CHAPTER XXI: The Process Works for All
The damage repair facilities do not ever become de stroyed, apparently, short of physical damage to the forebrain and/or other organs involved, though they become very inhibited by the distress patterns them selves, especially those of the "Don't cry" variety.
The damage repair processes are specific in charac ter, dependably characterized by the outward mani festations of 1) crying, 2) trembling, 3) laughing, 4) anger discharge, 5) yawning and 6) interested, non repetitive talking. These damage repair processes, al lowed to operate and assisted to operate, restore the adult to intelligent, zestful functioning just as they do the infant or child, no matter how long the adult has carried the distress.
There is much more accumulated distress to dis charge in the adult than in the child. The discharge processes will be more hindered by the distresses them selves in a typical adult than in a typical child. Nevertheless, the processes themselves work as well and have the same results in adults of any age as they do in children or infants.
We do not yet know if an adult, or, for that matter, a child, can fully and completely recover all of their inhibited intelligence and zestful capacity for living. We have not yet reached this point with anyone, though it has been a theoretical goal from the time that we began to realize the implications of the dis charge and re evaluation process. Neither, however, are there any indications in theory or practice that this complete recovery will not be possible. It appears that we have simply not reached this point in the evolve ment and practice of Re- evaluation Counseling at the present date (1964).
We did not realize at first what a tremendous amount of distress has accumulated upon each per son. Partly this was because there was no available starting point or yardstick to measure this accumula tion against. We had no example of an undistressed human with which to compare the rest of us. All adults, and, to a lesser degree, all children, were al ready carrying a large amount of inhibiting distress.
The goal of total awareness and complete rational ity is a real one for all of us who have used and en joyed the benefits of Re- evaluation Counseling in any continuing manner. There seems to be no reason why complete recovery should not be possible. The process certainly accelerates as it is applied, with larger gains being made more easily as the functioning capacities of the human emerge.
Aside from the question of complete recovery, each step a human takes in this direction is satisfying and worthwhile. Each gain in rationality is a gain in our enjoyment of living. The achievement of short range goals and progress towards long range ones becomes a dependable process. Awareness of one's environ ment and enjoyment of it becomes better and better in stead of fading as it does for the typical adult. Re la tion ships with other people become more enjoy able and productive. Our children have better models to learn from and more intelligible sources of infor ma tion and show it promptly in their flourishing progress.