Reframing Immunity

One cohort decided to spend two full classes on our immune system, really allowing us to go deep. We explored the ways our immune system cares for and supports us, and one thing that kept coming up was the language we commonly use around immunity—language of "armies," "battling," and "fighting." I don't think this feels very good in our bodies.

What would it feel like if we shifted to thinking about our immune systems as a mediation team instead? A team that says, "We need to come into balance here. Let's work together to do this." What a different experience that would be as we navigate visitors to our body, like the viruses that become more frequent this season with children returning to school, more group gatherings, and increased indoor activity.

So I'm curious: as you perhaps encounter these viral visitors this fall and winter, what if you offered your body gratitude? "Wow, thank you for taking care of me. Hey, it looks like we've got a visitor." When we get the communication that there's a visitor—maybe a fever, runny nose, or cough—we can recognize that our body is trying to help move this visitor out. These body communications aren't problems; they're our body working to come to balance with this new visitor.

Think of it this way: when we have a community member who isn't yet used to being in our body ecosystem—or in our community of body parts, inside and out—it takes some adjustment while we're all learning how to be in community together.

This may seem really weird. That's okay! What I'm asking is for you to try. To try and say, "I am curious to see how this shifts"—if and how it shifts your body's process, your relationship to navigating an illness or a viral visitor. I'm interested to see what happens.

It won't be easy, I imagine, especially if we're not used to this language. We're so used to being annoyed that this body change is making it harder to be present or do things in our world. We may find ourselves frustrated that our body is best served by being in bed. But I'm just putting this question out there for you to explore.