3 Fatal Flaws of Humanity

I've been spending a lot of time recently wondering why we are in a mental health crisis.  Yes, there are many aspects of social media and modern life that are not beneficial to our journey and inner peace. But, I think the cause is more hardwired into our DNA. Certain aspects that were planted for pure survival value, but no longer serve us well in Modern Life.

#1 - The need to Sleep - Why you care what others think. 

You have to sleep about 1/3 of your life. This is why it is engrained in us to care what others think. Because our caveman selves needed to trust someone to stand watch while they slept. 

If someone did a very bad job at this, maybe someone gets eaten by a Sabertooth Tiger. What is the recourse for the tribe? It is to shame or guilt those who violate the trust or norms of the tribe. 

As Simon Sinek says, this is good for survival, but does not serve us well in modern life. 

This is why we feel a need to belong, and can be moved by shame and guilt.

So for those who say "just don't care what others think", it ignores why it was there to begin with and how we can address it by acknowledging it. 

And this only grows as you become a young adult because you shift from connecting to family, to the need to find a place and seek approval from a broader community.

#2 - Not having permanent memories until age 3 or 4 - Why we often feel alone

This does not ignore those who grew up in true difficult circumstances. But this is for the general 90% whose parents were fine, flawed, but loving parents who still ended up with teenagers and adults who feel alone and unloved. 

Being the dad of a toddler, I hug and kiss my daughter all the time because I know there will be a day she won't want so many hugs and kisses. 

I see the drive for independence, even at an early early age, and this will only grow as children age.

But, I believe not having the memories of when your parents loved every giggle and doled over every minor milestone, can leave teenagers feeling less secure as adults.

This is a path of our own making as the independence they sought, pushes away the base of love and emotion they could use as secure attachment to explore the world with a foundation of love and support. 

It's there, they just don't remember it. So they believe it was never there. 

#3- The ability to tell time - the biggest survival advantage makes us have anxiety over our own mortality

Humans are know as the "time binders", the mammals most aware of the passage of time from the past, to the present, to the future. 

A tremendous survival advantage when you need to time flood season, know when to plant crops, or store up food for a cold winter. 

But we are also more acutely aware that our time is limited and will end. This causes many anxiety, that a napping cat or playful dog do not experience on a daily basis.

And this can hold us back from taking the true risks needed to live our own authentic life. 

So what we gained in prolonged physical survival, we lose in inner peace. 

So what do we do?

Just like advanced meditation, by raising awareness to these affects, vs just keeping them at arms distance. We can shine a light on them, acknowledge them, and say they no longer serve us on your modern path. 

The goal of meditation isn't to have no thoughts, but rather have thought, but let them pass. Or as I like to think pop the ones that no longer serve us and hold on to the ones that do. 

Want to go deeper on these topics and more?

If any of these resonate with you and your journey:

Want me to talk about this on your Podcast?: