mindful movement
“Brain Science” is my umbrella term for interpersonal neurobiology and how neuroplasticity works in therapy. When people learn new coping skills, they are literally building the neural connections that promote resilience. As habits build, so do neural pathways. These new inroads replace the old routes that lead to unhealthy behaviors and cognitive distortions.
Pain is individually experienced based on your unique state in the specific moment. Regardless of your disposition, all pain is experienced through the nervous system. In the case of chronic pain, messages can get stuck in a rut replaying endlessly in a “pain loop.”
Johann Hari’s book “Stolen Focus” is must-reading for parents, educators and anyone else who cares about the future. Our ability to be present is slipping away.
Many of us want to be the best version of ourselves possible. We want to eat better, feel better and be better. The question of our own unique journey is whether or not we are willing to take it.
We now know that the only way to change embedded, painful memories is to access the “emotional brain.” While talking continue to play a crucial role in therapy, it keeps us in our rational mind. To create lasting change at the deepest level, we must access the limbic system.
Did you know that there are four independent brain circuits that influence our lasting well-being? While each circuit contributes beautifully on their own, when joined by the other circuits they create magic – broadening our everyday existence to include a wider and more vibrant range of experience.
When choosing a medication, you should not only consider the immediate effect of it on anxiety, but also whether the medication has the ability to change the brain in ways that will help it become resistant to anxiety.
There are many reasons for developing a yoga practice, spiritual growth is just one of them. How yoga can assist us spiritually depends greatly on which path we are following. Not everyone’s spiritual practice is affected in the same way through yoga, though everyone can benefit physically, mentally and emotionally from yoga.
Think of this system as a presidential election. If you change the number of votes in a few key states by a tiny percentage of points, you can dramatically change the course of the county. The same is true for the brain.
While there are many important elements involved in the limbic system, for the sake of simplicity, we’re going to focus on four key players: the hypothalamus, amygdala, hippocampus and the cingulated cortex.
Mindfulness changes the way we respond to things by strengthening the prefrontal cortex. Different types of practices activate our thinking centers in different ways, similar to muscle use with exercise. No matter the course, all forms of mindfulness practice strengthen the attentional circuits and reduce fight-or-flight responses.