Written by: Dr. Don Wood, PhD, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Queen Elizabeth led an exceptionally long and significant life. So, why does her death at the age of 96 impacts us? It is common to feel slightly disorientated or to be experiencing some level of distress or disbelief; You are not alone. The tragedy certainly did not come as a surprise; she had been ill for quite some time and had recently missed several key events.
The experience you may be feeling comes from the fact that the Queen was a symbol of “stability and security.” The human mind is deeply rooted in connecting to any form of security. The number one fear for the human mind is uncertainty. The Queen’s passing brings about a great deal of uncertainty in a time when the world feels particularly unsafe.
Even though the Queen was not considered royalty in the United States, her presence did provide a sense of tradition and connection to our roots. For most people in the United Kingdom, she was the only monarch they ever connected to. Regardless of your connection to the Royal Family, her passing still surfaced feelings of loss as well as fear of the unknown. The human mind is uncomfortable with change, it craves stability, order, and certainty. This comes from the subconscious mind that handles our survival instincts. The loss of the Queen stirs primal instincts to the surface. Having things that are predictable helps us to feel safe, below our conscious awareness.
These feelings may even be stirred for people who do not consider themselves as royalists. When the public experiences a collective tragedy or loss, watching others around you become emotional creates a visceral response. Our nature as humans is to be empathetic because we have all experienced some loss in our lifetime. The Queen represented our parents and grandparents that are still with us or who have also passed, bringing about memories.
Some people may have mixed feelings because they felt no sense of connection to the Royal family. At the same time Queen Elizabeth was viewed as someone with a strong work ethic and sense of tradition. Her passing is an end to an era and regardless of your connection to the Royals it has some significance in your life. The Queen and the crown are not just about the government or a party, it embodies customs and history.
Now, let us look even deeper into why the Queen’s passing impacts us. There are both metaphorical and symbolic elements to unpack. The Queen and the monarchy are symbols, symbols provide shortcuts for our minds. Symbols form meanings in mind and are constantly surrounding us even if we do not notice them. The symbol conveys a subconscious message that our mind understands. It is how our subconscious mind communicates. Have you ever heard of the phrase “A picture is worth a thousand words,” the same is true regarding symbols. Our subconscious mind is very efficient at communicating at lightning speed using symbols.
All symbols created by your mind have a purpose and they carry a vast richness of meaning and definition. Symbols are shortcuts for the subconscious mind to respond to a current situation and most of the time by-pass conscious consideration, activating deeply embedded subconscious responses. Symbols have different meanings to different people, however the Queen as a symbol has significant similarities to most people and that is why we have this collective response to her passing. Anyone familiar with the Queen and royal family have embedded meanings about them from an early age. Symbols represent a larger communication. They represent a depth of meaning that is shared amongst the vast array of individuals involved in that communication. To be a powerful symbol, it must be simple in nature while at the same time creating much deeper and more significant meaning. The Queen’s image was seen billions of times on currency, televised events, and pictures on the internet and in newspapers. Symbols are the language of the subconscious mind. The mind naturally picks up and decodes symbols whether you are consciously aware of it or not. Our world runs on symbols. Every product you buy is trying to convey the values of their product through a symbol, McDonald’s golden arches, the Nike checkmark. Every company in this world that we connect with utilizes the power of symbols. Our subconscious mind operates through this symbolic language, dominated in theta and alpha brainwave states. Now can you see why she is such a powerful symbol and why collectively we would be impacted by her passing?
At the Inspired Performance Institute and our TIPP program, we use symbols in the process of keeping the mind present and in the moment. The purpose of the symbol is to engage the subconscious mind’s ability to regulate the nervous system and it forms a critical part of the success of our TIPP program.
And there it is!
Dr. Don Wood, PhD, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Don Wood, Ph.D., author, speaker, Founder & CEO of the Inspired Performance Institute, and creator of the patented TIPP method. TIPP is a cutting-edge method inspired and developed through the newest developments in neuroscience and designed to clear away the effects of disturbing or traumatic events, repurpose old patterns and set the individual’s mind up for peak performance. In essence, it “REBOOTs” the brain’s stuck thought pattern, making it possible to enhance alpha oscillations with a noninvasive and effective shift in brain wave activity. Author of two top-selling books, Emotional Concussions and You Must Be Out of your Mind.
