The question is often asked, “how can I replace the cravings?” And the answer is “with the play of thoughts.”
When you can’t observe the surface of something without wondering about what lies beneath, you have stepped into the play of your thoughts. The play of thought is often, sadly, what we are trying to escape with addiction, because a life filled with trauma seeks to avoid thinking about what might be under the surface. And not just beneath the surface of our own self (the trauma hidden in our own body), but secondarily the suspected hidden intentions behind the words and actions of others.
We must, however, become comfortable with the play of thought beneath the surface. This is the inner qualia of things. The qualia within is what gives meaning to our lives. The meaning we inherit via trauma may have once helped us endure, but it usually narrows the play of thought, just like addiction. To recover we must overcome our restrictive fears.
Imagine walking up to the center of a seesaw. At first all our attention is on not falling. It is safer not to play but to get off the seesaw and onto solid ground. This is the trauma response. But staying on, we will find our balance and there we can look beyond our fears and take in so much more. We can widen our view of things. This is the play of thought.
The Qualia Quotient can improve our balance, increase the play of thought, and decrease our cravings. When our Interest and Participation levels are closely matched in the middle (around 5 out of 10) our alertness is broadened and steady. Not surprisingly , this is very much like the sympathetic and parasympathetic aspects of our nervous system. The one represents fight or flight, sending blood to our feet and fists, and it narrows our focus because we have to take care of immediate business. The other, the parasympathetic system, draws the blood to our center, and it allows us to calmly observe more of our surroundings.
Both trauma and addiction can put the sympathetic nervous system into overdrive, turning our narrow focus into a chronic condition. Big Dopamine (addiction) throws our Interest and Participation levels out of whack, while Little Dopamine puts them back into balance. Big Dopamine makes us focus on the surface qualia, while Little Dopamine helps us focus on the inner qualia.
Addiction actually makes a perfect metaphor for the human landscape, and why we have become so destructive to our planet. Addiction (and much of life in the human landscape) is clumsily fueled by Big Dopamine, while most of the rest of life on the planet – divinely guided by ecosystems – runs exceptionally well on Little Dopamine.
When cruising along in balance on Little Dopamine, we can be alert to what is going on around us and yet not be triggered into fearfulness or anger or fight or flight by what we see (or hear, smell, taste, and touch), allowing us to be alert to the play of our thoughts.
When our Interest and Participation levels are in balance, we can tolerate the play of thought in our minds in the mind. Indeed, the play of thought, wondering what is going on beneath the surface of things, is one of the greatest gifts of being human. With Little Dopamine pleasures we can break free of our traumatic, Big Dopamine habits and life the good life.