Episode 17: A sense of self that’s not just physical

How not to despair is one of the major challenges for anyone dealing with a body that is temporary and will one day die. If you think about it, we are all in this boat. This episode talks about how to dis-identify from your physical body and work on identifying with a sense of self and existence in the world that is not just your physical form. This is a major way to reduce your suffering when facing ongoing changes to your physical form and functioning. Most of the major world religions and anyone a little bit spiritual are already well ahead of me on this, so please be patient. I've recorded this episode because I think it's useful to name this process of dis-identification with the physical form directly, to talk about how serious illness can actually encourage this process, and to talk about why it's useful. It's one of the gifts of dealing with a serious illness. Not that anyone would choose to be in this situation, but... may as well take the most useful aspects from the experience and share them.