Our prefrontal cortex regulates attention and thoughts with vast amounts of neural connections and a system of arousal and neurotransmitters. If we take no action, our default system may favor excessive stress response and disease. Science proved that focused attention…
In order for our brains to learn, encode, and stamp experiences into lasting memories, we must engage in a delicate balance or dance between chemical and neurological activity. One sensitive coupling is the relationship between dopamine and norepinephrine in the…
Our nervous system is a miraculous and complex network of information and control mechanisms. Our SNS (sympathetic nervous system) readies us for action, to mobilize, to activate, charge, fight or flea..among many other things. Our PNS (parasympathetic nervous system) calms…
Neuroplasticity is now a scientific house-hold word. It is our superhero power, our ultimate ability for mind control. According to Dr. Bruce Lipton in The Biology of Belief he notes, "I believe the greatest problem we face is that we…
Dr. Jill Bolte-Taylor is a remarkable individual who tours the world discussing the devastating and enlightening effects of the massive stroke that annihilated the left hemisphere of her brain. With only her right hemisphere online for many years she notes,…
The PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) did a study in 2010 with 124 adults which showed that social stressors and pressure (such as public speaking) greatly increased an individual's inflammatory markers. Inflammation is the result of free-radical…
Among many things Dopamine is also responsible for our brain's reward response. Unmet expectations decrease our Dopamine, increase our stress, which then impairs our performance, lowers confidence which then decreases Dopamine even further. Some simple ways to interrupt that downward…
According to Congressman Tim Ryan in his book A Mindful Nation, "When people have higher working memory capacity they can pay better attention, can solve problems more readily, and have more fluid intelligence--they use facts rather than just know them. Those…
BDNF--Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor--is a key growth hormone. It protects the structure and integrity of our neurons, enables our neuroplasticity--that's our ability to create new neural maps, and promotes neurogenesis--our ability to grow new brain cells. So--how do we get…
Recent studies done in 2011 by Tononi and researchers at the University of California, LA are showing that "sleep and wakefulness can coexist in the brain." (Scientific American Mind, July). In sleep deprived brains certain areas of neurons stopped firing…