Life out of Control
How we focus our attention determines the neural maps we reinforce in our brains. It is the basis of neuroplasticity–our inherent gift of transformation. Daniel Siegel notes in Mindsight “Some days we lean towards chaos–life feels unpredictable and out of control. But in general, when we are well and at ease, we move along […]
Cultivating Compassion
“At Standford University, the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education, under the direction of Neurosurgeon Dr. James Doty is doing studies and conducting courses that show that compassion and altruism can be cultivated through disciplines and practices that extend our mindfulness by asking us to place our increased attention on the needs of […]
Are You Cross-Wired?
It’s proven we can wire neutral events to fearful responses. Ex: a dog barks each time you get a bit of bad news. Soon, you cringe at the dog bark, even if no bad news follows. The auditory cortex delivers the “dog bark” message at the same time as the “bad news” message enters the […]
How Environment Influences DNA
DNA, contrary to the last 50 years of belief, is NOT the director of our gene expression–it’s the code. DNA MUST be activated by proteins in order to manifest any gene expression. The cell’s effector/receptor proteins are the conductors and they take signals FROM the environment! You alter your mind/body environment, you alter your genetic […]
Memory as Fiction
Different aspects of memory are stored in different areas of the brain simultaneously. Memory retrieval is not like looking at a snapshot–it’s always a reconstruction and coming together of pieces and parts. So when we think we remember exactly what happened, it’s really a neurological rebuild or a version of the event. This is why […]
You are Five Times More Likely to Stress
Science now says we have 100 billion neurons in the brain. There are 5 times as many neuronal networks allocated for threat detection than there are for non-threat input. This is why negativity is so easy to default to AND so contagious. Believe it or not, positivity can be trained and strengthened. What are you doing […]
Which Muscles are You Exercising?
Your cortices, like muscles, grow with use. So if you use your limbic brain to function mostly–in fear and threat–you strengthen that part of the brain so it dominates. If you use your prefrontal cortex mostly–for higher level thought like compassion, empathy and learning–that part of the brain gains dominance. What muscle are you exercising?
A Little Patience Goes a Long Way
The VLPFC (ventro lateral prefrontal cortex) controls our braking system and helps us inhibit behavior and exercise self-control. This area is easily exhausted and uses up large amounts of glucose and oxygen to function. SO exercising lots of self-control in one area actually decreases your ability to exercise self-control in another. If you’ve used will […]
Is Turmeric the Door to Enlightenment?
Neuroscience and fMRI’s now tell us that insight and higher-order thought processes such as empathy, unity consciousness, and a sense of one-ness all occur in the prefrontal cortex of the brain. We also know that stress and fear strengthen the mid-portion of the brain called the limbic system. A stressful life causes the mid portion […]
Taming the Fear Response
Our Amygdala is the cornerstone of our fight-or-flight and fear response. It keeps us safe in emergencies, action-oriented in crisis, and powerful when we have little reserves. It also happens to dominate with use and become our filter for the world over time. The more we exercise fear, the more we view the world through […]
