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The Energy Causes of Addiction to Habits
The Stimulation - Depression Mechanism
from "Overcoming Compulsive Habits"
The Secret of Habits
Whenever we change a long-standing habit,
a new pattern is at first unpleasant.
After short time it becomes tolerable.
After we become accustomed to it, it becomes enjoyable.
Finally, after a time, the new habit becomes dispensible and as strong and habitual as the placed previous undesirable habit was.
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The key which unlocks the mystery of why most habits are difficult to break lies in the understanding of the stimulation and depression mechanism. Once this is thoroughly grasped, we are greatly strengthened to cope with the reactions and feelings which occur as soon as we begin to try to change a habit.
As an analogy, let us take a look at what happens when a coffee addict tries to give up this habit.
He arises in the morning, feeling tired and sluggish. Without the cup or two of coffee, his "eye opener", nothing feels right. He just doesn't feel quite "himself". Why does he feel so letdown? If he doesn't have his "fix" within a couple of hours, he may feel a headache coming on. Why is this happening?
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Caffeine Elimination Battle
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The explanation is as follows:
Whenever any poison is ingested into the body - in this instance it is the caffeine in the coffee - the presence of this dangerous enemy in the vital domain is spotted by the autonomic nervous system. The nervous system sends a warning signal to the appropriate brain center, which tells the body that an enemy has invaded the household and to prepare for battle.
Since the caffeine is a poison and can damage the body, the brain center which is concerned with the survival of the body against internal enemies sends a signal to the heart, telling it to pick up speed so that the blood will circulate more rapidly to the organs of elimination and thus discard this caffeine as soon as possible to avoid internal injury.
When the heart beat (or pulse) accelerates in tempo, this increases the blood circulation and it registered in the mind as a feeling of exhilaration or wellbeing, such as the excitement we experience when we engage in sports or any vigorous exercise. This "high" feeling is enjoyable and exciting and quickly becomes addictive and we crave its repetition more and more often.
Now here is the catch or trap:
In its struggle to cast out the enemy, the body (through its increased heart and circulatory effort) has expended an enormous amount of nervous energy which it subsequently attempts to recuperate in order to preserve life. The heart which was overactivated now slows down, the blood circulation decreases and the nerves begin to rest. This registers in the brain as fatigue, weariness and mental depression. The more rapid the heart beat or pulse was, the more accentuated these feelings of depression are which follow as an inevitable consequence.
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Rest Must Follow Overstimulation
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Every stimulation or overactivation of the heart must be followed by a corresponding rest, if life is to continue - every high must be followed by a corresponding low. Just like the pendulum of a clock - the further it goes to the right, the further it must go to the left until the body is fully recharged and equilibrium or a state of normalcy is reached.
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After Stimulation - Depression
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The physiological law which is involved is called the Law of Dual Effects, which states that "all agents which are taken into the body or which come in contact with it from without occasion a twofold and contrary action the secondary action being the opposite of the primary one". (If the primary action is stimulation, the secondary effect is depression).
It is supposed by Hans Seyle and Randolph who wrote on stress, that the stimulated alert state results from the release of stimulating adaptive adrenal hormones. As fatigue or the wearing out of the adrenal responses makes the hormones less available, hangovers (letdowns and loss of energy) begin to predominate.
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Children get overactive - adults get depressive
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Children and adolescents when adapting show mainly the overactive, stimulated side of the reaction presumably because their hormonal adaptive responses are more vigorous than those of older people, in whom the picture of failing adaptation is more depressive, dopey and withdrawn.
INDEX TO ABOVE
(1) Stimulated, alert
(2) Active, keyed up, nervous, irritable, clumsy, panicky
(3) Overactive, intoxicated, negative
(4) Uncontrolled, wildly excited
(A) Tired, absentminded, sniffy, itchy, queasy
(B) Mentally fatigued, achy, puffy, wheezy, may have rashes
(C) Confused, dopey, morose, withdrawn or panicky
(D) Depressed, disoriented, amnesic, or stuporous.
The "Power" of Habit Explained
from "Overcoming Compulsive Habits"
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Dr. Herbert Shelton quotes
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Relative to this subject and of great value to our understanding of how the stimulation and depression mechanism works, I quote the brilliant Dr. Herbert M. Shelton in his "Human Life, Its Philosophy and Laws" :
"This Law (Law of Dual Effects) explains the power of habit. The temporary "relief" from symptoms and the short period of exaltation are followed by worse symptoms and depression, so that the individual resorts to the drug for more relief and more exaltation. He cannot tolerate the depression of power that inevitably follows the added impulse of power induced by tea, coffee, tobacco, alcohol, opium, or other drug.
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"The heightened sensibilities, pleasurable sensations, joyous emotions induced by opium soon pass, leaving the terrors of hell in their wake. The "brilliancy" of thought and intellect and ecstacy of enjoyment give way to languor, stupidity and horror unutterable. The user resorts again to his drug to revive the former state.
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"His body does not need and does not demand more opium. It needs and demands rest. But he craves more opium as a means of temporary "relief" from his intolerable suffering. The "relief" produces more suffering, which calls for more relief" which produces more suffering which calls for more relief and so on until death brings complete and lasting relief. As the drug habitue becomes weaker and more nervous, he requires more frequent doses, or stronger doses of his poison.
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"A striking confirmation of this view is supplied by the recently discovered fact that when there is no awareness of pain, there is no "craving" for morphine. Vandalistic neurologists have recently devised an operation which they call prefrontal lobotomy, which consists of removal of a portion of the nerve fibers of the forehead to "relieve" unbearable pain. They find that when awareness of pain ceases, the "craving" for morphine also ceases and there are no "withdrawal symptoms", except a transient mild tremor. I interpret this to mean that when there is no consciousness of pain, there is no mental desire for the accustomed means of "relief". I would interpret the so-called "withdrawal symptoms" in the same way. They grow, not out of lack of morphine, but out of fear of pain.
"Relieving" morphine-induced pain with more morphine is the height of medical insanity.
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"What temporarily strengthens permanently weakens. Tobacco steadies the nerves only to produce unsteadiness of them; alcohol weakens permanently because it temporarily strengthens; tonics produce temporary strength and permanent debility; a cup of coffee relieves a headache only to fasten the headache upon the user; it relieves depression of spirits only to double the depression when it "wears off". This is the reason cathartics, that seem to strengthen the bowels weakens them.
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"Let any habitual user of any drug discontinue his drug for a few days and he will experience in their fullness all the secondary effects - only to find that these may all be made to disappear by a return to its use. Coffee "cures" the headache it has caused; whiskey restores the feeling of strength it has wasted; tobacco the steadiness of nerves it has destroyed."
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Stimulants activate and depress
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To explain this in other words - All stimulants activate the body initially but depress it ultimately. All stimulants pick you up. Any ingested stimulant which causes the heart to beat faster is a physiological poison and should be shunned like a plague.
In this case, when coffee is given up, the headache symptom which follows is due to the pain felt in the head from the congestion in the brain caused by the presence of the caffeine which is transported by the blood as it makes its circulating rounds through the body to eventually reach the organs of elimination, whence it is discarded.
Now, all addictive habits and compulsions are due to their stimulating character and the more stimulating they are, the more addictive they are and the more they draw us into ever-increasing bondage. The cycle becomes more vicious as the habit is continued.
As stimulation is repeated, in frequency, more recuperation is required than the body is able to receive in a night's sleep, so, in order to get the same feeling of exhilaration or "high" as he received before, the addict feels impelled to increase the frequency of his stimulant. Next, he feels that he needs to increase the amount of the dose.
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The more stimulant - the more rest needed
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But each increase in dosage leads to a further expenditure of energy, thus necessitating a greater need for recuperation or rest. As the deficit in rest accumulates mote rapidly, this inexorably leads to a greater let-down, thus forcing the addict to increase the amount of the dosage more and more until the whole body - mind system collapses from exhaustion. This is why it is so difficult to give up an addiction. No one likes to go through the feeling of "down" with its attendant depression.
Yet, it is during this recuperation or "down" phase that the body, nervous system and brain, recharges with energy. It is absolutely essential that we realize that this stage MUST be gone through if we are to restore structural, physiological and vital integrity to the body - if we are to restore our feelings, emotions and mind to a state of normal tone and wholeness.
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The Law of Vital Accomodation
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Continuing with Dr. Shelton, another closely related law follows which is called the Law of Vital Accomodation - "Nature's Balance Wheel" which states that:
The Law of Vital Accomodation
"The response of the vital organism to external stimuli is an instinctive one, based upon self-preservative instinct which adapts itself to what ever influences it cannot destroy, or control, or avoid".
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.........
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"Serious misinterpretation of the fact of toleration has led to grievous errors in practice. Because a habit does not seem immediately destructive, we must not be deceived into believing it is non-injurious, or even beneficial. The steady non-violent resistance to nicotine, for example, that the body must keep up, when tobacco is used, constitutes an equally steady drain upon the vital resources and keeps the user always below par." |
To quote Dr. Shelton further, on page 148 he states...
"Depression"
"It is now easy to understand the phenomenon of depression. It is merely the lessened activity or inactivity, the fatigue, of an organ or an organism that is exhausted from previous activity, particularly from over-activity. The over-activity may be that of intensity or that of duration."
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Also read: How to Overcome Temptation Instantaneously
- "The very moment you realize that an undesirable craving has entered your consciousness, DON'T struggle with it. Absolutely REFUSE to consider its existence."
Also read: The Relation Between Energy And Feeling And Thought - about how high energy is related to happiness, and low energy to depression.
In which case are brain-cells recuperating energy?
How much weight-loss per day can I expect on raw juices vs. water fasting?
Read Q&A about juice fasting (juice diet), water fasting and weightloss.
How do juice and water fasting compare?
Also read at this website:
How Diseases are Cured by Herbert M. Shelton
The Time-Factor in Recovery by Dr. Herbert M. Shelton
About the "Laws of Life" by Herbert M. Shelton
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ARTICLES
SUPERIOR HEALTH
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| My First Water Fast |
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I was startled by the statement that all colds, fevers and influenzas were nature's attempt to free the body of disease.
I devised an experiment to test this - click here
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| Fruit - Friend or Foe? | |
He lived on nothing but grapes - By the 32nd day, his gum was bleeding - one of his teeth fell out. He exclaimed: My God, I am detoxicating my teeth - click here
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| Symptoms to Expect when Improving Your Diet | |
This initial letdown lasts about ten days, and is followed by an increase of strength, a feeling of diminishing stress and greater well-being.
- click here
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| How Diseases are Cured |
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Dr. Shelton: - It is high time to learn about the causes of disease and of the "complications" that so frequently develop under regular care - click here
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| The Time-factor in Recovery |
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Dr. Shelton: - Why do we expect to get well in a hurry of a condition that requires a life-time for its development? - click here
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| Sequential Eating | |
Any quick digesting foods must wait till the slowest digesting foods leave the stomach - a process which can take up to 6 or 8 hours.
- click here
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| How Important is Diagnosis? | |
Once the truth of how to live is understood, the process of illness can be reversed more or less painlessly by intelligent living - click here
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| How to Live 100 Years | |
If you follow a minimal diet you can achieve super nutrition. Let's look at Luigi Cornaro, who at age 35 was weak, sick, and dying
- click here
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EMOTIONS & ENERGY
| How to Solve Problems | |
The following method, ancient in its origin, has been practiced by several civilizations dating back for thousands of years.
- click here
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| Causes of Addiction to Habits |
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The key which unlocks the mystery of why most habits are difficult to break lies in the understanding of the stimulation and depression mechanism.
- click here
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| How to Overcome Temptations |
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The very moment an undesirable craving has entered your consciousness, DON'T struggle with it. Absolutely REFUSE to consider its existence
- click here
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| Attentive Eating | |
A subject which can radically change a person's life in all of its aspects - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. - Attentive eating.
- click here
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| Energy in the Body |
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The lift we get from drinking coffee, or the expression of strong emotions - is the expenditure of energy, not its accumulation
- click here
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| Energy, Feeling and Thought |
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The person who feels depressed or negative most of the time is low on the energy level scale and needs to increase rest and sleep - click here
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| The Energy Principle in Healing - New Concepts |
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All healing and regeneration is in ratio to the amount of energy which is available - the more energy, the more detoxicating healing
- click here
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SUPER NUTRITION
| Three Generations of Hygienists |
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These children, the skeletal development wasn't right, the dental arches were not well-formed, teeth came in crowded
- click here
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| In Search of the Ultimate Diet |
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I put a group of mice on a fruitarian diet. But they didn't seem to be eating very much fruit, and they certainly weren't crazy about it
- click here
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| The Ideal 100% Raw Diet |
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My aim here was to try to find a diet of 100% raw foods that mice and equally humans could live on, with all the factors needed for excellent health
- click here
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| Vegetarian Diet & Food Plan |
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Dr. Cursio: - it represents more than 55 years of this brilliant nutritionist's experience as one of the greatest teachers in the field of Natural Hygiene
- click here
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| Vegan rats die early & have low energy |
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When the vegetarian male died it was 22.8 months old. The omnivorous male had accomplished the same amount of work when it was but 6.9 months old.
click here
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SUPER NUTRITION - NON-VEGETARIAN
SPIRITUALITY
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