Self-Censorship and Working out
As a general rule I am very much against the idea of censorship. Labeling certain ideas or works as 'dangerous' and hiding them away doesn't seem very productive.
I believed, too, that people who choose to 'self-censor' themselves away from certain things (Things that scare them or make them uncomfortable) were merely internalizing of the cultures larger scheme of censorship. While I still hold on to this to a certain point, I think I'm going to have to alter my stance somewhat. What lead me to changing my mind was working out regularly.
When I workout I push myself as hard as I can and I've learned a few things about myself in doing so. It would be impossible for anyone to work at their maximum capacity 100% of the time so I've learned to gauge the normal highs and lows of my performances. I've also come to notice how certain things I do or don't do will affect these ups and downs - I know when I'm not eating enough, or sleeping enough, when I'm too stressed out or whatever. All of these are pretty straight forward, but there's one factor I found very interesting: What I'm thinking about.
I've found myself in the middle of a familiar thought pattern and becoming physically weaker for it. I can't manage as many push ups, or I get winded much faster, or I simply don't have the energy to continue. I can be certain that the mindset is to blame because when I purposely remove myself from those thoughts and focus on something else (Sometimes this requires mood-shifting music, a conversation, or a change of scenery) my strength comes bouncing right back.
I've been a long time proponent of the link between a strong mind and body; I don't believe the two to be separate. Look into the studies of morality and brain damage if you're curious. If you alter the brain you alter the person, and as the brain is an organ of the body, it is also affected by the processes of the body. Body=mind=person=mind=body it's a circular system. However, up to this point I had no tangible experiences of this phenomenon so it was mostly an abstraction. I had merely assumed that any noticeable changes between thoughts and physicality would only happen in the extremes of severe trauma, but, I was wrong.
This is why I've been thinking more about shifting my views of self-censorship. If repeated exposure to certain stimuli can cause a shift in mindset, and therefore, a shift in the bodies capabilities, isn't keeping oneself away from those things beneficial? Maybe not block them out absolutely, but limiting exposure seems like a smart move.
This thought kind of sucks because it's usually my curiosity that compels me to search out the things that get me into a funk, and I really don't like having to reign it in. But, I really don't like having these things physically affect me either. hm.