Pain and the Pyschic Immune System

When someone does something that feels painful to us, we hurt. We get turned down for a date, we get passed over for a promotion, our partner snaps at us, we feel teased at school… all the things.

We feel hurt. Dejected or rejected. Sad. Frustrated. Angry. Depressed.

Frequently we then judge ourselves for feeling this way. And that propels us even further into feeling more pain. Now we are upset because we feel upset, making us feel more upset. It can feel like this pain will never end.

What if what we were feeling wasn’t an emotional catastrophe, but was the response of our soul’s immune system?

When we skin our knee, we feel pain and we grow a scab. But the immune system isn’t causing pain or growing a scab to annoy us. Pain is how the immune system says “Hey, we’re injured here. Be careful not to do more damage while we’re making repairs.” Likewise, the scab, as itchy as it may be, is created to keep the area from getting infected while it is being repaired.

When we get a sinus infection, we get aches and fevers, a runny nose, and generally feel miserable. But none of these symptoms are caused by the infection. The symptoms are how the body combats the infection. The immune system raises the body’s temperature to make the environment inhospitable to the infection. It makes our noses run to clear out the viruses or bacteria and any dead cells.

The misery we feel is the immune system doing its job.

The same is true with our emotional state. When somebody does something that upsets our expectations, it jostles our psyche. We ask to go on a date with someone, and we get turned down. We work hard, and don’t get recognized for it. We accidentally trigger something in our partner, and they snap at us unexpectedly. Our psyche gets bruised, or skinned, or infected.

And the psychic immune system goes to work. We feel sad, angry, hurt, because the psyche needs to repair itself. It’s alright. It’s a perfectly natural response. The key is that, just like body’s response to an infection, the soul’s emotional response to a setback is both natural and part of returning to health.

Keep in mind that the immune system works within the body. It doesn’t extend beyond the surface of our skin. Likewise, our emotions aren’t meant to be spat upon another person. That’s how infections spread. Instead, when we are psychically sick or injured, it’s our job to look at the root infection and treat that within ourselves.

Anger is always caused by unaddressed pain. When someone does something that triggers anger in us, what it’s really doing is causing us to feel pain. Pain can be expressed without harming others, through crying. If we need to really feel angry, we can yell and scream it out in a place where it is not hurting others, perhaps with the help of a therapist or friend who can help us feel safe releasing that energy.

Once the anger is released, tears usually flow, as the blister is lanced, the pus flows, and finally the underlying pain can be treated.

And the psychic immune system starts the healing process.