When I went to Great Lakes, IL for boot camp – I was in the US Naval Reserves for 8 years … another story behind that decision, which will be my next blog post.
There was one exercise that we all had to go through called the Gas Chamber. The purpose was to trust and take care of our equipment. There were 45 of us along the chamber wall with our equipment on. Groups of 5 would step forward. In front of each of us was a plate, and the instructor placed a tear gas caplet on it. We were instructed to remove our equipment.
Most people had a bad reaction. Some panicked, spit, vomited and most coughed. The gas burns the respiratory tract and the eyes. It also irritates the skin for about 10 minutes after.
I knew going into this exercise that I was going to use my mind to tell my body to relax and stay focused on being impervious to the gas. I had no doubt that I was going to sail through that exercise. And, as a result, my mind, which is the software, told my body – the hardware – to relax, be calm and impervious to the gas.
I did not cough or shutter. My eyes did tear a lot, but that was it. My reaction elicited comments from my instructors who were a bit stunned at my reaction, as it was clearly abnormal.
The mind is powerful and what you tell it is manifested by the body.
How are you programming mind? And, what will you do differently?