Keys to the Unexplored Self
by Ceanne DeRohan
From the channeler of the 8 books called "The Right Use of Will" comes a new book about emotions... Ceanne DeRohan has done some brain research to add to her years of engaging with lots and lots of people who have been trying to get "underneath" their surface to the issues that drive our misery and pain. This is her branching out effort to help people better understand how to USE the information in her other books. I have to be upfront and say that can't read her other books but a lot of people swear by them even thought they don't seem to have improved their lives more than others who haven't read them. However, that may be why Ceanne has written this book...to help people learn HOW to do the work so obviously needed in our world. Her information in Feelings Matter, are excellent and she does not shirk from deep issues.
This is the INTRODUCTION to Ceanne's new book
Ceanne says: " I have been searching for answers for quite some time, because I have had a persistent feeling that despite all of our exhorting of one another and all of our efforts to improve our situation on this planet, there has been something underlying that would explain why we have not been very successful, and instead, have continued to live out the adage that history repeats itself.
When I came across the information that the functioning of the majority of our brains has been becoming increasingly imbalanced and dominated by the part of our brain referred to as our Reptilian brain stem, I felt that here was an important piece of information that had been missing. I wanted to know more about what this meant.
I have since learned many things, among them that even though the symptoms and enactments of advancing Reptilian brain domination have been becoming increasingly apparent all around us, it has just now been being recognized for what it really is, for how it happens and for what this really means. This book is about how and why this brain imbalance has been happening and what we can do about it.
While there are many things about our Reptilian brain that are good for our survival, domination by our Reptilian brain is not the way our human brains are meant to develop. All the parts of our brain are meant to develop and function in an interactive balance, and yet, Reptilian brain domination has become so prevalent that it has come to be regarded as normal. Reptilian brain domination has even been being described as “human nature,” but it is not the true nature of humans.
Understanding the far-reaching effects of Reptilian brain domination, how it happens, why it is so detrimental and what we can do about it may take awhile to sink in, but essentially this is a brain imbalance that has been imperiling the very qualities that make us loving and caring human beings. Reptilian brain domination results in reacting rather than thinking and feeling. These reactions are to protect perceived threats to the self, real or not.
Reptilian brain domination reduces life to a binary world of self and other in which survival means that self must prevail. It has not integrated enough to see that we are interdependent. Where there is Reptilian brain domination, there is a deep-seated imprint that we have only self to depend on. Distrust is high. This makes it difficult to think beyond self, to have good relationships with others and to effect any sustainable change.
Perhaps some of the appeal of Reptilian brain domination has been the illusion that because we don’t really care all that much, or perhaps, at all, about others, we are free to do whatever we want and ignore the consequences to others because they are not us. Are you aware of how much reactionary behavior we have in our current system of living? Becoming reactionary is not normal human behavior. Taking action when there is a real survival threat is normal human behavior, but Reptilian brain domination can blur that discernment.
By understanding Reptilian brain domination we can become able to see that it has been the root cause of most of our many and collective problems. Addressing Reptilian brain domination can enable us to more effectively make the shifts we need to make on the deep and underlying levels where these shifts need to be made, not only in ourselves, but also socially and globally.
To understand, and even to believe, what it can really mean to have Reptilian brain domination, it seems necessary to have a foundation of understanding in the current knowledge about our brain development and also the causes of our many current imbalances. In the light of this, I have tried to make the scientific information in this book as readable and emotionally engaging as I could.
Although it has now become known as a scientific fact that we can grow brain cells and neural pathways at any age, now called neuro-plasticity, many of us have still lacked understanding of how to effectively improve our brain function in the 2/3, or more, of our brain (that) does not respond to words.
Because we can best restore brain balance by using a synergistic blend of approaches, shifting our brains to a state of greater balance can seem to be more difficult than it may at first appear. However, if we have the desire to do it, it isn’t likely to be too difficult for us to accomplish. Based on the research that has been done about what stimulates what parts of our brain to develop, I have included many practical suggestions for improving the development, integration and balance in our entire brain and nervous system. Our efforts can produce results while also being stimulating, enjoyable and even fun, and need not be particularly “mental,” because in most of us, it is the parts of our brain other than the Neocortical, thinking part that need the most help.
There is also a lot of information in this book about the role that stress has been playing in our brain and nervous system imbalances, information on nutrition and detoxifying our bodies and also what can be done during pregnancy, birth and early infancy to stop perpetuating our developmental imbalances.
As a stepping stone to finding additional help, there is also a resource section included at the end of the book. There are now many ways available to get the help we need. Also, by listening to ourselves, we can find inner promptings to guide us on an interesting journey of self-discovery, challenging us to develop more parts of ourselves.
Better brain development and balance can result from giving our brain what it needs. With that help, our brain can make many shifts for the betterment of our entire being, and subsequently, everything around us. After all, our brain is the processing center for our intelligence, and its state of development is reflected to us in everything, internal and external. Why not improve its development, integration and balance?