The Disease Process and Meta-medicine One thought and concern I had during this time was that this stressful event was for me a UDIN moment. According to the theory of meta-medicine (which has its roots in German New Medicine), a UDIN moment is a stress event that is unexpected, dramatic and isolating. You have no strategy or control over it. I confess to having limited understanding of meta-medicine, but to the best of my understanding, here are the basics. At first, these shocks (or UDIN moments) are picked up by the heart. This can change how we interact with other people and things in our world. Shock also affects the body and brain. When a UDIN moment happens, it literally gets trapped inside an energy ball. This ball gets trapped in a specific location within the brain and the accompanying emotion lodges in a corresponding organ. Practically every disease is caused by this type of emotional stressful event. Chronic disease is a process caused by repeated stress followed by rest. The slightest reminder triggers it again and again unless and until you do something to heal it. During the stress phase, your body is trying to solve the problem. In this ‘cold’ phase, you may experience high blood pressure, constipation, insomnia, feeling cold and weight loss. The rest phase is accompanied by a healing crisis. Don’t rush to circumvent this phase or suppress your symptoms (of course, if you need medical attention, do get it). During the rest phase you may feel very tired or experience headaches, cramps, diarrhea or fever. Your body warms up and repairs. This happened to me after the long illness and death of my dog Duke. During those months I was stressed out and exhausted. A week after he died I got ‘the flu’. As odd as it sounds, a heart attack can also occur in the rest phase.

Grieving and Healing

Somehow through the blur of brain fog and grief, I had the presence of mind to consider the impact of a UDIN moment and what I was experiencing on my long-term health and well-being. I did not want to add that to my health legacy. That decision required that I not fall into familiar patterns that would cause me to do just that. The first decision I made was to stay home on Friday.  You would think this would be obvious and easy, but for someone schooled in work ethic and responsibility, it wasn’t.  Regardless, I took the step and made the call. It was a good one. By Monday I was in a much better space. During this time, and the week that followed, I had to give myself permission to let go of ‘shoulds’. I limited my responsibilities to the essentials and what I felt up to. It was an exercise in listening to my mind and body and honoring them. For me, the listening part is usually easy, the honoring and acting on it part, not so much. Another choice I made was not to fall into another old pattern of isolating myself emotionally. I chose to share my emotional vulnerability and get support from others.  I allowed the waves of emotion to move through me instead of judging them and trying to stop them. I breathed deeply and did a little tapping. As I felt into my heart for a way to feel better, a knowing touched me. Our relationship had to be different but not severed. Even though Lou was gone in physical form he was still with me in spirit and energetic presence and in this knowing I gained the presence of mind to cope.  I could touch his spirit with my heart and talk to him like I always did. This knowing and the choice to reach out for support led to a wonderful experience. Coryelle Kramer of Bellesprit generously offered Lou and me the gift of a reading, which we accepted.  And didn’t he show up in all the exuberance and teasing and energy of his healthy more youthful self!  Even though there were some tears, he had us laughing and enjoying our visit. The bottom line for me was that I could not control what happened to Lou, but I could influence my response and my experience of it. While continuing to honor those moments of missing him and the tears that still flow, I chose to forego another old pattern of letting my life revolve around my loss. I would not want that for my loved ones and I know they would not want that for me. I choose to face loss as all the more reason to make something of the time I have left here and to make my life matter. I believe these pattern shifts and choices made it possible for me to avoid falling prey to the potential damage of a UDIN moment. Instead of letting this experience close my heart, as my past patterns would have dictated, I allowed it to bring healing on some level and open my heart more.  I allowed myself to give unconditional love to myself and Lou, and to receive it from others.  And in that came healing. This is a great and simple truth –  love is above all else, the great healer. Here are the two links in this article –. http://www.holistic-mindbody-healing.com/mind-body-medicine.html http://www.holistic-mindbody-healing.com/love-heals.html]]>