You already know that your brain is a tissue mass containing the specialized cells called neurons.
But your brain does much more than just use those cells to store information. Much more than we ever thought, no pun intended.
And here’s the exciting part … you can speed up your brain and dramatically re-configure the information capacity through what is called synaptic plasticity, or neuroplasticity.
In other words, you can re-wire your neuronal circuits and speed up how fast they work through training.
Neuroplasticity
Your neurons are electrically excitable cells that process and transmit information by electro-chemical signaling. This means that electrical signals stimulate chemicals to tell messages and get things done all throughout your body.
You could indeed say that your brain is a very powerful computer. The normal human brain has an estimated 100 Billion neurons—and 1,000 trillion connections to other neurons (because each neuron connects to as many as 10,000 other neurons). This is equivalent to a computer with a memory that can contain 100 times more information than contained in the 19 million volumes in the US Library of Congress!
It has been believed that our adult human brains have a very fixed capacity. But while it may be true that your neurons don’t divide and multiply like other human tissue, they can increase in size and you can increase their connections and improve their function.
This is where neuroplasticity comes in. Each new experience (thought, stimulus, or event) your brain slightly re-wires its physical structure. This means you can learn to like new foods tastes, evolve your thoughts into good-feeling ones (i.e. thoughts that cause good emotions within you), and even train new motor skills through repeated thoughts.
By repeating the desired neuron activity over and over, you activate nerve connections (circuits) that have been dormant and get them firing again. In fact, every thought and every experience you have changes your brain! [You can see dramatic examples of neuroplasticity in this free documentary video]
What does brain plasticity mean for you?
Well, what would you like to change?
I wrote you recently that it takes just 4 weeks to change your craving for an unhealthy food. Your screaming desire for that highly refined sugar donut can turn into just a soft whisper in just four weeks. Your craving for a soda with your meals can simply melt into the background while your desire for fresh lime-aid steps up to first choice.
It’s your plastic brain that allows this. But you have to take the initiative and allow time for those neural connections that scream for unhealthy food to shrink back, while repeatedly charging up the circuits for fresh lime-aid. It’s really that simple.
It takes simply controlling your thoughts—or training your brain’s neurons—to what it is that you desire to think and experience. Sounds unrealistic? Let’s consider a simple example.
You can actually retrain your very thoughts each day. Simply practice allowing only good-feeling thoughts into your mind on every topic. When that thought comes into your consciousness which makes you feel bad, uneasy, or upset, take note that it is not the subject itself that is causing you to feel bad, but rather, your incorrect perspective surrounding the subject.
For example, pretend for a moment that you get a call from an important client who is upset. Your first thought may take you to the possibility that you have already lost this client’s business and the undesirable consequences related to that. And notice how uneasy or even sick your body immediately feels from such a thought (if you allow it). Even imagine the growing dis-ease that will surely develop if you allow this thought to persist for more than about ten seconds.
Instead, this is the very moment when you can interject the positive alternative thought (opposite to fear) which assures you that not only is all going to turn out fine, but even better for you because of this opportunity to learn something new or solve the apparent problem. Although it appears to be a terrible thing, your repeated positive alternative thoughts (the good possibilities) will quickly tell you that this experience is in reality creating new learning, wisdom, or other good. Notice also that your body dis-ease quickly fades away and feel good chemicals flood your body.
Repeat these positive alternative thoughts with each difficult situation or negative thought in order to believe them. Eventually this training will give you power over your world. You will re-wire your brain to meet each apparently difficult challenge with the new enthusiasm of a new opportunity.
This is mind-mastery, the ultimate level of health and feeling good.
To health through correct thoughts,
Michael Cutler, M.D.
Easy Health Options
*Photo Credit: https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=Neuroplasticity
