The Machinery of the Body
As I was planning out how to organize this, I noticed a recurring thought that I was being dangerously reductionist in conceptualising the body as a machine. I was worried that some would get the idea that I thought that nothing “sacred” was happening below the collar bone and that would somehow reduce the potency of a quality relationship with one’s body as a separate, unique entity. Rest assured, I hope this serves as an advertisement to invest in the relationship between your mind and body. I hope it suffices, for now, to merely voice my concern and assure you that I do not mean that the “entire” body is a machine, but rather, that it may be a useful perspective to view the body from in terms of addressing much of what ails us in modern life.
As a foundational starting point, I’d like to define the body as everything that is made of flesh, blood, water, fat, and bone, while the mind is everything else that makes up an individual; the entirely untouchable, intimately personal experience that is happening somewhere amongst the tissue of the body.
How could one benefit from conceptualizing the physical body as a machine?
Well, for starters, from the outside, much of what is going on in the body on a biological level is very mechanistic in nature; there are many similarities between the almost entirely autonomous and self-maintaining systems that make up both humans and machines.
Where the differences begin however lay somewhere in the shared and non-shared goals of the entire organism. A machine, more or less, is composed of parts and processes that have the same goal, all working in symphony. Alternatively, my mind might have a certain goal, i.e., to feel good, while at the same time, my body might have a different goal, i.e., fight off an infection that has been sensed, so it activates a fever state, causing chills and a rather unsettling feeling in the mind that makes us want to crawl under the covers.
This discrepancy in goals, and thus priorities, creates friction. And that is:
“Our mental and physical health suffers when the priorities of our systems are not integrated. Our body is pulling us in one way, and our mind pulls us in another. The body wants to rest, but the mind wants to go. And guess who’s got the wheel?”
Fortunately, and unfortunately, much of our modern world has been very successful in overriding the effects of this non-shared priority system. It’s like we are driving with the check engine light lit up and we decide to just put a piece of tape over it. “I’ll deal with that later”.
We have pain killers for injuries for when the mind doesn’t want to take the time to deal with, we have anti-depressants for when the mind doesn’t want to work with trauma, we have convenient drive-thru food for when the mind is too tired, we have anti-anxiety medications for when the mind doesn’t want to deal with not feeling competent/safe/understood etc. We have really caught ourselves in a conundrum here. More often than not, our mind drags our tired and beaten body farther than it can comfortably go. Then when the body stops functioning, the mind just takes more caffeine, more Advil, more work, more convenient food etc. and the cycle continues to get worse and worse until something really breaks.
So how does the body as a machine fit into this?
It simplifies things. It demystifies the symptoms that we experience and their causes. It tells us that what we are feeling is normal. It also gives us a sense that the solution is far closer and easier than we initially thought. If it’s all just machinery and moving parts, then dysfunction can only arise when something hasn’t been oiled properly, a bolt is too tight or loose, or we need an oil change. Or sometimes, we just have to stop driving down a certain road. Sure, there might be a little bit of learning that you have to do, but that’s patently necessary if you want to learn how to optimize or improve your psychology and physiology.
The benefits begin when you recognize that the symptoms you have been dealing with are probably a product of your choices and lifestyle. That might sting a little bit, but don’t let that rock you too hard, this doesn’t mean you’re stupid, or that you don’t deserve to feel good, or anything like that. This is merely your turn to learn this lesson. After all, do you get upset with yourself when your check engine light turns on? I hope not! It just means that it’s time to take a look under the hood.
Though it may seem subtle, removing the element of self-blame and shame around how you’ve got to where you allow you to begin working with what really matters instead of wanting to numb that too.
So rest assured that your body is far more than just a machine, but treating it like one when you are prepared and willing to make big changes in your life will absolutely help you reframe and empower your approach.
You’ve got this.
