Reality Tunnels

[passage]

I found this idea of reality tunnels to be very interest. Lately I've been wondering why people do the seemingly illogical things they do. And this really seems to explain a whole lot to me.

*I'm not sure of the referencing policies on this site. I'd rather not give a link for personal reasons.

Reality Tunnels

A reality tunnel is a short name for whatever reality you are experiencing right now. A reality tunnel arises as a combination of your genetics, your beliefs, plus whatever your neurochemistry is doing at the moment.

So your reality tunnel is different to a snake's, who sees infrared due to its genetics. Your reality tunnel is also different to someone who is on heroin, who experiences total bliss due to altered neurochemistry.

It is a "tunnel" because while you are inside it you cannot see beyond its walls. You cannot see or perceive other realities. Additionally, your brain filters any incoming information to make it match that reality. So whatever anybody tells you, you will only see it through the lens of your current reality tunnel.

A reality tunnel is also completely convincing to you while you are inside it (try explaining to a religious nut why his religion is wrong for example and you will see two vastly reality tunnels collide with epic effects).

When you exit one reality tunnel however, you simply move into a different reality tunnel. A human is never "outside all reality tunnels". The human brain is configured to provide you with one ongoing experience of reality at a time, and it is completely convincing to you.

Right now, you are in a nihilistic reality tunnel focused on the pointlessness of life. You believe it to be entirely logical (because reality tunnels are completely convincing). You believe that, since there is no point to life, and life is primarily suffering, the logical course of action is to end life.
You see, if you really follow the logic to the end, you can end up with a different realization (and a different reality tunnel). If life is absurd and without meaning, since you're going to die anyway you may as well just have some fun with it first. Mess around. Do what the hell you want. If you end up at that logical endpoint, that reality tunnel will also be completely convincing to you, and you won't want to kill yourself any more. That is just one possible way out.

To illustrate the idea of multiple reality tunnels further, consider that when you were a kid, suicide was not part of your reality tunnel. Maybe even 6 months ago suicide was not an idea. At some point along the line you have stepped into a reality tunnel where suicide is an idea. So if you don't want suicide as an idea any more, you have to step out into a different reality tunnel."

I found this to be an epiphany, almost an eureka moment becuase its helped explain so many things. Hopefully it will help others as well.

Also not sure where this belongs.

 

[Masson]

Well I always knew that everybody lives in their own version of the world and therefore I don't understand how can somebody judge another person when they have no ideea whats going on in another persons world.

 

[ucxb]

Interesting idea here on reality and how we have control over what tunnel we are in.

 

[Veruca]

Very cool piece of info! Thanks passage!

I think it makes a lot of sense, we all live in different realities, we perceive the world differently.

What particularly stood out for me here was the concept of "tunnels", which I used to think of as "bubbles" but tunnels seem more appropriate. Like how sometimes we only see one way out, when actually there are other ways, but because we're in this tunnel, we only consciously see one exit.

 

[9006]

Steve Jobs used to have something similar.

His employees called it his "Reality Distortion Field" because he was always asking them to do the impossible, and he believed every idea he had was indeed possible, and the best.

 

[ucxb]

Interesting for sure. I attempt or try to perform reality checks often because between my daydreaming and overthinking I get lost !

 

[ursa]

This is exactly the sort of info I enjoy looking into, however, I would like to further analyze that hypothesis, please PM me with the link to said article.


From what I read, I have not yet found something I disagree on but it is not as simple as telling yourself that you can have fun in life and thus your life will have meaning, that is because many people who are leading their lives with depression, anxiety and some other issues cannot see life as fun at all.

Probably when you imagine your idea of "fun" you are thinking about doing some sort of activity such as traveling, being with friends or even exercising your hobby, such as I, but I remember very vividly the times (because I wrote all of my thoughts) when nothing seemed to solve my problem and life couldn't possibly be any good.
It is not so simple changing your "reality tunnel", or, your core beliefs, because in order to do that one must go through a very complex process which brings us to the question you should pose : How is one consistently and falsibiably able to switch his reality tunnel into one who one believes is more resourceful?

Hopefully these considerations will strike up some debate I should state though that I enjoy your thought process my friend.

 

[Regumika]

Probably when you imagine your idea of "fun" you are thinking about doing some sort of activity such as traveling, being with friends or even exercising your hobby, such as I, but I remember very vividly the times (because I wrote all of my thoughts) when nothing seemed to solve my problem and life couldn't possibly be any good.

Is this to say, that regardless of what your 'reality' is there is actually something real that solves problems and are good (fun)? "I think I should be enjoying a fun life because I am now travelling and seeing the world like I always wanted, but to find out that it still leaves me empty inside."

so here are some possibilities:
1. regardless of what you think makes you happy, there is something real that actually makes you happy.
2. there isn't actually anything real, you just have to accept your 'reality' as to what makes you happy. (though your reality can change to fit your needs).

 

[perfanoff]

Steve Jobs used to have something similar.

His employees called it his "Reality Distortion Field" because he was always asking them to do the impossible, and he believed every idea he had was indeed possible, and the best.

I'm pretty sure in one of those.