Reflections on the Intensive Session and Reactive Healthcare by Claudette Stern
Commonly the lead-in to disease, illness, affliction of whatever sort, short of injury via misadventure, is a slow descent. In my experience, there is a gradual acclimation to a lesser and lesser level of wellness and well-being. Adapting ever so incrementally to changes, or attributing them to aging, we can fail to notice our organism’s shift until in a maximum state of complaint.
There are too few of us leading balanced, healthful, relaxed lives, with greater time in quiet reflection and meditation, with a gratifying emphasis on what is necessary for our truly best interests to be maintained. By the moment of an urgent diagnosis we have bypassed a tremendous opportunity in preventative care.
The root of the word “patient” comes from the Greek meaning “to suffer”. If we can manage to interrupt any descent by nourishing ourselves, perhaps in ways new and untried, we gain a precious opportunity, and a path for avoiding that particular kind of “suffering”.
My experience at the Intensive Retreat encouraged me to think about how valuable the experience would have been in reorganizing my constitution before an ailment could take hold or as a revitalization of a body (mind, spirit…) under duress. It is not too extravagant to think of such a “retreat” as a necessity toward maintaining a sound mind and vital body as we navigate the trying fluctuations of life.