Here is a brief explanation of GNM before we proceed. Germanic New Medicine teaches that most illnesses and diseases start with a sudden, unexpected emotional shock conflict. Something happens that you didn’t see coming. It catches you off guard, you feel it emotionally, it affects you significantly, and in that moment, you also feel isolated, like you have to deal with it on your own in some way. In the very moment this distressing emotional event occurs, it triggers an automatic survival program that links your emotions, brain, and body. It is interesting to note that specific emotional conflicts create specific physical and mental health problems.
I took this photograph seconds before I fell this summer.
It was such a ridiculous, unexpected thing to happen. Here I was, way up in the woods, all alone, walking along carrying my camera and phone, and I just fell. Tripped over nothing I guess. One minute I was satisfied with my pretty pictures, and the next minute, I was on the ground, trying to hold back tears, unsuccessfully. Boy, did it ever hurt. I was also worried about dirt and scratches on my good camera lens. My camera and phone still hit the dirt, but I had protected them decently with my right arm. I had used my left arm to try to catch myself as I fell, which didn’t work very well, so the location of the guttural, raw pain was all around the left side of my chest and heart. I practically had to crawl back to my vehicle, and then immediately drive home.
After a few days of suffering, I finally went to get X-rays. There were no broken bones, just torn muscles. That first week was agony. On top of the physical pain, I had the fear that I had injured myself so badly, that I might never fully recover.
Even though it is a physical injury, an experience like this can also create an unexpected shock conflict. All the criteria were there. Even literal isolation.
The Problem We Add to the Problem
Adding fear on top is a typical reaction when we have pain or a problem. We make it more than the actual problem. I am not saying the problem isn’t big. But the fear on top just makes it bigger. My family used to say, it’s like making a mountain out of a molehill. Yes, it was out of my control that I was injured, but I was fully capable of releasing some of the emotions I had piled on top of the injury.
In my case, I was afraid I had seriously and permanently hurt myself. I was frustrated that I couldn't do what I normally do, worried about what I wasn't getting done, and concerned about how long the pain was going to last. The injury was one thing, but everything I was thinking and feeling about the injury was another.
This is why, when you're experiencing pain or problems, it can be so helpful to label what you're feeling. Maybe you're scared, angry, frustrated, disappointed, worried, or feeling helpless. Just recognize it, and give each feeling a name. And guess what? Sometimes, simply identifying the emotions can help the pain go down, even with a physical injury. If pain lasts longer than about six weeks, there are most likely emotions involved.
Give Your Mind Something Better to Focus On
You can apply this to any type of pain or suffering. After you address the negative emotions, you can begin to change what you are focusing on. Instead of constantly imagining the worst-case scenario, start to imagine things getting better. What would that be like? Imagine doing the things you love. Imagine waking up one morning and realizing that you feel so much better. You can have pain and hope at the same time. You can be in the middle of something difficult and still allow yourself to experience something good. Distraction can sometimes be just what the doctor ordered.
I think this is one of the most fascinating things about being human. No matter how much you are suffering, there can still be a moment when something grabs your attention, and the pain and problems fade into the background. You’ve probably been at a wake after the death of someone you love. Your heart was broken, and you were overwhelmed with grief, but then somebody reminded you of a funny, happy memory, and suddenly you genuinely laughed. For that moment, you have stepped out of the pain and into something good.
The same thing can happen when you're lying in bed feeling depressed, and you're in pain, and you turn on the television, or scroll on your phone, and see something really funny. All of a sudden, you start to chuckle. For those few seconds, you are completely in that moment, and you've forgotten about the pain, the worry, and everything else that was going through your head. And don’t tell me that two bites into your favorite dessert that you’re not distracted from your problems. Lol.
These moments prove that even chronic conditions don't have permanent, absolute control over our nervous systems. They force our bodies out of "fight-or-flight" mode, giving our physical and mental health a genuine chance to reset. The fact that we can do this tells us we have much more choice and power than we sometimes think.
Secondary Shock Conflict
In GNM, there is also the possibility of a secondary shock. Almost like a reaction to a reaction. This can happen when our experience of what happened creates another emotional shock on top of it.
Here is a simple example. Imagine a child really wants something. A special toy, perhaps, or to go somewhere with their friends. They have been looking forward to it all week, and then their parent suddenly says, “No, you can't.” The child is taken aback and deeply disappointed because they really wanted it. Now they are in the conflict active phase.
From the GNM perspective, this could be experienced as a morsel conflict. A morsel conflict involves a literal or metaphorical object, opportunity, relationship, or piece of news, where the right side of the throat reacts to "not being able to catch or swallow" the wanted morsel, while the left side reacts to "not being able to eliminate or spit out" the unwanted morsel.
Then, perhaps the next day, the parent changes their mind, and says, “Okay, you can have what you wanted after all.” The conflict is resolved, and according to GNM, the child may then enter the healing phase.
When the Symptom Becomes Another Conflict
Now the child has their conflict completely resolved, so they shift into the healing phase of a morsel conflict. They develop a terrible sore throat. It hurts, they hate it, and they're miserable. The unexpected pain startled them, and they thought, “This is awful. What an annoying pain in my throat. I hate being sick. I am so fed up with this. This situation stinks!”
So now they have a new conflict on top. A “stink conflict” can involve a literal smell that you find offensive or repulsive. It can also be a situation, person, or circumstance that the person gets fed up with, or finds annoying. “That stinks!” When the emotional conflict gets resolved, or partially resolved, (and that can happen quite quickly in our psyche), the healing phase begins, usually including uncomfortable or painful symptoms. In GNM, the healing symptoms of a stink conflict could look much like what we think of as a typical cold, such as a stuffy or runny nose, sneezing, mucus, or sinus pressure.
In our example, the child’s first unexpected emotional conflict was about wanting something and being told they couldn't have it. The second unexpected emotional conflict was feeling that the uncomfortable situation stinks.
My Personal Example of a Secondary Conflict
This scenario happened to me because of my recent injury as well.
As soon as I had improved enough to actually start accomplishing something again, I suddenly got cramps and diarrhea. According to German New Medicine (GNM), the small intestine is biologically associated with an "indigestible morsel" conflict. In the animal kingdom, this is a literal piece of food stuck in the gut that cannot be broken down or absorbed.
For humans, this conflict is almost always figurative. It is triggered by an unexpected shock of anger, frustration, or resentment over a situation, a remark, a piece of bad news, or something that feels unfair, difficult to process, or impossible to stomach and accept. It represents a gut-wrenching inability to absorb a harsh reality.
GNM describes diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal cramps as possible symptoms during the healing phase after an indigestible morsel conflict has been resolved, or partially resolved. Looking at my own experience through that framework, I had a pretty good idea what mine might have been about. I had been angry with myself for not being more careful, and frustrated about the pain and the things I couldn't do. The whole situation and the pain were pretty “hard to take.”
My first unexpected emotional conflict was falling down. My second unexpected emotional conflict was being angry at myself for not being careful.
The Importance of Reducing Fear
Sometimes you can simply have the sore throat or deal with the injury, get through it, and move on without adding another conflict and symptoms on top of it. Sometimes you can acknowledge and accept that, yes, you hurt, that unfortunate thing happened, but you can just trust that you are going to get better, and all will be well. Every little thing is gonna be alright. This can be especially important when it comes to what GNM describes as a diagnosis shock from a doctor. You may experience a physical symptom from an initial conflict, go to the doctor and receive a frightening diagnosis, and become terrified about what that diagnosis means. The fright surrounding the diagnosis can become a new significant emotional conflict, in addition to the first one. This makes everything go from bad to worse. That is why it is so much better to educate yourself, and practice reducing fear as a daily mindset ahead of time, before an incident happens, so you are ready to face the unexpected without panicking.
Practice Expecting Things to Work Out
Consider ways to become a little easier-going about life. Things are going to happen that catch you completely off guard. Some things will hurt, some will be frustrating, and some may take longer to work through than you would like. But you can start getting used to the idea that things do work out. You can experience a difficult moment without labeling your entire day or life as a disaster.
When something happens, try noticing where your mind goes. Are you immediately thinking, “This is awful. What am I going to do? What if it never gets better?” Or can you pause and think, “Okay, this is challenging. I don't know exactly how this is going to work out yet, but I know things will get better.”
That is something you can practice. Start looking for the positive outcome instead of automatically expecting the worst. Get used to seeing things work out. Get used to telling yourself, “I am okay right now. I can handle this right now. I don't have to figure everything out today.” Even when something is uncomfortable, you can rest in the confidence that things will change. Leave room for something good to happen. When one door closes, another door opens is more than a cliché.
The more you practice this way of thinking, the easier it can become to move through unexpected things without piling more fear and worry on top of the original experience. Some things in life can still be challenging. You can still have pain or uncertainty. But it will make a significant difference if you simply start developing the expectation that you will get through it, and that things will get better.
It’s also very important to remember that you do have people. They may not always be what you want them to be, but there are people in this world that will help you. You might have to ask them, pay them, or beg them. Lol. But regardless, it is significant to soothe yourself, and thus your biology, by remembering that you have support available. A lot of people do care, and some of them even love you.
Be Gentle with Yourself
And please be a little easier on yourself when you're going through something. Give yourself a break if things aren’t how you prefer, or not back to normal yet. Give your body the time it needs to heal, give your emotions some release, and give your mind something better to focus on when you can. Or take a nap.
"When it hurts, you ask, 'How can I think positive thoughts when I'm in pain?’ And we said, 'You can have pain and have hope, or you can have pain and have despair or fear. The vibrational difference between hope and despair is the difference between recovery or not." Abraham Hicks