Inside the mind: The Hidden Workings of the Brain
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Why do we worry about what others think of us? Why does it feel so uncomfortable to try something new? Why do we struggle with ourselves on the couch instead of simply going to exercise? What's actually going on inside our heads? What happens there and how does it influence our experiences and behaviors?
In our attempt to better understand ourselves, we often stumble upon a fundamental misunderstanding regarding our predispositions: Achieving happiness and satisfaction isn't biologically prioritized. Even after millions of years of evolution, the programming of our brains remains unchanged. Survival and physical integrity remain the highest goals, just as they always have been.
The mechanisms at work in our minds aren't geared toward securing our long-term satisfaction but are primarily there to protect us. From this perspective, much of what we experience as self-sabotage suddenly makes sense. It's endearing attempts by our brains to protect us.
Our environment has changed much more rapidly over the past few hundred years than the development of our brains could keep up with. To better understand why we think the way we do, it's helpful to contextualize our experiences and behaviors within the framework of a Stone Age human.
Our survival is promoted by three goals:
Avoiding danger: Our brains do everything to keep us physically unharmed and to not make the same mistake twice. Additionally, there's a sophisticated alarm system designed to keep us from endangering ourselves: fear.
Ensuring belonging to a group or avoiding exclusion from the group. In ancient times, a solitary person was quickly at a disadvantage, putting survival at risk. So it's entirely natural and from an evolutionary perspective, crucial, that we think about what others think of us. Shame is an important mechanism here that motivates us to conform to group norms.
Conserving energy - being lazy at times and finding it difficult to motivate oneself is very useful. Our Stone Age brain doesn't take any meal for granted. Cleverly, it prevents us from wasting energy. It still doesn't quite believe that food is readily available at any time for almost everyone and prefers to prepare for hard times.
The structure of our brains reflects the evolutionary history that began 650 million years ago with the first neurons. While some parts of our brains have hardly changed over millions of years, it has been continuously expanded and further developed. So, our brain doesn't differ radically from that of reptiles but is rather an integration of the reptilian brain with additional, advanced features.
Like fish, our brainstem regulates basic bodily functions such as heartbeat and breathing. However, unlike them, only humans have the ability to speak, indicating a more advanced function of the cerebral cortex.Much research has been done to assign different functions to the individual areas of the brain.
However, a misunderstanding needs to be cleared up:
Your brain doesn't process and store every 'objective' detail of your environment like a video camera – that would be far too overwhelming. Our attention is limited.
Rather, our brain is engaged in hypothesis testing. We don't experience the world in a neutral way; instead, we approach it with preconceived, assumptions that are continually reassessed.
Our thoughts and beliefs, which we have trained over the course of our lives, influence how we see the world. Yellow mailboxes only catch our attention when we actively search for them; otherwise, they escape our perception.
This process often happens without us being aware of it. Whether we judge the world as a friendly or dangerous place, will influence what catches our attention in everyday life and what we commit to memory. However, we're not helpless to this mechanism. Our thoughts and theories about the world can be uncovered through targeted attention and reflection (on our own or in coaching or therapy). The good news is that our brain is changeable. Throughout life, it can undergo restructuring (neuroplasticity) and create new neurons (neurogenesis) and neuron connections. So, we can not only learn to play the guitar but also see the world and ourselves differently and even reinterpret our own life story.
Sometimes it's shocking to notice the kind of thoughts that are swirling around in our heads. But remember the evolutionary origins of our brain and thought world: Shame, critical inner voices, fear and nervousness all have good intentions, they work hard to ensure your survival, your belonging to a social group and that your energy is not being wasted. Isn't that touching? So, don't judge yourself for critical thoughts. It’s only natural to think that way, but it doesn’t mean it can’t change.
If you would like some help to explore your thought patterns and start to practice self compassion, let go of perfectionism and imposter syndrome, consider working with me. As a psychologist and coach I would love to help. Email me at hello(@)juliapouly.com
