Relax, Doctor!

Calmness and wisdom seem to emanate from the very print on the pages of Medicine & Compassion. I almost chuckled when I read, "on rarer occasions, stress in our lives may render us capable only of extremely limited compassion"(Rinpoche, 52), because it seems as if this irritated state describes a lot of us, a lot of the time. Being students, especially at UT, it's often hard not to get swept up in all the stress and find yourself a different person at times. Perhaps this is why we are so interested in compassion, because we've always had it and suddenly circumstances have beat it out of our everyday routines. Doctors in training are much the same way. A doctor studying residents noted that "fatigue cultivates anger, resentment, and bitterness, rather than kindness, compassion, or empathy"(Shlim, 2). In these two situations we must work extra hard to ensure that we are indeed compassionate.

The TV show "Scrubs" documents the journeys of a few young doctors-in-training. We see their daily stresses and endeavors to be passionate.

Furthermore, compassion is a conscious effort, not a spontaneous state of mind. I think this is the mistake we often make. We feel we either are compassionate or we aren't. Shlim initially poses the question "Can you develop compassion in th same sense that you acquire other knowledge and skills?"(Shlim, ix) and as he affirms, I strongly believe you can. Rinpoche suggests that "if we fall asleep full of joy and delight, then odds are higher that when we wake up some of that feeling will resurface"(Rinpoche, 69). I've personally found it to be tried and true. The most difficult part, however, is falling asleep genuinely full of joy and delight.

Genuinely being happy is difficult. Too many teenagers these days are dependent on "happy pills" or anti-depressants. Forcing ourselves to be happy has the same effect.

This is where we run into difficulty. Forcing ourselves to swallow plastic emotion does nothing for us. No; this simple statement goes much farther than it seems. Falling asleep full of joy and delight means looking at the world in a way that you never have before. It's learning to love the little things and knowing that everything does not need to be solved immediately. "It is extremely difficult to be 100 percent at ease"(Rinpoche, 49). It means accepting that everything is not perfect, nor is it black and white, nor will you never face problems. "The only way to ever be completely at peace is to get beyond both hope and fear, to get beyond the dualistic clinging"(Rinpoche, 49) and to realize that we must always acknowledge the negative and look for the positive.

Life and emotions are not absolutes; everything comes with balance. We must accept the negative and the positive, yin and yang, and still remain content.

Personally, I tend to freak out about things, even when worrying will not achieve anything. It is a natural tendency, and a large reason people do not go to sleep happy. In order to decrease our neuroticism, we must get in touch with a relaxed state of being. Few of us "spend ten to fifteen minutes a day cultivating mental relaxation"(Rinpoche, 76). People who do Yoga have proven to be happier and healthier. Perhaps this is because "diseases occur when there is an imbalance between one's body and the environment"(Rinpoche, 75), and the ability to relax that we learn from yoga counters the emotional stresses and burdens we carry and face everyday.

Yoga has spread around the world and is used to keep the mind, body, and spirit healthy every day.

These feelings can cause and illness of the personality, and it is important because it inhibits us from being able to be compassionate. The Lama speaks at length about "being empty and awake"(Rinpoche, 87) and the fact that these qualities "cannot be separated"(Rinpoche, 87). I believe this is where compassion is born and cultivated- in this peaceful silence and clarity we strive to achieve.