Radio Lab: "Help!" discussed intriguing, yet slightly disturbing, concepts about how to gain control over 'forces' within you. A woman, an avid smoker of 30 years, failed to quit smoking despite trying almost every technique there is available. Then one day she made a pact with her friend, a reformed smoker, that if she smokes another cigarette she will give 5,000 of her own dollars to the KKK--a thought that absolutely disgusted her. This worked. She never smoked again. Every in-the-moment craving for a cigarette was squashed with a more intense in-the-moment disgust at the thought of giving money to the KKK. It was a way of internally communicating, or performing, within yourself in order to get another part of you, an unhealthy part, under control. Internal communication is incredibly important for healthy living, growth and self-awareness.
Also, another type of more internal communication discussed later in the podcast was one about discourse with your muses. Creativity was being described as something more external and a person was merely a channel or medium through which these muses funneled their ideas into the world. The podcast said that if you were facing some sort of creative dilemma or rut, to just talk to the muses directly. This can be very therapeutic and is an excellent way of communicating with yourself.
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