The Forgotten Rhythm

For millions of years the waters of the oceans have been rising and falling - waves flooding the land and receding again - in the same rhythm. The universe expands and contracts. Human development too follows a predetermined natural rhythm. After every tension there is a relaxation - experiences are digested during the rest phase.

An internal clock directs the sleep and wake rhythm and is responsible for all metabolic processes. The most visible connection to the pulse in nature is menstruation. Among primitive peoples without artificial light, all the women menstruate at full moon. To be part of the natural world gives a strong feeling of connectedness and trust.

Crying children calm down as soon as they hear their mother's beating heart. It reminds them of the security of the womb. A regular rhythm comforts and soothes since it is the foundation of all human existence and hence closest to the origin. The closer a person is to the origin, the safer he feels.

Childhood illnesses occur according to individual development as a support to the maturing process.

In the western world our memory of our inherent rhythm and inner clock has been derailed.

Travelling in the winter to countries with a summer climate at a time when the body needs peace and rest ignores seasonal rhythms.

Orthodox medicine being an analytical method tends to ignore bodily rhythms and to manipulate according at its own discretion. Artificial hormones suppress the natural cycle; night is made to day.

Childhood diseases that support physical development are banished, in a profit led society there is no time to tend to the children patiently. One works around the clock ignoring the need for weekends and breaks. As long as the economy flourishes no one cares if the trees flower in winter and snow falls in summer.

Vaccinations interrupt and block the body's own rhythm and prevent an undisturbed development.

A hospital's medical personnel are expected to work around the clock and always be reachable. The body's rhythm is denied. So it is not surprising that it is hardly noticed or respected in patients.

Men can break their boundaries for a long time without noticing it. This is why women are underrepresented in orthodox medicine. Their bodies cry out much earlier. They cannot ignore their rhythm all the time and the dire effects of night shifts are noticeable much earlier.

Example:

During my training in outpatients I witnessed the following:

A dermatologist had been examining patients, diagnosing and prescribing medication since 7 am. The waiting room was full. At about 11 o'clock an angry patient entered the surgery and complained loudly about the long waiting time. The colleague who had been seeing dozens of patients without a break for four hours, curtly rebuffed him with the following words: "We medics have a life expectancy 10 years shorter than the rest of the population. How dare you complain about waiting a couple of hours."