A mental ‘problem’ is usually recurrent. That’s the reason why people search for help, including professional help. In one word: therapy (or mental coaching).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
‘Extinction’ is one way the problem can be handled. The aim is to let it gradually diminish until gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gentle slope<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The gradualness is like a gentle slope. The slope may start slowly, then go quicker and end again slowly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Preferably, this happens at a pace that is not determined entirely from the outside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, purely logically, there are two ways anything can diminish: materially and formally. This is also relevant to mental ‘problems’ \u2015 better said, issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Materially<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is like evaporation. The end goal is a situation that resembles the one in which there was no problem to start with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The extinction is of the problem altogether \u2014 no further consequence. Nothing has been learned. There is no upshot to the extinction itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In strict (de-)learning behavior theory, you couple a positive stimulus (PS) with an already present negative stimulus (NS), the one that leads to the maladaptive consequence (MC). This way, the negative stimulus loses its power. The result becomes a neutral consequence (NC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n In steps, diagrammatically:<\/p>\n\n\n\n For instance, a stress-provoking stimulus is repeatedly coupled with relaxation. Gradually, the relaxation ‘rubs off’ on the stimulus so that the resulting stress pattern extinguishes. The person becomes more stress-resistant. Negatively put, the person becomes less sensitive. But is that the only possible goal?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Formally<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is like salt dissolving in water. Note that here too, ‘the problem disappears.’ Depending on the person and the case, it may happen more or less like evaporation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let’s take a glass of salt-less water and put some salt in it. This doesn’t materially disappear, only formally: It changes its prior form into a different one. Meanwhile, the water becomes salty water. Thus, the consequence is not the preceding salt-less situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Take the same person as before with the stress-provoking stimulus. Now, we gradually help the person to ‘open the problem.’ This can be done, for instance, by gradually bringing the person into contact with the why<\/em> of the stimulus-provoked stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In AURELIS context, this is mainly done at and through the subconceptual level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This process can be seen as the attainment of insight.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n For instance, into what the real, underlying goal is of a symptom such as chronic pain or any psycho-somatic issue. How<\/em> this insight is concretely reached is of prime importance. [see: “Insight is a Path<\/a>“]<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thus, in a deeper sense, attaining the insight (the path) may itself be the main part of the needed change itself. Traveling on this path = making the change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Attaining the insight is like the dissolving of salt in water. Gradually, the health-related symptom is not needed anymore. The water becomes salted water, enriching the person.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Slipslope.jpg?resize=436%2C179&ssl=1\")
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