Heartwork as Deep Adaptation

Written by Reuben Weininger, MD

How can one stay resilient and openhearted in a time of crisis?

I asked this when I looked at the research done in climate activism. Studying what helps a person tolerate knowledge about the climate catastrophe ahead might be helpful now, when COVID-19, cultural tensions, and a sharp increase in mental health problems lead to increased stress responses in healthcare providers and worried bystanders alike.

How can one avoid burning out, shutting down, or becoming anxiously depressed? Several attitudes and practices about tolerating and accepting, even thriving, in a grim situation seem especially important.

Deep Adaptation

Jem Bendell, a UK professor for Leadership and Sustainability, introduced "deep adaptation." This phrase describes four attitudes that have helped many people, who are aware and at a loss in the face of a probable climate catastrophe, adjust socially, psychologically, and spiritually.

This is contribution is not about debating the likelihood of such a terrible outcome. Instead, I want to look at Bendell’s suggestions. What he calls “collapse transcendence” refers to the psychological, spiritual, and cultural shifts that may enable more people to experience greater stability during disruptions and the likelihood that a situation is beyond one’s control.

Deep adaptation’s four Rs are recommendations to cope with such challenges. Those can be useful for healthcare workers, teachers, firefighters, and concerned bystanders alike.

The 4 Rs

The metaphor for resilience, the first R, is like grass that has been stepped on and bounces back to life. The challenge is to think about what one most values, wants to keep–and how to do that. The question to ponder is, what does one need to not only survive but thrive?

The second R is relinquishment. Think of a boat in trouble, with passengers throwing excessive ballast overboard. The question is, which behaviors or things previously seen as essential are now burdensome and might risk increasing harm?

The third R refers to restoration. The task is to find what to bring back nourishing in these difficult times. Picture a person after a serious illness, evaluating what has been most helpful in their life to strengthen body and spirit again. Spiritually speaking, a person might ask themselves, what wisdom practices from a personal or collective past can be brought back as sustenance right now?

The fourth R speaks about reconciliation. The task is to make peace with situations and people and forgive that one had a conflict before or during this time of great trial. One might investigate conflict-resolution, community-building, and communication skills needed to help a person listen deeply and lessen suffering.

A poignant and current image of deep adaptation is a group of people sitting in a circle, sharing love, forgiveness, and gratitude, as depicted in the final scene in the movie Don’t Look Up. How would it be if such a circle of love and support could be present through the film and not just a coda as the movie ends?

Re-Imagining Heart Practices for Times of Crisis

In addition to Bendell’s recommendations, I suggest practices that help people weather difficult times in easier and more effective ways by building a new emotional and attitudinal infrastructure. Wondering which practices would best accompany the attitudes of the four Rs, try to re-envision the Buddhist metta practices, adapted now for this particular time.

Imagine those heart practices rooted in mindfulness and embedded in natural awake awareness. This is the field quality of awareness full of aliveness, awareness, and love and can be experienced directly in meditation practice. The Dalai Lama calls this quality of being the “field of benevolence.”

The Seven Heart Practices for Times of Crisis

1. Gratitude allows a person to appreciate the beauty and value already in one’s life. This form of appreciation roots a person in their heart and gives them the safety to be open to others and their vulnerable feelings.

2. Deep listening helps people attend to their fears and tune into themselves.

3. Tenderness for self makes it possible to be with the felt sense of one’s vulnerability and rawness.

4. Acceptance makes it possible to let the world's reality in, even though it may be harsh.

5. Trust in a wider perspective reminds a person that there is a bigger context in which one will be carried along.

6. Loving compassion allows a person to feel the pain of others and keep their hearts open in the face of suffering.

7. Heartfelt engagement makes it possible to reach out to others and be engaged and helpful in possible ways.

The four R’s of “deep adaptation” and the “seven heart practices in times of crisis” provide solid, practical, and real-world support. Even when life is harsh and difficult, one can stay healthy, present, and caringly available to others and the world.