Turbulence

When someone feels as if their life is ebbing into a stagnant, still pool of monotony, a subtle feeling of foreboding often emerges in them. The mundane pattern of their daily life will seem to gain a shadow of its own. Uncertainty lies behind each constant action and continual habit. 

The human psyche is a complex entity. 

It is hardwired to expect difficulties, strange situations, pain, and grief– so when the mind is comfortable for too long, it upsets itself. It is attracted to monotony and familiarity. When the monotony and familiarity are all there is, the qualities become repellents.

This phenomenon is because, with a history as arduous and persevering as the history of humanity, the brain becomes nervous in the face of a life too easy. Too simple. It knows, from generations of struggle, that life is not a walk in the park.

So it attempts to steel itself. It puts itself on edge and makes your insides churn with growing uneasiness, because no- it really cannot be that easy. Survival is not that simple.

Elliot D. Cohen says “As is well known, Freud divided the human psyche into three functional parts: the id, ego, and superego. The id is a ´dark,´ ´inaccessible´ (unconscious), a non-rational component of the psyche that seeks pleasure. The superego, on the other hand, is the moral conscience arising from internalized parental authority. Its demands are absolutistic and inflexible, and, therefore, in conflict with the capricious id. Accordingly, the ego’s function is to resolve this internal conflict such that the id can satisfy its drives in a socially/morally acceptable manner. To accomplish the latter function, the ego maintains a grasp on reality (the external world), navigating the headwaters of reality to fulfill its function.”

The ¨id¨, according to Freudian theory, is the section of the brain that contains the most basic primitive impulses. It could be understood that this obscure concept is to blame then; one of the most primitive impulses can be called the fight or flight instinct. It is the stress response given by the amygdala when in an emotionally or physically taxing situation, in which it triggers the two ideas of fight or flight: escaping, running away– or staying, and going head to head with whatever the issue is.

When this stress response is inactive for a lengthy period, as said at the beginning of this piece, the mind grows confused. This inherent drive for complexity and struggle reminds us that even in the quietest moments, our minds are attuned to the balance between comfort and challenge.

08.16.2024.