The brain will atrophy if it’s not continually creating new pathways. A worry for me lately since I feel like I'm queen of routine now. Now, I’ve been a lot more physically healthy because of the exercise, eating restrictions, etc. (I’m pretty sure the exercise is what brought forth the cobwebbed areas of my brain.) However mentally, I feel grinded down. Research shows that the basal ganglia (habit part of the brain) will go into autopilot if you do the same thing over and over whether or not the outcome’s good or bad for you. The more your brain goes into autopilot, the more it atrophies. It's important to break up the routine.
The sucky thing is routine is essential for our life. Only through habits can our brain make more sense of things we see over and over and begin writing narratives/ or giving structure to our environment. It’s how we make sense of the world. It’s also how we get security. For me, the girl with Saturn in her 4th house. I need that security especially at home. So, I’m afraid to give up our perfect bungalow, the easy parking, the quiet environment, all the things I recognize as home. It's not easy to take a flamethrower to it all- it's freakin’ scary.
The amygdala governs fear (triggers fight or flight response) is located in the primitive part of the brain, the frontal cortex (newest developed part of the brain) can learn to calm that part of the brain down. They say you can rewire your brain with designed thoughts and actions. That's how they train Navy Seals to perform through scary situations. Now, being a Seal seems like a lot, but I think being brave is a decision any one of us can make at any moment.
Time to start being tough in all the right ways.
Time to start changing my ways.
Hello! Connected!!! When I was looking for a pen name I tried to use Amy G. Dala, but it was already taken! I am so fascinated with the brain.
ReplyDeleteChange is scary, but in order to stay alive, you have to live. Or something like that!
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