Anchor Point

Is it necessary to have a reference point of what well-being feels like in order to practice towards it? If someone has been existing in a state of depression or anxiety for a long-enough period that they develop amnesia of what another state of mind may look like, do they need to engage a tactic that can at least momentarily create a sense of well-being so there is at least a reference point of what a solution could look like?

For example, if there exists a breathing technique that can create a sense of momentary peace by calming the nervous system, can the observer then use that feeling as evidence that well-being is accessible? How powerful does that reference point need to be considering the state of conditioning the observer is in? What tactics need to be employed to develop a practice that uses the reference point as a foot in the door to expand and experience other states of wholesomeness and create reprieve from a long bout of suffering?

Does the reference point necessarily need to have a physiological manifestation - does it need to have a visceral feeling of reprieve to remind/convince the observer that relief can even exist? How can practitioners avoid seeking reference points that are potentially unwholesome - such as substance abuse or behavioral addictions that disguise as reprieve but instead leave the user in a worse off place?

Does it require trial and error to determine what senses of relief provide long term well-being? How does one even cultivate the motivation to overcome the inertia of initiating well-being? Is it always a fact that mindfulness-based contemplative techniques or manipulating the breath are wholesome ways of achieving reprieve, albeit temporary? How can you convince people in deep states of suffering that there does exist a life that consists of openness, love, purpose, and peace? Does that convincing require a wholesome anchor point?

Our next mission as a people should be developing a decent enough understanding of these questions to begin a movement that makes life satisfaction and well-being familiar and accessible to as many people as possible. I believe that by understanding how different “positive” mental states manifest in our biology, we can reverse engineer the underlying mechanisms to develop therapies and help for the masses. Let’s do it.