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Isn't taking a pain killer, making you think for a few hours you DON'T have the
torn swollen ligament, similar to believing you are "saved and going to Heaven
bec I believe in Jesus"...the same?
Both are temporary highs...
Both make you feel great...
Both end...
Both are delusions...
Is it ok to feel good if it isn't real or true?
What is real, then...what you feel, how you feel?
Isn't that reality... what you feel....whether it is true or not?
Whether it is temporary or not?
Living on the Holodeck forever in peace and happiness, hmm...is it better to
live your life in an emotional or physical discomfort?Or on the fun Holodeck?
Believing whatever you want to believe...
Similar to the movie King of Hearts, I know...
I think happiness is the goal...I have thought that since I was 19.
That's why I always say...Whatever floats your boat....but then I see so many boats sinking...
Isn't taking a pain killer, making you think for a few hours you DON'T have the
torn swollen ligament, similar to believing you are "saved and going to Heaven
bec I believe in Jesus"...the same?
Both are temporary highs...
Both make you feel great...
Both end...
Both are delusions...
Is it ok to feel good if it isn't real or true?
What is real, then...what you feel, how you feel?
Isn't that reality... what you feel....whether it is true or not?
Whether it is temporary or not?
Living on the Holodeck forever in peace and happiness, hmm...is it better to
live your life in an emotional or physical discomfort?Or on the fun Holodeck?
Believing whatever you want to believe...
Similar to the movie King of Hearts, I know...
I think happiness is the goal...I have thought that since I was 19.
That's why I always say...Whatever floats your boat....but then I see so many boats sinking...
If that's what makes people feel good, then no harm. I think when you get into destructive "feel good" escapes, like alcohol and drugs, then there's a problem.
Some people would say religion is just as bad if not worse than drugs or alcohol (crusades, people screaming at you "turn or burn!) but if the follow the teachings of Christ, is that a bad thing?
Isn't taking a pain killer, making you think for a few hours you DON'T have the
torn swollen ligament, similar to believing you are "saved and going to Heaven
bec I believe in Jesus"...the same?
From what I remember from pharmacy school, pain killers can activate what can be called a type of reward system in the brain. The release of endorphins is what can result in a good feeling. So, if the belief system that someone has formed of God is built around this sense of reward, then I feel that yes, the comparison is an accurate one.
Isn't taking a pain killer, making you think for a few hours you DON'T have the
torn swollen ligament, similar to believing you are "saved and going to Heaven
bec I believe in Jesus"...the same?
Both are temporary highs...
Both make you feel great...
Both end...
Both are delusions...
Is it ok to feel good if it isn't real or true?
What is real, then...what you feel, how you feel?
Isn't that reality... what you feel....whether it is true or not?
Whether it is temporary or not?
Living on the Holodeck forever in peace and happiness, hmm...is it better to
live your life in an emotional or physical discomfort?Or on the fun Holodeck?
Believing whatever you want to believe...
Similar to the movie King of Hearts, I know...
I think happiness is the goal...I have thought that since I was 19.
That's why I always say...Whatever floats your boat....but then I see so many boats sinking...
Excellent question. In the OT, a Jew would have to make daily sacrifices to cover their sin. A lamb would actually be killed, or sent into the wilderness to die. It was called a "scapegoat". But it never addressed the actual problem--their sinful nature. People would keep sinning.
Likewise, taking a pain killer just makes one forget the pain for a time--covering it up. It does nothing for the underlying reason that is causing the pain. The pain will be back in a few hours or the next day-just like an OT Jew would have to deal with their sin again the next day.
Jesus came along though, and fixed the issue--he dealt with the cause, not the symptom. He made us righteous before God once and for all--by removing our sin and covering us with his righteousness. That's why he had to be God -- because it was a once-for-all thing, not just a one-time deal.
Isn't taking a pain killer, making you think for a few hours you DON'T have the
torn swollen ligament, similar to believing you are "saved and going to Heaven
bec I believe in Jesus"...the same?
Both are temporary highs...
Both make you feel great...
Both end...
Both are delusions...
Is it ok to feel good if it isn't real or true?
What is real, then...what you feel, how you feel?
My late wife always used to say, "I'll take a false sense of security if it's all I can get ... but I prefer real answers when available."
I think that just as thinking something doesn't make it so, feeling something doesn't make it so. Feelings just arise from thoughts anyway.
That said, sometimes folks have quite large burdens to bear, and not everything is fixable, so I think people should be able to do whatever they need to do to get through the day, so long as it's truly not at anyone else's expense.
Problem is, this can get tricky. Say I'm a diabetic and delicious food is the last reliable pleasure in my life, so I elect to scarf down whatever floats my boat, despite knowing that at some point my body is going to throw a rod over it, and my family that depends on me will suffer accordingly. This is like a slow, subtle suicide. If I'm old, my physical deterioration may be indistinguishable from natural causes to the casual observer. Yet technically it's not different from drinking away my sorrows other than that it's harder to detect.
Ultimately, dealing in reality is best. Yet some people can't handle reality (cue Jack Nicholson: "Truth? You can't HANDLE the truth!!"). Heck, I admit that there are some aspects of reality I could handle better. So is it okay to feel good based on illusions?
Mark Twain, I think it was that said, "A man needs some illusions so that when the seas get rough, he has some ballast to throw overboard." I have thrown all my ballast overboard that I know of; there might be a couple hundred pounds in a forgotten bilge somewhere down below, but basically, I'm running on bare metal in my life these days. If I can't handle any aspect of reality, I pretty much have to resort to Not Looking At It, and this doesn't go very far for me.
So ... everyone's mileage will vary, but aside from children, whose illusions will be beaten out of them by life soon enough, my money is on dealing in reality, no matter how gnarly it may be at times. I prefer to feel good when good things happen and if bad things happen then I prefer to feel what I feel and get it out of the way and move on.
Well, some pain killers do reduce swelling and inflamation... which in itself reduces pain and has physical and functional benefits. Nothing delusional about that.
Isn't taking a pain killer, making you think for a few hours you DON'T have the
torn swollen ligament, similar to believing you are "saved and going to Heaven
bec I believe in Jesus"...the same?
Both are temporary highs...
Both make you feel great...
Both end...
Both are delusions...
Is it ok to feel good if it isn't real or true?
What is real, then...what you feel, how you feel?
Isn't that reality... what you feel....whether it is true or not?
Whether it is temporary or not?
Living on the Holodeck forever in peace and happiness, hmm...is it better to
live your life in an emotional or physical discomfort?Or on the fun Holodeck?
Believing whatever you want to believe...
Similar to the movie King of Hearts, I know...
I think happiness is the goal...I have thought that since I was 19.
That's why I always say...Whatever floats your boat....but then I see so many boats sinking...
Sorry to be pedantic but I think you have to be specific about the type of pain relief you are talking about. Some painkillers are not just masking the pain they are actually acting on the source of the pain.
(My husband works in pharmacokinetics / pharmacodynamics.)
Pain killers work in a variety of ways:
Opioids such as Morphine and codeine act primarily in the brain and reduce the intensity of pain signals reaching the brain and affect those brain areas controlling emotion, which diminishes the effects of the pain.
Pain is the result of an electrical signals being sent from your nerves to your brain.
But the process is not just electrical. When you get injured the damaged tissue releases chemicals called prostaglandins which cause the tissue to swell. They also amplify the electrical signal coming from the nerves and increase the pain you feel.
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin and ibuprofen work to actually reduce inflammation. They block the effects of special enzymes that make prostaglandins. By blocking the enzymes, these drugs stop your body from making as many prostaglandins, meaning less swelling and less pain.
Another drug Paracetamol (acetaminophen) has been used for centuries but how it works is still not fully understood. It is believed to act primarily in the brain as it has little effect on inflammation. It is thought to inhibit production of prostaglandins mainly in the brain, helping to relieve mild pain.
Entonox (gas and air) helps release endorphins which acts to relieve the pain rather than block it out completely.
In answer to your question, what surprises me Miss Hepburn is that you seem to be admitting that belief is a delusion? I thought you were a theist?
In some ways I understand what you are saying.
Taking a painkiller is similar to belief - they are both delusions?
Feeling pain is incredibly important. There are people who do not feel pain and these people face terrible danger because their bodies have no warning system. So a correctly working nervous system and brain are obviously vitally important.
Cognitive behavioural therapy can have some mild effect in helping reduce pain. We can take our minds off pain to some extent but there again the effect tends to be mild or temporary.
Pain relief tends to be a temporary delusion which belief rarely is.
Sorry but I think your comparison here is a little tenuous.
Fred Gailey,from the movie miracle on 34th street: Look Doris, someday you're going to find that your way of facing this realistic world just doesn't work. And when you do, don't overlook those lovely intangibles. You'll discover those are the only things that are worthwhile.I agree.who cares about reality what has it ever done for me.
Isn't taking a pain killer, making you think for a few hours you DON'T have the torn swollen ligament, similar to believing you are "saved and going to Heaven bec I believe in Jesus"...the same?
Both are temporary highs... Both make you feel great... Both end... Both are delusions...
Is it ok to feel good if it isn't real or true?
What is real, then...what you feel, how you feel?
Isn't that reality... what you feel....whether it is true or not?
Whether it is temporary or not?
Living on the Holodeck forever in peace and happiness, hmm...is it better to
live your life in an emotional or physical discomfort?Or on the fun Holodeck?
Believing whatever you want to believe...
Similar to the movie King of Hearts, I know...
I think happiness is the goal...I have thought that since I was 19.
That's why I always say...Whatever floats your boat....but then I see so many boats sinking...
there is a huge distinction between pain killers and belief.
pain killers may alleviate pain, but they don't cause denial, it's belief that does that. this is the very basis for irony in all it's myriad forms. is it not the most incredibly obvious 'thing' that most people insist their beliefs illuminate truth and reality, when the reality is that truth is hiding right out in the open, right out in plain view....in the guise of denial.
isn't it the most devious thing...that we can all see the truth in this as it applies to everyone around us, but not ourselves....
merrily merrily merrily....life is but a dream.....
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but I think you have to be specific about the type of pain relief you are talking about. Some painkillers are not just masking the pain they are actually acting on the source of the pain.
reality?
