Maybe.....Just Maybe....

The world is full of problems. No matter how hard we try, our lives will never be perfect. However, we can try to simplify our lives. I believe this can by done by simplifying our minds. If you're stuck on a problem, or in a troubling situation, start to think as a child does. Don't over rationalize. Don't over-complicate. Just take things step by step, visualize the situation, and address it as it is. Naivete is bliss.

If only everyone could start to address things as they are. There would be no need for extravagant cover ups, complicated explanations, or burned bridges. As a result, there would be no ignorant confusion, major misunderstandings, or extreme conflict. Deal with situations as the present themselves. This is this. That is that. Naivete is Bliss.

If only we could stick to our fundamental principles. Don't take what isn't yours. Put things back where you found them. Say you're sorry. If only we could follow these basic rules in all aspects of society, not just with our children, maybe we could finally find some peace around here. Maybe we could even find a chance once and a while to just take a nap.

In a child-like state of mind, everything is treasure. We could simplify our situations, take proper advantage of all opportunities, and even find a chance for some innocent love and friendship. If we were to address our social and professional lives now with what we learned, followed, and loved as children, perhaps, just perhaps, the world could have a few less problems.

Perhaps, because Naivete is Bliss.

I Believe It is a Right

Q&A With Dr. Banez

As the Program Director of the Pediatric Pain Rehabilitation Program in Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital, Dr. Gerard A. Banez works with children each and every day. He watches them heal, helping them (and their parents) learn to deal with the pain and how to improve. I've recently interviewed him to get a better look at what he does and how he does it.

Dr. Banez, where exactly do you work?

Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital

What is the average age range of the patients you see daily?

With our pain rehab program, which is what i do most of my time, i typically see kids who are in the junior high to high school age range. I do, however, continue to see some outputs, mostly kids with physical problems or psychological problems. These patients have an age range of 3 up to 21.

What is the protocol that you go through on an average work day?

Each day is different, but most days consist of some combination of clinical work (assessing and treating kids and families), teaching (I teach a lot of psychology, pediatrics, and pain management trainees), research (mostly on kids and pain), and administrative duties.

When working with your patients, what is the first thing you do?

The first things I do are (1) try to understand what the child''s primary problems are, (2) identify possible causes/reasons (biological, psychological, social) for these problems, and (3) determine what kind of help the child and his/her parents are looking for.

With kids, to be successful at these things, I think that establishing trust and support is key. Being respectful, sensitive, and taking the time to listen is huge.

These things are also very important when working with parents. With parents, I try to convey that they are the "experts" of their children and that my role is to use my experience to collaborate with them.

I see that you work in a Pain Rehabilitation Program. What is a younger patient's reaction to pain as compared to an older patient's reaction?

A young child's reaction to pain is more simple and basic than an older child's For young kids, pain hurts. They don't like it and will do anything they can to avoid it. Young kids are often dependent on their parents to make pain go away. They don't think about how they can help themselves.

For an older child, the reaction and possible outcomes are a lot more involved. For example, if an older girl hurts herself playing soccer, she may start thinking and feeling all kinds of things about the pain and its consequences - "Is it serious?" "What if I can't play soccer again...soccer is my life!" "All my friends play soccer, what will happen if I can't play with them anymore?" and so on.

The increased complexity can make dealing with pain more challenging because the more that kids think and worry about their pain, the worse it feels and the harder it is for them to deal with.

Jean Piaget: the Renowned Psychologist

I believe that if adults, or any person for that matter, were to simplify his or her mind to a child-like point of view, any challenging or troubling situation could be solved with little or no issues. And I'm not the only one with this proposal.

Jean Piaget is one of the foremost psychological experts in recent history. He is known most for his intricate studies with children and finding that children are not illogical and unknowing, but are simply developing and learning in ways that adults should respect.

Time magazine reports that "for 50 years, Piaget, now 73, has been discovering through deceptively simple experiments that children actually have surprisingly intricate thinking skills that adults should learn to appreciate and understand better than they do."

There are some things that allow children to think and learn easier (and quicker) than adults. Piaget, through his experiments, believes that visualization is a major factor. "Quite possibly...adolescents' fascination with their ability to visualize alternatives is what makes them so eager to test new life-styles and Utopian ideals."

There is yet another attribute that children posses the Piaget observed. In the article How a Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues, Don Alexander mentions that "Piaget believed that heteronymous morality is the first stage of moral development. He said 'Justice and rules are conceived as unchangeable properties of the world.'" Children are born and bred to follow directions, to follow the rules. It is psychologically imprinted on their minds until they learn to rebel. As we grow, that urge to "break the rules" grows also. Yes, a little wandering off the beaten track is not a bad thing, but respect for the rules is something we need to keep.

Child-like fascination can never truly be recreated. As adults, the magic of a discovery every day is lost. However, in a more scientific view, if we learned from that fascination and fueled it into our own learning processes, perhaps our discoveries (personal and universal) will be greater and more frequent.

"Jean Piaget: Mapping the Growing Mind." Time. Dec. 1969. 1-4. Time Inc. 3 Nov. 2009. http://www.time.com/time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,840485-1,00.html

Alexander, Don. "How a Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues." How a Child Thinks REgarding Moral Issues. 10 Aug. 2007. EzineArticles.com. 3 Nov. 2009.
http://ezinearticles.com/?id=682443

Further Examination of "Accomplishment is its Own Reward"

After posting "Accomplishment is its Own Reward" on January 3rd, I have found further backing and support of the fact that children are encouraged by a simple act of approval.

In the article "How a Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues"**, Don Alexander explains that children need approval and encouraging movements to push them on to more challenging issues. "Six year old children experience personal feelings of success and achievement through movement," he says. "As for all children, they enjoy positive rewards and congratulations...smiles and thumbs ups encourage them to try even harder at any given task!"

A simple "good job" is all it takes for satisfaction. There need be no money or prizes as rewards. We adults should take simple gratifications to heart, and with those gratifications alone encouraging us to work just as hard (if not harder) on the next job we do.

Keep a simple naivete. Naivete is Bliss.

**Alexander, Don. "How A Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues." How A Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues. 10 Aug. 2007. EzineArticles.com. 3 Nov. 2009. http://ezinearticles.com/?id=682443.

Escape to the Woods

We all have a place to where we escape. From the big, comfy chair in the den to the third branch of the tree in the back yard, there is a place that we can go to get away from it all.

In Bill Watterson's beautiful comic Calvin and Hobbes, Calvin never seems to stay in one place for long. However, there is one place he always likes to go - the woods in his back yard. He and his trusty "pet tiger" Hobbes run amidst the trees, crossing creeks, navigating fields, and climbing branches. Calving and Hobbes always find what their looking for, and always find their way back home.

These woods seem to be a metaphor of the escape from society that we yearn. In these woods, we can seek adventure, calmly venture serenity, and even reach great heights. When we each find our own escape, it's like we are reaching our child-like state. It's clear, uncomplicated, and all our own.

Next time, after a horrific day of work or a disastrous traffic jam, think like a child. There need be no books, newspapers, televisions, or computers. Just a nice place where you can imagine a "woods" of your own. Remember, Naivete is Bliss.

Emotional Emergence

The clear, straight-forward, and simplistic thought of a child is a great attribute. More often than not, a little one's mind is unbiased and strong-held, which can be put to use in almost every aspect of society today.

Occasionally, however, when the child-like state of thought emerges, beneficial attributes are not the only ones that appear. Sometimes, in difficult, frustrating, and saddening situations, we can let blind anger burst forth with no reasoning or subduing. Yes, in those situations, a clear mind is very beneficial, but with a clear mind anger and emotion are also unhindered.

In his psychological book I'm O.K. -- You're O.K.**, Thomas A. Harris defines what he calls the P.A.C. This stands for three distinguished elements in each person's make-up: the Parent, the Child, and the Adult. "There are many things that can happen to us today which recreate the situation of childhood...the situation where we are faced with impossible alternatives," he says. "When a person is in the grip of feelings...when his anger dominates his reason, we say his Child is in command."

Harris writes that the Child in all of us mainly represents spontaneous emotion. I believe there is more than just emotion when the Child breaks through. A child is not absent of reason, he just thinks and acts in simple step-by-steps. This state of mind presents clarity and simplicity to a busy lifestyle. However, with this simple-mindedness, emotions and rash decisions must also be hindered and controlled. If this thought is mastered, great accomplishments could be in store.

Naivete is Bliss.

**Harris, Thomas A., M.D. I'm OK -- You're OK: A Practical Guide to Transactional Analysis. New York City, New York. Harper & Row, Publishers. 1969.