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OODA Loop and Meditation

Personal PrOcessing Guide           Dr. Robert Langs’ “Decoding Your Daydreams” Made Simple.

EMERGENCY? CALL 911. Not to be used without first talking about Personal PrOcessing with a therapist, spiritual director, or friend you like and trust, someone who knows you well.

This is a brief introduction to a technique, a new way of what could be called meditating, developed by a very well known and influential psychotherapist, the late Dr. Robert Langs, MD. What Dr. Langs called “self-analysis” and later “self-processing” and that I am now calling Personal PrOcessing, is a way to access (Observe) your HP, what Langs called “your deep unconscious wisdom system.” It could be called self-directed psychotherapy.

Personal Processing is best used, in the context of: (1) your 11th step (for more about the12-steps see www.AA.org); and (2) the algorithm that is very widely used in the military and in business, the OODA Loop:

According to John Boyd, decision-making occurs in a recurring cycle of Observe–Orient–Decide–Act. 

An entity (whether an individual or an organization) that can process this cycle quickly, observing and reacting to unfolding events more rapidly than an opponent, can thereby "get inside" the opponent's decision cycle and gain the advantage. As John Boyd explained:

“The second O, Orient—is the repository of our genetic heritage, cultural tradition, and previous experiences—is the most important part of the O-O-D-A loop since it shapes the way we observe, the way we decide, the way we act.”

Adapted from Wikipedia article, 

www.Wikipedia.org/OODA_Loop 

There are many types of psychotherapy, each with its own approach. The type of psychotherapy that's right for you depends on your individual situation. Psychotherapy is also known as talk therapy, counseling, psychosocial therapy or, simply, therapy. (Note: some call it “care of the soul.”)

Psychotherapy can be helpful in treating most mental health problems, including:

• Anxiety disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), phobias,
• panic disorder or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Mood disorders, such as depression or bipolar disorder
• Addictions, such as alcoholism, drug dependence or compulsive gambling
• Eating disorders, such as anorexia or bulimia
• Personality disorders, such as borderline personality disorder or dependent personality disorder

Not everyone who benefits from psychotherapy is diagnosed with a mental illness. Psychotherapy can help with a number of life's stresses and conflicts that can affect anyone. For example, it may help you:

• Resolve conflicts with your partner or someone else in your life
• Relieve anxiety or stress due to work or other situations
• Cope with major life changes, such as divorce, the death of a loved one or the loss of a job
• Learn to manage unhealthy reactions, such as road rage or passive-aggressive behavior
• Come to terms with an ongoing or serious physical health problem, such as diabetes, cancer or long-term chronic pain
• Recover from physical or sexual abuse or witnessing violence
• Cope with sexual problems, whether they're due to a physical or psychological cause
• Sleep better, if you have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep (insomnia)

In some cases, psychotherapy can be as effective as medications, such as antidepressants. However, depending on your specific situation, psychotherapy alone may not be enough to ease the symptoms of a mental health condition. You may also need medications or other treatments.

Generally, there's little risk of having psychotherapy. But because it can explore painful feelings and experiences, you may feel emotionally uncomfortable at times. However, any risks are minimized by working with a skilled therapist who can match the type and intensity of therapy with your needs.

Adapted from Mayo Clinic, see

www.MayoClinic.org 

Robert Joseph Langs M.D.  (June 30, 1928 – November 8, 2014) was a psychiatrist, psychotherapist and psychoanalyst, the author, co-author, and editor of more than forty books on psychotherapy and human psychology. 

Over the course of more than fifty years, Robert Langs developed a revised version of psychotherapy, currently known as the “adaptive paradigm”…

… By working through the evolutionary and communicative problems, he came to believe that the evolutionary selection processes favor minds that are prone to death denial since the alternative appeared to be facing potentially overwhelming anxiety over the inevitability of death…

… Langs’ own model of the mind accommodates elements from each of Freud's models while articulating something new. Langs distinguishes between the "unconscious" (or "superficial unconscious") and the "deep unconscious". 

The "unconscious" or "superficial unconscious" mind—the descriptor "superficial" denoting a contrast with "deep," not a value judgment—is a part of a complex conscious mental system with its own laws of functioning and its own form of communication. The latter, according to Langs, communicates in terms of encoded derivatives, in part because straightforward conscious communication about death-related traumas would be too difficult to bear. 

Hence the work of the adaptive therapist includes learning to hear the encoded derivative communications both to discover the sources of psychic conflict which arise from the diverse points of view the conscious and unconscious systems have on life events, with a specific focus on death anxiety and death-related traumas and, second, to obtain encoded validation of therapeutic interventions.… 

Langs wrote a number of popular texts and books for clients rather than for therapists. Among these are popular texts on dreams and on unconscious communication, a workbook designed to measure the value of one's psychotherapist, and a book on doing self-analysis. Langs also published books about his self-processing classes.

The above adapted from the Wikipedia article: “Robert Langs.”

Friend, this way of meditating has helped me, but I’m not a medical or religious professional. It is based on my experience: work with and reading Dr. Langs, my work with others, therapists, directors, sponsors, friends, my reading and  my practice. I hope this helps you. I welcome your comments, any results from using Personal PrOcessing.

John S.Wren, MBA+++

1881 Buchtel Blvd. #502

Denver, Colorado 80210

(303)861-1447 cell (720)495-4949

For more about the roots of what I now call Personal PrOcessing see: Robert Langs, Empowered Psychotherapy—Teaching Self Processing; The Daydream Workbook; and Fundamentals of Adaptive Psychotherapy and Counseling.I’ve also found helpful  Richard Rohr, Breathing Underwater. James Martin, Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything.UK Jesuits’ free daily mediations Pray-As-You-Go.org, and the Jesuits at Jesuit Retreat  House, Sedalia, CO.