THINKING IN A RIGHT-HEMISPHERE WAY! - An small TIP to improve

Everyday we use our keyboard (PC, laptop, notebook,..) to navigate through the Internet, checking our inbox, meet friends on facebook, work with our spreadsheet, word or pdf document, etc...

So it is a very common situation. Watch this picture... What can you see?

 

The left hemisphere just notices that a toy is on the keyboard

EXERCISE: You must try to notice other aspects of your keyboard as your right-side mind would do:

1. The shape and colour of every key and the accumulated dust around them.
2. Watch you finger pressing every key. Press them very slowly. What do you feel?. Hear the sound hitting the keys. Is it similar to others you have used before?
3. Do you like the colours of the little plane?
4. Touch the plastic recovering the screen of the laptop.
5. Make a copy of the keyboard on a sheet of paper. As precise as you can draw it. Draw every detail. The letters and signs of each key must be place properly.
6. Play a little with the plane, landing on the keyboard. Do you like it? The screen could be a great barrier to pass over.
7. Use and watch your LEFT HAND!! (it is driven by your right hemisphere!!)
8. Type very slowly watching your fingers hitting the keys.
9. Notice your fingers moving from one side to the other of the keyboard to press the keys.
10. Summarizing: Feel your laptop as a physical object!

CAN YOU DO IT?

santos.barrioscanseco@gmail.com

EXERCISE nº20 - "What must I think about people when I am walking in the street?"

One of the symptoms of DPDR consists of looking invisible for the rest of the people.

When we are walking in the street we usually avoid to look at the rest of the people because WE DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO THINK ABOUT THEM, in fact, we are not sure about their existence. They mean nothing for us. Why this happens?

Since I don't know who I am and I am not able to remember clearly what have I done in my former life due to DPDR, it seems very difficult to guess in which way the rest will react when they see me. We lost our roots, our references, our own image. Our image depends on what the others think about us.

In order to remove that invisibility and recover our place again in the real world I should make this exercise:

EXERCISE 20 - "What must I think about people when walking in the street?"

Before facing the people in the street we should remember aspects that are unique to us

1st - How old am I?

2nd - What were my main achievements in life?

3rd - What were my most relevant hobbies/skills? I should overpass everybody in those skills and feel proud.

4rd - Pay attention to your physical aspect. Am I well dressed?, Do I look handsome today?

... etc

 

 

Any time you face people and don't know what to think about them, you should think:

• Could it be dangerous crossing his/her way? Should I be frightened?
• Is he/she physically neat, clean? or Should I feel disgusted?
• Is he/she a normal person or is he/she facing any disability?
• Is he/she going to ask me anything? Which could it be? Could I be robbed by him/her? could I be taken by surprise?
• Is he/she older than me, the same age or on the contrary I am older than he/she?
• If we are of the same age, Would I like to accept him/her in my own gang or group? I didn't like every classmate of my school. I had my reasons. Can I remember why?
• If I am older, I should know more than him/her and be superior somehow. I could teech him/her things and be compassionate with him. If I don't pay attention I could hurt him/her.
• If I am younger, that person probably knows more about life than me. I should show respect and learn from his/her.
• His/her level of studies... Are lower or higher than my own level? Would he/she overpass ME?
  I was very good playing or practising my hobby. Could he/she be better than me? Could he/she even know how to do it? Probably not If my skill is high.
• Am I stronger than that person?, Taller?, more corpulent? If we had to fight... could I win?; If I hit him/her, what would happen? (Considering physical contact helps a lot to overcome DP)I
• Is he/she more beautiful or attractive than me? Do I like him/her?....
• ...
   

Previosuly, when you were alright, you wondered those questions automatically, just within seconds. Now you cannot consider that info about people easily.

SO, YOU SHOULD BE MORE TRIVIAL AND CARE ABOUT APPEARANCES!

 

WITHOUT BEING SURE!

WITH NO LOGIC AT ALL!

ALL HEALTHY PERSON TAKE ALWAYS INTO ACCOUNT HIS/HER IMAGE AND COMPARES CONTINUOUSLY WITH OTHERS
 

 

santos.barrioscanseco@gmail.com

EXERCISE No18 - "Managing landscapes and open spaces"

Do the vision of a landscape confuse you?, and what do you think of the diffused light of cloudy days. Does it increase the numbness feeling and increases the typical "blurry" vision of derealization? (Rather than blurred, we should say imperfect or incomplete)

You ask yourselves... And what must I do with a landscape ?, What should I think about it ?, It really hard for me noticing something concrete, it's a little torture, right?

EXERCISE # 18 - "Landscapes and open spaces"

We reach the street and we found a landscape outdoors. What to do? 

Firstly to "understand and manage" the brightness of the sky and of the objects that we see is looking at the time it is (i.e. 13:40), noticing the height and position of the sun above the horizon and fight to remind us of what we were doing at this time when we were fine (months or years ago). It works for me wonderfully remember my school days when I was under a strict routine and schedules. For example, at 13:40 I know that I was out from school at 13:30 and had 10 'way down the avenue City of Barcelona. I know that at that time was a bit hungry and when I got home about 14:00 my mother would be preparing the meal. WE HAVE rediscover THE MEANING OF HOURS OF THE DAY.

Every time of the day should evoke memories and feelings from the past

 It is also important to think about what is/was the season of the year, I know this fact can evoke different sensations. The brightness depending on the hour and the season is quite different and characteristic. For example, in winter shadows are longer and the days much shorter than in summer. Our right hemisphere has been always capturing these nuances. Unable to access it, this kind of details are confusing for us.

Projecting our body: If we see a billboard, we must imagine for a moment that we are touching its metal holder, or that we are sitting on top of the poster. It also serves mental manipulation . Imagine we could catch it with your hands and take it to another site. For example: Resting it on the roof of a house.

 Do you know how we perceive the size of the things we see? 

We must project our body to the objects you can see in the landscape

Comparing the object with our own height, with our body. Imagining that we start to scale it or embrace it. Cars parked, as we must mentally manipulate and take them as if they were toy cars. Our body has to participate in the real things! and OUR BODY IS THE MEASURE OF ALL THINGS!
  
Has equal or even more therapeutic effect said than done.




For any questions, you know, send me an email:-)
santos.barrioscanseco@gmail.com

EXERCISE No 14 - "THE HOUSE OF MY CHILDHOOD" - My known paths

One of the reasons to feel confused and disoriented when we go down the street with DP / DR is that we are not ​​comparing the path we are following NOW with the well known paths we followed when we were kids and we were living in our parents.
 

THOSE DAYS WE WERE OK!

GO BACK IN TIME TO FEEL HOW WAS LEAVING HOME!
 

All gradually learned to go to unknown sites. There was a first time we were allowed to throw the trash in the container , one time in which we were allowed to go to buy bread at a nearby store. Again we started going to school for a slightly longer route, we learned to go through many roads, streets, each one with its attractions and feelings.

We learned the time it took us to get to school and not being late. That distance and that time is one of our basic references, even NOW, no matter the years have passed.

Some days, our parents, grandparents, uncle, aunt,... took us by subway or bus to some unknown and further place. What a thrill ! We were providing all our attention! Do you remember?

Especially, the first time.

There was always a first time for everything!

In addition we were storing a time history of these possible routes to get to places. As well as potential hazards or good things from each of them. Right now, we don't have a good access to that memory. We must practice actively the access to it ...

EXERCISE No. 14: "THE HOUSE OF MY CHILDHOOD - My known paths"

Close your eyes for a moment while sitting on a sofa and imagine you are in the past, at your parents, eg 15 years old, more or less . Ask yourself these questions:

IT IS HARD, I KNOW, BUT YOU SHOULD!

• What time is it now ?, What day is it ?, Week end or School day? ?, knowing that I am with my parents at home ... What could be doing right now ?, Should I be playing ?, Having a walk?, at school? ...
• How long would I have to wait to get out for a walk? Did I need permission from my parents?
• Down, where did I usually go?, What were my favorite ways?, What were my choices?, Going to see my friend who lived two blocks away?, Did we stay at some particular spot, maybe a mall? ...
• Imagine it's time to go to school ... you went out, and where were you going? What direction did you usually take?

EXERCISE nº12 - "Comparing, comparing and comparing"

By now, we know that our DP / DR dissociation likely comes from a weak communication between two areas or brain functions, one related to our body, time and space and the other, related to words, our conciousness and abstract concepts.

Although both still perform their functions , our unpleasant feeling comes from the fact that our rational, logic mind does not have easy access to the other part and therefore can not control the space-time of our life time or adequately perceive the world around us. Even knowing that it doen't mean any sense, we distinguish two parts within us , we feel as spectators of our own body. That fact may cause a panic attack in some individuals.

For example: a normal mind without DP / DR, is able to stop their own logical thoughts for a moment and looking consciously in a special way (check nº7 exercise, active look) to any ordinary object controlling the following information "not logical" that comes from the "other side":

• What time can be according to the intensity and angle of light I can see out the window?
• How big is this room compared to the previous home?
• How long has passed since I've seen, eg, my brother?
• How long I have a glance to this book?
• What do I want to do now?
• What I'm doing is appropriate to ME, to MY  PERSONALITY?
• What did I do yesterday ?, and last week ?, What would I do differently this week?
• What am I planning to do tomorrow?
• How long that I do not wear these shoes?
• Do I want my wife or my husband, girlfriend / boyfriend ?, What will  I tell when I meet them?
• Where have I seen this before ?, floor tiles are similar to ...?
• etc ...

There are a few types of questions that can help us a lot to reconstruct the puzzle as answers NO LOGIC, NOT ABLE TO BE reasoned , the right answers are in the "other side". If we don't want to give a random answer, deny the question or avoid the situation, WE SHOULD ACCESS to that part of our brain we want to connect to.

Excellent exercise!

EXERCISE nº12 - Compare SPECIFIC objects!

Located in your living room, watch the main table . As it will not be the first table you've seen in your life, ask yourself the following questions:

• When was the first time you saw this table?, Did you buy it?, Before was there another ?, Which one do you prefer?
• How is it compared to the table in your room ?, Is it highest? made in wooden or metal ?, What color is one and the other ?, What is heavier ?, What is wider ? Stretch out your hands and feel its dimensions.
• And your work desk or table where you study in school , college or university?
• Stand in front of it and see how high is it compared to your legs?. Sit on each chair around the table and think where you'd be more comfortable to write with a pen?

Notice the layout of the room , where are the armchairs, where is it the TV?, where are the chairs , and the bookstores?

Do you like the current layout more than the old one? Where did you sit at this time?

COMPARE ALL YOU CAN SEE: places, objects, heights, widths, dimensions respect to LONG AGO WHEN YOU WERE RIGHT!

santos.barrioscanseco@gmail.com