17/6/2016

What is psychophysical health? | Dimon Institute

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What is psychophysical health?

Jun 16, 2016

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Many of us, without realizing it, are living in a kind of clouda mood state that interferes with general attitude and

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attention. We become dominated by a general state of preoccupation and worry. Pretty quickly, that state becomes
habitual, preventing us from thinking clearly and acting calmly.

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Even in a seemingly illness-free individual, can we call this state of being truly healthy? And how do we lift this mental fog?

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This fog is a result of a compromised, hyperactive psychophysical system. When the system calms down and we are no

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longer preoccupied and overwrought, we can see things more clearly and approach problems more logically. We can let
go of issues that are bothering us because we can see more clearly what has to be done and how to do it.

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In A New Model for Mans Conscious Development, Ted Dimon identi es three elements that constitute a de nition of

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psychophysical health:

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the coordinated working of muscles

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the quality of attention

anatomy of directing

and the functioning of the system as a behavioral whole

antagonistic action

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movement.

awareness and health

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child development

consciousness

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design

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This child exhibits beautiful

his quiet, attentive state and in

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the free, easy use of his body,

mindfulness
movement

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primary control

psychophysical

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stress

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tension

that makes it possible to conceive of the person as a total system in which mental and physical elements operate as an
and understanding how the organism functions in action.

performance

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The term psychophysical does not refer to the connection between body and mind but represents a new paradigmone
entire acting/reacting organism. This is not just a more complete conception of mind/body unity, but a new way of seeing

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prevention

which is not at all strained.

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psychophysical health, both in

education

kinesthetic thinking

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works in a balanced way. More speci cally, psychophysical health includes an assessment of muscle tone, the
coordination of parts as a whole, attention level, mental attitude, and speci cally what happens to all these elements in

attention

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Together, these elements form a new and comprehensive standard for understanding how the psychophysical system

tensegrity

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This positive condition is not to be confused with relaxation, which produces a calming e ect but which tends also to
lower awareness instead of heightening it. By practicing relaxation, it is possible to achieve a kind of quieting down, to
notice distracting thoughts, and to reduce stress. But relaxing leads to sapped energy and a collapsed physical state and,
as such, represents a false attempt to restore the body to its normal condition. To truly reverse the e ects of stress, we
must produce this condition of alertness and balanced functioning, which restores not only calmness to the nervous
system but clearheaded, rational thinkingtwo attributes that are essential to psychophysical health.
The same principle applies to the ability to approach tasks calmly and to make bigger picture choices in our lives. A
compromised psychophysical state taints our judgments, feelings, and attitudes, preventing us from seeing the larger
picture and looking at things rationally. Many adults live perpetually in this state, unable to stop, to re ect, to sort out
di culties so that life again becomes manageable, or to plan rationally when approaching di cult tasks. A renewed and
healthy form of awareness or mindfulness is associated not with relaxation but with a balanced state of readiness and
energya condition we have all observed in the open-eyed, alert state of a young child, which is not simply a sign of youth
but of active poise and healthy muscle tone.

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17/6/2016

What is psychophysical health? | Dimon Institute

It is important to reiterate that this change in mental activity is based not on some vague concept of relaxation but on real
motor function. Psychophysical health can be addressed properly only by restoring the body to a state of poisethat is,
active and free of excess tension. This state can seem very much the opposite of one achieved with relaxation. Then and
only then can unnecessary mental activity associated with a malfunctioning psychophysical system quiet down fully.
When one restores the body to a state of balance and poise one becomes suddenly aware of the mind quieting down as a
direct result of a cessation of motor activity. There is a sense of having been subliminally distracted by doing things,
subconsciously working on a problem or fretting over the coming work week, and all of a sudden this activity stops. This
realization that some underlying activity has ceasednot just mentally but throughout the whole motor system
demonstrates in a startling way the direct link between ideas and muscular activity, and the educational meaning implied
in gaining control over this system, and in improving our psychophysical health.
Have questions? Looking to understand this idea better? Email us with your questions, or comment in the Facebook posts
and well do our best to respond.

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