Human Design and Deconditioning
Human Design talks a lot about “deconditioning.” What exactly does this mean? How do we decondition?
HOW CONDITIONING HAPPENS
Human Design sees deconditioning as a process of letting go of what we are not. Conditioning is the layers of expectations, pressures, and fears that are put on us from the time we are born. These can come from our families, school, the government, the media, and capitalism. We can internalize these ideas in our minds through criticism we receive, images we see, the average pay for a certain job, and the people we see in positions of power. We don’t currently live in a society that is actively aware that we are all different, we all function differently, there is no one right way to live a fulfilling life, and that everyone has inherent value. Here are some examples of prevalent conditioning today:
If you are good at the curriculum and tests in school, you are a better learner and more intelligent person
If you are extroverted and outgoing, you will make a better leader and achieve more success
The only way to be successful is to work yourself past your natural limit and sacrifice your health, rest, and personal relationships
Prioritizing your own well-being and care first means that you are selfish
Work that utilizes the mind (i.e. doctor/lawyer/business analyst) is more valuable than work that draws on emotional intelligence, spiritual intelligence, and compassion (i.e. nurse/caretaker/healer/artist)
These are only a few examples. There are hundreds! Conditioning is essentially an external blue print that a certain group has decided is the recipe for happiness. This is then passed down to us from multiple sources, with no regard for the unique destiny or experience of each individual.
THE ANTIDOTE TO CONDITIONING
If conditioning is essentially looking outward to make decisions about our own unique, precious lives, Human Design directs us to look inward. How could someone out there possibly know what is good for us? We are all so different, and there are as many paths through life, and to fulfillment, as there are individual humans. We can guide ourselves by following our Authority, which is the inner guidance system we have naturally. As a Generator, this will be either your Sacral Authority or your Emotional Authority. The idea is that if you follow this, you will be forced to let go of all the preconceived notions of life that were forced on you as part of your conditioning. Maybe some of the choices you end up making will fit within your conditioning, and some will not.
Deconditioning can be painful. It can challenge beliefs that we’ve held for a long time. It can be scary to take steps that no one around us understands. We are “only” human, after all! However, the rewards are worth it. As Generators, we will experience ease, life-giving energy, and satisfaction in our lives. We will FEEL good.
WHO YOU WERE AS A CHILD
We all come into this world completely ourselves, and completely free of conditioning. It starts the moment we are born, but it usually takes a few years to fully get ahold of us, and we slowly lose our pure selves throughout childhood and adolescence. Children naturally go toward the things they have energy for. Think back to who you were as a child. What did you enjoy doing? How did you spend your summers? What was your favorite toy? How did you behave in kindergarten? What did you play with? What are the stories that your family and siblings tell about you? What did you like to eat? These are all clues to who you were before you got conditioned.
HOW TO KNOW IF YOU’RE LIVING FROM YOUR CONDITIONING
The simple answer is that you can feel it. Living from conditioning doesn’t feel good. For a Generator in particular, you will feel drained, uninspired, unmotivated, and frustrated. If you are initiating instead of letting life flow to you, you won’t be seeing the success you wanted, or you will see something that others view as successful and yet you’ll feel unsatisfied and unhappy. It’s all about feeling. Pay no attention to how your life looks on the outside to others. How does it feel inside you?
WHO ARE YOU, REALLY?
So, who was that kid? As a kid I loved being by myself, being surrounded by calm and gentle people, creating art, touching and experiencing new creative materials, writing, organizing and categorizing things, writing in my journal, playing in nature, talking to animals and plants, observing the kids in kindergarten and then sharing my thoughts with the people close to me.
I’d love to hear who you are outside of your conditioning…leave a comment below!
Love,
Rachel
Make sure to keep in touch!