Paralyzed? Then move.

“Movement is the only way you can affect the world around you.”

— Daniel Wolpert*

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On more than one occasion, I've spoken about the importance of taking control of our lives. Time and again, I've shared my feelings about taking responsibility for what happens to us, facing adversity, and refusing to be victims. Beyond the unexpected, or what escapes our control —including tragic blows that lurk in wait— I firmly believe in authoring my life, in making it happen on my terms. I don't want life to "happen" to me. Ultimately, just because life doesn't need my approval, it doesn't mean I should sit back and let myself be swept away by its whims.

Now… I've tried —with some success, I hope— to never fall into the cruel, petty "anything is possible" discourse.

No. Everything is not possible.

There are times when the muscle gives in to cramps, oxygen can't find its way to our lungs, and our heart seems unable to pump another single drop of blood.

And those moments count, too.

What do you do when you've lost the taste to live? When you don't fear moving forward, but you are just not interested in the journey? How do you walk toward a nonexistent goal?

Sometimes inaction isn't laziness, but paralysis. It's not right to confuse not wanting to try with not finding reasons to.

I know you understand what I'm talking about, so I'm not trying to explain this to you. I just want you to know you're not alone.

How do we get out of this immobility trap?

Lacking definitive answers, I can tell you that my most primitive attempt is focusing on the immediate. And when facing paralysis, nothing is more immediate than kinesis. Mobility. If we are petrified by our fears, numbed by pain, or simply stuck wallowing in the apparent safety of routine, it is essential to break free from that inertia. Moving will not guarantee arriving at greener pastures, but it will provide us with information, because moving is informing ourselves. Are we where we thought we were? Is the way out more or less uphill than we thought? What surrounds us? Is it all desert as we feared, or is there a spring nearby where we can refresh ourselves?

With more information, we can make better decisions.

Whether it's about starting to work on that postponed project, taking those classes, changing cities, or switching jobs, doing something will be a vital change from doing nothing!

Get moving.

Focus on this today, and rest.

Tomorrow...? Tomorrow is another day.

* Daniel Mark Wolpert is a British medical doctor, neuroscientist and engineer, who has made important contributions in computational biology. He was Professor of Engineering at the University of Cambridge from 2005, and also became the Royal Society Noreen Murray Research Professorship in Neurobiology from 2013. He is now Professor of Neurobiology at Columbia University