly correct. like everyone in the world i have a self and ego- and it makes me believe i am correct. If it does not i could have become a "proper human" or as The Buddha said- a Buddha. 

I do think we should have to say which is right , which i will support, who is the lesser evil. I do believe in common civil code - which most of the left does not. I do think schools and colleges should be nationalized which no political party in the center or left will agree. I dont agree with express ways- so Nitin i dont think you are effective - even though of the lot he seems to be able to "do" things unlike other sycophant's.      

I believe there is no such think as merit. but sadly we need some marks to send people away. I dont believe NEET makes medicine better- a reform of education is what will make it better- first step make teachers of medicine to go home, throw away the syllabus, add maths, philosophy and psychology. so thats another contraindication- where in i myself think i am intelligent but still think that is a illusion and if we dont have values the intelligent is shit- as seen by the idiots who are in IAS, IPS and the uselessness of IIT in producing any research which is useful for the people- they do it for "getting published" - so thats ehh 

I do like Rahul even though i am not in favor of anyone from his party in my home state- they are all lazy goose with no spine. I do like thirumavalavan but dont like anyone surrounding him- well probably one MLA. Dont agree with many of his stance also but i think he is fighting a losing battle- and i love people who do that.  I do like PTR even though I am sad he is in the TV mafia party- so that that- full of contraindication. I did like vijayakanth- sadly i dont think he has any economic agenda or i dont think he talked about it - so cant judge his party- i think it is just another shit. So i do love some individuals but probably wont vote for them -well sometimes i might

I usually dont care if anyone talks about religion- mostly because I think most of them have read any books in which the religion is based on. I don't and will not agree to have evil things in "holy book". And all holy books have it in abundance- from the god telling me i am less of a man than another group to genocide in old testament (which by the way is nearly similar in all dessert religions).  Liberal values are for humans- they can be good and bad, have a beautiful philosophy but might have been a ass or a flawed in our mind- but not god books. So my politics of religion is in one word - evil. Evil books and evil religion cannot make us better. Well if you say it made you better- well i am not talking about individuals- i have good friends who are in BMKJ part to sun tv party- that is not how i judge. I judge it as a group- as i believe mobs will do what no individuals wont do - from burning buses to raping pregnant women. accept for queen of corruptions, as anderson cooper once said- you will defend trump even if he takes a dump on the oval office desk- so thats "us"  

Talk politics, teach your children what is what. Understand it is not about the leader- but about the people- then we are cool.  

language

 language is a funny thing. It is just a sound a group of people make- made it produces so much emotions in us. Well i think there is no inherent - mother language chauvinism. It is a political issue to think my language is the best or it has so many words and much more. Language is just a sound we make along with some lines we draw if it were used for long.

All languages has the function of expressing what we think to others in a comprehensive manner. We have  a brain which tells us- what " i" think cannot be same as the next person. This self awareness makes us want to communicate with other members of the tribe. 

One of the first thing it strike you if you read "discover of india" is vastness and the rich languages we speak. Now it is easy to understand our diversity- easy to travel and watch "reels" to know the variations among us. When i went to study away from home town- i was astonished with the variations of Tamil spoken among my classmates of 22. The contraction of the words by my friends from down south was just amazing. In Tamil we finish lot of verbs with "kirathu" in formal Tamil. But the contractions of it in spoken languages is amazing- it changes from "kutu" to just "KI". when they finish with Ki it is so funny for my to listen. Sadly most of my Madurai accent is lost and it is sort of sad. living in Chennai and speaking in English while teaching has made it disappear. 

I am poor in learning languages. I have trouble learning newer languages- Unlike many of my friends and my son. 

Anyway it seems south east language have a unique DNA. It seems if you have retroflexion of tongue is a unique feature of it. What it means is you have to bend your tongue to bend it backwards to produce sounds - like la, li lu, taa and much more. We now know all over languages are  mixture and nothing is "pure". All languages are influenced by each other.

The Dravidian languages spoken in south India has pronounced retro-flexion and it seems they all might have arose from a unknown proto-Dravidian language. The amazing thing is it might have slowly moved to south india from the regions of Iran and Afghanistan. How do we know that- some people still speak some form of protodravidian langauges still there. how fascinating. 
Well as time goes by Dravidian languages had influences from languages of the North. Again from Uzbekistan region to north of India it could have slowly come. Those languages have more dental phonetics. I may not be able to explain it properly by they way they say tha, dha - you know. Thats dental sound. I cant do that and thats why it is so difficult to speak Hindi. I am never going to make those sounds properly so no. Also the movies they make it very difficult to watch hence cant learn. The movies in Hindi- i could rather have constipation rather than see them.
Sanskrit is more dental and Dravidian languages were more retrofelxion. But it did not stay like that both influenced each other. classic example is my name Ha is more dental. local south asian langauges influenced sankrit and prakrit making it add retro sounds to it. all langauges are sounds humans make. More influences came from king, merchants and wanders it seems- you know from the Persian kings, making up of creoles for business and much more. 

Nothing to be proud of, it evolved like everything. Happy we would write poems making it sound beautiful, communicate truth, lies, evil and much more. I have not read or heard most of the Indian languages leave alone world languages- still it is so common for us to say my mother tongue is the best. how stupid and Narcisi tic 

More info in this book

 https://www.amazon.in/Wanderers-Kings-Merchants-through-Languages/dp/0670093688
Journey Of A Civilization by R Balakrishnan (Author)
Sindhuveli Panpaattin Dravida Adithalam

freedom

 whats freedom. One of the favorite idea J.K theme in his talks is freedom. what he talking about? we are all free. We are free to choose our favorite invisible friend (i mean the god ) or how to live or how to eat -well if all things go according to plan it may get curtailed in our country- but we have those for now at least to some level. Of course we dont have free speech as our country is full of cry babies who will be "hurt" when you say something- but wont be seeing a ghetto, a slum, millions of people living 2 times a day food.  well lets stop with making feel happy about our country and lets talk bout freedom.

Freedom is not from external variables. I think we cannot go away from that. I have to feel angry when a person is appressed, I have to follow the laws of the society. I cannot be free of that. I am talking about real freedom. Freedom comes from not knowing things and then seeing things. Freedom comes from losing self.

I know i have been harping about self too much. Well as i said earlier i write to amuse myself not for anything, so bare with "me". If i lose my "self" a minute of the day the freedom is vast- and seems so much joy. The joy of losing in the movement- joy of not inside the illusion of  time. just amazing to think isnt it.

If i am not, what is left- everything. The endless everything. sadly it is not enough for the self- the self seem to be craving for more self not freedom. The endless accumulation of "knowledge" seem to the important thing for it. I am not just talking about scholarly knowledge- i mean- how to make him buy this, how to milk my patient for the last drop, how to sell a app which no one wants, how to make money for my grandchild with a Strom drain work contract all these. It wants that- so that self can become stronger and the freedom becomes elusive.

The freedom to thing and observe without a piriori knowledge. Just think how beautiful it could be to think like that. The first original thought, the first original peace- not the one we think is peace, the euphoria, the brain dropping its flight or fight and see things as it as.

The freedom is i believe is what moving antagonist to the evolution. The brain busting and making us free from conditioning which we accumulated for a millennia and more. Just think leaving everything we learnt and seeing- 

freedom of not inside the cocoon we weaved for ourselves, the not worried about - is this me who is doing this, is this how i want to be known, will my girlfriend leave me if i see this- this way , freedom of not hurting the self. the freedom of dropping the self

when you see it call me

Love

Hariohm

 

A old FB post on stroke rehab

 My musing on stroke rehabilitation:

The other day i went to teach a bunch of PT students (UG and PG) stroke rehabilitation. Before starting of the speech i had a bad feeling, except for a few none of them had seen a person with stroke.

In the morning they were all listening patiently when i was trying to set them up for rehabilitation of gait in stroke in the afternoon. They all seem to listening- well some of them were sleeping and others were thinking when he will close his mouth. Come the end of the morning session – i was trying to say if you want to improve walking- walk ( if you want to swim- swim- and not go to the gym for learning to swim). Some of them got agitated- what –so no practical’s on how to reduce spasticity- well in the first hour itself i have been talking on the difficulties i reducing spasticity in stroke and the faultily of the endeavour. So why are we hear? So if we are just going to make him walk what is the need for PT? What about “Roods, Bobath, Brunstrom” etc- These were some of the questions.

similar post i Recent saw in an a forum for PT in FB- (http://www.facebook.com/groups/162812190434246/) with similar theme – that is similar to the question- for ecelecctive approach by some PT who claims he has done his method on 600 patients and it is the way to go forward. When someone asks for evidence he gives the usual crap.

It got me thinking- why are we so wound up into thinking we are the saviours of our people- without us they can’t do anything. Why do we think if it is active exercise – it is not PT driven treatment. What is our fascination with “hands on” treatment? Why do we need to refer to some old horrible techniques and rehash as something new?

So what is my take on all these things? Primarily we should stop saying the H word- “hands on” especially when it comes to neuro and a Post graduate course. PTs should stop claiming some crap written when most of were not born to be some fantastic and brilliant technique. We should stop ourselves from teaching this nonsense and move towards teaching science or evidence based treatment. On eccelctic approach- well if we add 5 peoples garbage- you will still have garbage not briyani . Stop saying PROM as an exercise- no dummy that is time pass (again refer to any forum of PT). Stop saying all the crap and move towards science

love

Hariohm

emergence

 I know lot of people cant understand the miracle that is the brain. Ask anyone how do we walk, the answers will make you feel like you are watching loksaba television- you know just words and sounds which mean nothing- 90 percent bull shit and the other 10 percent shit.

How can we keep on thinking about something. How does the biology which communicates with each other seemingly with electric impulse suddenly emerge as "thinking", goal, and movement in cartesian space. The world i have been using for long time even in the book is emerge.

It is a word which has true meaning when it come to the brain. True emergence is reserved for emergence of conscious. You know the secrets thought which is emerging in your brain- what the duck is he talking, that girl was beautiful, omg that movie was crap, i should be cutting the radial artery to see how the life drain out slowly- ooo that went dark. 

the goal of going from the seat to take the remote- how did it happen. How did the materials in the brain do that. Did i plan it? did you plan? did you really think where is what geometrically and made the plan to move? do you know what muscle to activate to walk? are seeing important? dont people without sight walk? dont people who dont understand aerodynamics drive a plane?

The miracle of emergence. The emergence of thinking, the mind , the movement is truly a emergence, some have called it hard emergence in contrast to other places as soft emergence. why was i not taught these - so that i can understand the complexity of human- hmm. But i am digressing- whats emergence?

Well this is going to be - i dont know incomprehensible. Well the first thing to remember- the human body is a complex system. What it means is it has innumerable small systems or parts. when you put all these systems together something emerges. In most of the time you can explain with maths or physics - sort of reverse engineering. But we dont have the slightest clue how a biological matter suddenly emerges into a conscious. Suddenly around 1- 2 years you understand "you" are separate from others. suddenly the movements starts to emerge - how wonderful.

all from the star dust- the same carbon and other molecules which make our petrol, plastic you are holding in the hand to the water we drink- suddenly from that emerges the human brain of thinking- that think makes your world. fills with pleasure, illusion, anger and time (just a sample of things it make up.

enjoy life- when you are bored think about the evolution of brain and emergence of mental state. 

love 

Hariohm

whats up with the legs

 why do we have legs? isnt having wheels better? why did not any animal evolve into having wheels? that for me is an interesting question. So if you already have figured it out this blog is not for you. Well we know evolution made us better isnt it? It has made us into a conscious being where I am self aware and also i can think what others might think of me and what i think others may think of me. All these without others knowing. The hands which are so such a beautiful tool with the opposing thumbs. The brain and hand in a sense has made us such a violent and successful species. We make thing and admire our ingenuity. We destroy thing and happy with it.

If we have wheel like lower limbs couldnt it be better? could we not be more efficient? may be cars could be less there in the destruction of Earth could have been less? I think so. But it is not simple isnt it. So the answer in one word- context.

The environment we have to survive is far more complex. It is not flat like the autobahns. They are rough, uneven and with hills mountain and trees.  If i have kangroo legs- if we had- we could perhaps not climbed the Kilimanjaro or mount Everest. Never invented ladder if we had wheels. Not domesticated coconut trees- what could have happened to malayalam cooking- well it could have been tastier hahah   

Legs- that made us dominate the earth.

i dont know what this all means- i just found this to be amusing and i am bored- so

LOve

Hariohm

  

The Matrix

Our body has sense organs which are not meant to be perfect. They dont give us "true" meaning of the world. They are not meant to do that. As we all know evolution is for survival- hence the organs evolve to give us the best senses to survive. What it means is it does not worry about right or wrong - it worries about what is that sensation and how does it affect my survival. 

We learn about the perception illusions from books to innumerous social media posts. One of the examples for the above idea is peripheral vision. Peripheral vision in humans is surprisingly monochrome not in colour- what- well its true. Why? 

You also notice when someone or something is moving in the Conner of your eye rather than which is in the front of you.  It may be because vision is worried about sneak attack and to defend them- peripheral vision is given that "extra". In modern life- crossing the road to riding a bike is very much dependent on the peripheral vision and its ability to sense movements (in the peripheral region.).  

When you walk in the night and you see in the corner of the eye -a street dog steering- you take evasive steps- irrespective of  whether it moved because it had a bad dream (assuming dogs have dreams) or it is going to attack you. see the vision or the brain does not worry about the "truth" - it wants to protect you- thats it primary objective.

It is true for everything- sound, touch and much more. The brain is not really trying to find the truth. You need to try harder and use your brain to find the truth. Truth are harder- it does not show it self. It has layers of layers of something which can sometimes be pealed of. Sometimes it cannot. But it seems we can and do have a brain which can.

Sadly it takes so much of time and effort to do it. The context does not want us to. The context here i mean not just the physical world but the people. People want easy solutions to survive- which usually translates to making money. We will do anything to survive- that is to make money- it is not a wrong thing as most of our middle class dork brain tells us- it is what it is. Thats is millions of years of evolution. Just look at all our religious leaders- from the morons who call themselves priest or brother- who have made so much of money in the name of prayer- then we have people in drag who have so much of power everyone kneels before them. They are great people it seems- as darwin suggested- they have become fittest- they have accumulated so much power and money and naturally we think they are great people. In the same sense we also have people who pray to Musk who makes cars no one in India who works for money can every buy his car, because- he makes us feel he is superior- fitter. 

All these are natural, but not the truth as we all know, but cant get out of the loop, can we? If we could - we could and i could come closer to the truth. For that i have to break the evolutionary mold which made me and guides me and understand this is not true. How difficult. Will the context allow me. Will the self think i am a imbecile? can i over come that ? If i know the answers to these then i can ask the question what is the path?

until then these are all just useless stories to while away the time. we will always pray to power and to money rather than to the truth isnt it.

Too much pessimism?  still in the nihilistic loop- probably isnt it prakash

Miracles

 why are we always wanting magic- magical healing, magical to remove my problems, magical powers of some monks or siddhars or some divine being. It is just laziness. everything happens slowly, the self changes slowly- materialistically and  mentally. 

Our systems follow the universal laws. You can do exercise until our country becomes a true democracy- still we cant run 100 mtrs under 8 seconds, or fly away. The physical has limits. Thats it. You can do whatever but you will hit the physical limit wall. There may be 100s of way to do exercises- but the bottom line is all have the same principles- from overload to practice.

 Well when it comes to mind, we suddenly lose our objective focus and start believe in the strange, fantastical and the supernatural. You ask any person with reasoning power- they will always think some "monk" some "rishi" or someone who lived long long ago- had some mystical power of the mind. They can heal by touching by mind may be the biggest of all. There can be fantastical stories of going into someone's else body to levitation- attributed to some mystic living in Himalayas or tibet and people will listen without asking for evidence, hell if you ask they may call vithanda vadham or iconoclastic. 

The other day i remembered hearing ramana had cancer. So i was reading about it- when the great man whos primary argument was the self is a illusion- took the whole think in his stride. He must of thought this is just the body. After requesting to get treatment and surgery performed on him- it did not go away. The great philosopher was dying. Well the masses who, i think like me have not understood a single word he taught- asked him to heal himself. That is our attitude- just because some one has transcended his self- he will be able to perform miracle. Ramana who was a non- dualist said where am i going to go. Well this is our attitude- a great man has to perform supernatural feats. Not just a great man with great ideas- he has to be miracle. It is not enough as they say in Buddhism- what will happens you lose your self? the remaining is just Karunai. That is what i think Ramana was- Just love- sadly the idiots like us cant see that miracle of just being just Karunai. we want miracle- like the sci-fi stories of Ramayanam, Gospels of Jesus and the life of the Prophet. Just want miracles

why? well it seems it all started with "jealously and show off". what sort of pious man if you have not lost those i dont know.  When we were children mostly the second child will have one of the coolest dialogue when you beat them up- you know i will bring my brother if he punches you - you cannot get up for a weak- he is such a strong guy. I was so worried the next day the brother would show up- well they never isnt it. Thats what happened- when you say my teacher taught me this and you are bullied into submission with a intellectual argument- you say- my teacher, my Guru can fly, can go into anyones body, he cannot die, he will sit and not eat for 1 year- that kind of things. It has never stopped,

The brain has no mystical powers. It can learn and it learns with time. As we now think all the systems are one- the brain body divide itself is artificial. it is just for our convivence. Training your mind cannot give you sudden mystical power to see into the void or into the future. It has to follow the principles of biology and physics. It cannot be beyond that just because we dont understand that. Just because some one lived in bronze age or beyond that- does not make them super man. What we become and do with your mind is all knowledge- knowledge with less bias, perceiving with less bias, be a good person to the society, and probably, just probably become a man of "karunai" - that should be more than enough to tell me what the value of life.   

I am product of big bang

  

As I have grown older, I have come to realize that nothing in my mind truly belongs to me. From my understanding of physical therapy to the way I perceive other individuals, all of my knowledge has been acquired from centuries of evolution. Even the thoughts expressed in this blog are not solely my own, but rather a culmination of ideas that I have read, contemplated, and understood from various sources throughout my life. My ability to write in English is a skill that I learned from my aunt, books, and schooling, all of which were passed down through generations of individuals who acquired knowledge from others before them. This chain of knowledge and learning stretches back to the beginning of time, perhaps even to the Big Bang. Without this cosmic event, there would be no planets, and without the cooling of the Earth, there would be no life. If that first fish had not dragged itself out of the water, if the Neanderthals had not reproduced, if Homo sapiens had not migrated to South India, my thoughts and ideas would be vastly different. It is humbling to consider just how interconnected and interdependent we all are, and how our collective knowledge has evolved over time.

I have come to understand that nothing truly belongs to me, not even the knowledge that I possess or the wealth that I have acquired (for the sake of this discussion, let's assume it's cognitive knowledge). I realize that the reason I was able to acquire this knowledge is because of the opportunities provided to me by my mother, who had an education and a good job. She was able to obtain this education because she was the firstborn in her family, and her parents placed a strong emphasis on education, unlike her siblings who were forced to drop out after only completing 5th grade for various reasons. As for my reading skills, I learned to read English books slightly later in life when I moved into a new house that my mother had built. My new friends, who came from upper-middle-class families with different aspirations and attitudes, introduced me to a reading culture that ranged from classics to silly pulp fiction. This exposure to reading likely helped me to improve my reading skills and, in turn, my understanding of PT. It is clear to me now that everything I have acquired, including my knowledge and wealth, is the result of a complex web of circumstances, opportunities, and people that have shaped my life.

I recall my mother telling me once that I should feel blessed if I am able to read real books in my middle age, not just pulp fiction. Out of all the things my mother told me, this statement stuck with me, and I always wanted to achieve that goal. I often wonder why this statement impacted me so deeply, and why I did not follow through on other things my mother suggested. Perhaps it is because of my Tamil teacher who taught me the Thirukkural, which contains a poem about education and scholars that I still remember to this day. I wonder what it was that made this particular poem stick in my mind, while others did not. Why did I not remember the gods and prayers that I was taught as a child? Why do I view prayer as something childish? The truth is that none of these thoughts or beliefs are truly original. They are all products of the knowledge and experiences that I have accumulated throughout my life, which were borrowed from others. The workings of the human brain are complex, and the reasons for our memories and beliefs are not always clear. Nonetheless, it is important to recognize that we are all products of our environment and that our thoughts and beliefs are influenced by the knowledge and experiences that we have borrowed from others.

Original thinking is fucking hard. Not now or millions of years back. If you have a original thought it should be the greatest think you have done- ever/ 

what does all these mean- My thoughts and beliefs are not truly original, but rather a reflection of the knowledge and experiences that I have borrowed from others. It is important to recognize that the self is an illusion, and that we are all interconnected and influenced by the world around us. While it is tempting to think of ourselves as unique individuals with our own ideas and beliefs, the truth is that we are all products of our environment and the complex interactions that have shaped our lives. By acknowledging this fact, we can begin to see ourselves and others in a more holistic and interconnected way, which can lead to a greater sense of empathy, understanding, and compassion.

  

OMG my sentiment

The notion of hurt sentiments has become a new mantra for many groups, and it seems that almost anything can be deemed offensive these days. In India, it has become common practice to include disclaimers before telling a joke, just in case someone's sentiments are hurt. This seems rather silly given that there are so many pressing issues that demand our attention. For instance, there are 45 million people living below the poverty line in India, and the level of inequality and poverty is shocking. Furthermore, we have criminals and even dacoits in positions of power, yet we are still preoccupied with the idea of hurt sentiments. It's time for us to focus on the real problems that affect our society and work towards creating a more equitable and just world for all.

This has become a pandemic now with the advent of the right wing in all religion- from the Morons of the islam to the idiots of Hinduism- well they are abundant in Christianity also- but they are just waiting for dan brown book to become a useless movie.

Why do we prioritize protecting our sentiments related to caste, religion, and cultural practices over issues that actually affect us, such as corruption and poverty? It is ironic that we get offended and hurt by something as trivial as a joke or criticism, but turn a blind eye to the injustices and inequalities around us. The notion of protecting our caste or religious identity seems to be deeply ingrained in our society, to the extent that it blinds us to the real issues that need to be addressed. We need to shift our focus and start addressing the systemic problems that hinder our progress as a society, instead of getting caught up in the trivial matters that distract us from the real issues at hand.

How did we become a bunch of jokers with no humanity. Everyday some comment is hurting people on social media- really in social media- a media which it seems to abuse people- we are hurt by it. Words hurt but it should not be taken to heart about silly things.  Well what is silly thing- everything is silly if it just affects your sentiment. Every social change from marriage age to education- all is because some one dared to hurt the religious sentiments- just go and read about how marriage age was changed in India and who were crying or how savithribai phule fought to educate the masses.

We need to hurt sentiments to change. I also think you can hurt sentiment just to make fun for a laugh. It is okay. I know the left is also full of cry babies when it comes to hurt sentiments- just a bunch of whinny cry babies. 

It's important to remember that our beliefs and identities are indeed constructs and not inherent truths. However, it's also important to acknowledge that these constructs hold immense power over people's lives and can deeply affect their sense of self and belonging.

As for the hypocrisy of some people who claim to follow a religion of love and then engage in hateful behavior, it's unfortunately a common phenomenon. It's important to hold people accountable for their actions and not let them use their beliefs as an excuse for harm.

Similarly, while free speech is important, it's also important to consider the impact of our words on others and to recognize that speech can perpetuate harm and discrimination. It's a delicate balance between protecting free expression and being mindful of the consequences of our words

 I read this book called unifying Hinduism- ( i do recommend to anyone who wants to understand the rich Indian philosophy and evolution of Hinduism) in that the author writes there were different sects of religious ideas and one of them were pasupaths. They were a fascinating bunch of people, i did some further reading also. The "monks" in that sect would sometimes stand in the middle of the town and talk nonsense- well hurt sentiments , so the towns people could abuse them or even spit on them. This was done to remove the self.

 what a fall!  

Enjoy language - it will not hurt, ideas don't hurt- money hurts Get hurt when it affects us materialistically not just the ego. 

PS- well if you abuse my ideas- i dont have any problem- I dont care about any politician or philosopher, but i do love some of the teachings- they are not mine- i dont get hurt if you abuse or dont agree- it is okay -they are not mine, it is very difficult to have a original thought- all my thoughts are borrowed so..

but if my self is hurt hahhaha 

we all have the same Dukkam

Every day, I realize that I was an idiot the day before, even in instances where objective truth is easy to discern, such as in medicine or physics. The illusory passage of time allows the brain to make changes in its network, making me feel like I was foolish in the past. For example, the other day, I learned about how electricity travels, and I immediately thought about how foolish I was before. I even questioned the quality of education that my physics teacher received. In the early 2000s, I was very confident in my knowledge of stroke rehabilitation, and when I wrote my book, I felt that I was very close to the truth. However, now I realize how naive I was. It's not that my basic premise was wrong, but there is so much more to explore before I can confidently close the book.

One way of looking at our problems is that we all believe our issues are unique. Whether it's a physical ailment like back pain or a personal struggle like family or money issues, we tend to think that our situation is different from others.

In the medical field, patients often believe that their pain is unique and requires a specific treatment. However, even though there may be some outliers, most cases of back pain have average patterns and can be treated in similar ways.

Similarly, in our personal lives, we tend to think our problems are unique. However, Freud believed that most issues stemmed from sex, while J.K. may say that it's our perception of self. Intelligent people understand that our problems are generally the same, and they either fall into the median or have similar underlying causes.

Our perception of self plays a significant role in the problems we face. The self emerges when we are in a particular context, but it's just a collection of memories and other constructs that have developed over time. To change the self, we need to peel away the layers like an onion, which can be a painful process. But, ultimately, it's necessary to overcome our problems.

Depression is a common issue that many people face, and the symptoms can include self-pity and loss of confidence. Although the causes may differ, the underlying problem is often a narcissistic focus on the self.

Changing ourselves is challenging because our biology resists change. It takes months of practice to alter our habits, and our brains may even resist change because it helped us survive in the past.

In the end, we're all human, and our problems are generally the same. The solutions may seem insane, but they're often similar, and we can learn from others who have faced similar challenges.