The Emotional Marathon

Preface

There are obviously many afflictions that individuals are subjected to these days for which there is seemingly no cure.  For example, there are heart disease, cancer, arthritis, sugar diabetes, stomach ulcers, stroke, and others.  In his late twenties, the author became the victim of two such afflictions, namely, arthritis and heart disease.  In the course of attempting to trace each back to its origin, the author has been able to conclude that such afflictions are essentially the result of an adverse "stress" life-style.  He also concluded that it is a situation not just peculiar to him but to many, many other individuals. As the result of continuous adherence to this unacceptable life-style, individuals not only eventually become physically afflicted, they do so in a form dependent on the prevailing physical or organic weakness within each, respectively.

In The Emotional Marathon, the author goes on to uncover a particular law of nature applying to the nervous system that is being abused, not consciously but subconsciously.  He feels it is a law that needs to be thoroughly understood and regulated.  Just as we need to understand and overcome t he forces of gravity in order to make airplanes fly, we also need to understand the functions, relationship, and emotional and physical limits of the two main divisions of the nervous system in order to maintain good emotional health and well-being.

This book approaches the problem from the standpoint that these so-called "no cure" afflictions are the end result of a marginal, yet unrelentless, fatigue from stress, causing gradual wear and tear on various parts of the anatomy (except where certain infections may be involved). Afflictions could appl7y to bones, tissues, cells, visceral organs, or body processes, depending on the area of prevailing weakness within the individual. The author attempts to depict that such afflictions are more closely related than one would think, with stress essentially being the common denominator.

The solution to this dilemma of emotional disorders is primarily in their prevention. We must understand under what conditions we allow ourselves to become victims of stress and then build up safeguards against it.  This essentially includes an understanding of how the parasympathetic and the sympathetic divisions of the nervous system function and relate to each other. When one division essentially remains dominant, a normal lifestyle prevails.  When the other remains dominant, an adverse "stress" life-style prevails.