This year, I've been diagnosed with a chronic autoimmune disorder. It's nothing major, but I'll have to keep it in check for the rest of my life.
Apparently, my immune system got a bit confused and decided to attack my body instead of protecting it.
According to Bard, "The immune system is a complex network of organs, cells, and proteins that work together to protect the body from harmful invaders like bacteria, viruses, and parasites. It plays a vital role in maintaining health and preventing disease by recognizing, attacking, and eliminating these foreign substances."
So, in short, the immune system is constantly on the lookout for anything that may compromise the integrity of our biological body. Then, sometimes, it loses it and thinks that the same body it is supposed to protect is the enemy.
The fascinating thing, for me at least, is that while discovering this about my biological immunity system, I learned that our emotional and mental bodies also have an immune system. Psychologists Robert Kegan and Lisa Lahey call it Immunity to Change. You can think of it as a complex network of beliefs, conditioning, inner stories and biases that work together to protect our integrity from anything that may compromise it.
Any change that may impact our existing idea of ourselves triggers this immunity system that immediately stops that infectious change and restores the status quo.
So, if you're not getting what you want from your life, maybe your immunity system needs an upgrade.