How to Fight the Medusa of Challenges

Perseus famously cut off the head of the snake-haired demon, Medusa, while cleverly avoiding the Gorgon’s direct gaze that turned all who looked into stone. It’s a Greek myth many of us have heard, but how can we use this approach to vanquish what stands in our way?

Relax, you don’t need to pull out your trusty sword – it’s just an analogy here for something greater. 

In the book “In an Unspoken Voice” by PhD. Peter Levine, Dr. Levine describes how we can take the essence of the Medusa story as a pathway to transformation. Being an industry leader in studying and treating trauma, he speaks from a recovery standpoint.

But I’d argue that we can approach any challenges by taking a page out of his book. 

Similar to a direct encounter with Medusa, sometimes staring what confronts us right in the eye can leave us similarly frozen. Not that we shouldn’t handle problems directly (we should), but the more we mentally fight and emotionally resist what stands in our way, the more stuck (or frozen in stone) we might feel.

Have you ever been there?

It might, as Dr. Levine writes, feel like a Chinese finger trap closing in on you. It seems that the trick is to open your mind and your heart to the challenge, then intentionally embrace the challenge instead of actively trying to push it away. And definitely leave your sword at home. 

But there’s more to at least one version of the myth. It’s a touch graphic, but bear with me. Following his victory, Perseus collects two vials of blood from Medusa’s wound: one that has the power to kill and the other has the power to restore life. 

Dr. Levine sees these as the dual nature of trauma – and again I think we can extrapolate it to all challenges we’re truly fighting. They simultaneously have the ability to rob us of progress, enjoyment or even a fulfilling life in general and paradoxically have the power to transform or even resurrect us. What we bump up against can stop us dead in our tracks or be the vehicle that lets us reach new heights. It all depends on how we approach it. 

I’d recommend Dr. Levine’s book to anyone that’s interested in this kind of analysis. You can check it out here along with several other books I’ve found hugely helpful on the journey to get results #NoMatterWhat. Send me an email (sterling@sterlinghawkins.com) if you have any other must-reads that we should have on the list. And if you read this one, I want to hear what you think. 

Dr. Levine says trauma is a part of life no matter what part of the world you’re from, what age you are, or what profession you have.

Similarly, challenges are a part of life. While not necessarily traumatic, we all have everyday problems and challenges in life in common with each other. These things don’t need to freeze us in Medusa’s deadly gaze.

As we can embrace our challenges we can use them to reach the next level. It’s up to you. Still, no sword necessary.