My ingrained habits are so strong, I sometimes think my attempts at spiritual growth are pointless. I continue to be irritated, frustrated, angered by, and addicted to the same things I was decades ago. But I’ve come to learn that we form habits in ways that work for us and against us.
The human brain contains billions upon billions of neurons, tiny cells that store information by firing chemical and electrical signals to each other. One neuron fires a signal to another, which fires to another, forming networks across thousands of neurons. These networks are fundamental to our subjective experience.
When something happens to you that is similar to a previous event, the same network of neurons fires again. Over time, networks that fire more often become more firmly connected and fire together more easily. Thus, the maxim in brain science, neurons that fire together, wire together. *
Every thought we have, every memory, emotion, reflection, or insight, is the result of firings within these wired networks. Think of your third-grade teacher. That memory (for me, an image of Mrs. Taylor at the chalkboard) is accessible because it is stored in a pathway of electrochemical reactions. Look at a recipe and decide you would rather put in more cayenne than is called for. That thought arises because of the reactions in a network. Watch a sunrise, hold a baby, take a sip of coffee, all of our interior dynamics flow from neurons firing across pathways stored in our brains.
Our habits form through these pathways. We experience a cue, neurons fire, the brain looks for a similar pattern that has successfully navigated this event in the past, and subjective experience arises in our consciousness, prompting us to act. As we repeat a behavior in response to a cue, the strength between the neurons grows, and that network will fire more readily in the future. A cycle of stimulus and response embeds itself in the structure of the brain.
Studies of the brain confirm that neural pathways can grow, change, or whither over time based on how we use our conscious attention. Images with fMRI machines show neural pathways changing in different areas of the brain depending on what emotions, memories, or habits are being studied. For example, it is now well-established that mindfulness meditation can reduce the reactivity of pathways connected to the amygdala, improving our ability to regulate emotions. Old habits can be changed and new habits formed by paying attention to our internal reactions and replacing the cues and responses in the habit loop.
This property of the brain to change itself is called neuroplasticity. As a neural network fires less often, the propensity of those neurons to fire together becomes weaker. The new networks that fire more often grow stronger and the old ones atrophy. This astounding fact means we can use consciousness to reorganize our brains’ internal workings and physical structures. We can literally rewire our brains by how we pay attention to our experience.
That’s an exciting and sobering thought, carrying promise and responsibility. Everything that happens in my interior domain reinforces one network or another. Every action, thought, indulgence, sacrifice, petty meanness, kindness, that I process in my internal decision-making is embedding a pattern into my being. Yes, I have a formal spiritual practice, but actually I’m practicing all the time.
I can use this realization to better understand my human journey. It puts my hurts, large and small, in a greater context. I’m not just looking for a comfortable life that craves pleasure and avoids sorrow; I can view pleasures as joys to be savored and sorrows as opportunities for growth. They are colors on the palette, and I am here to use them all, not to pick and choose the parts of life that suit me. It’s a long road, and every step along the way matters.
We all have recurring loops of thoughts, emotions, and impulses. The next time you notice your inner chatter, pause to consider that your interactions will govern which neural pathways you are growing. If we can recognize, observe, and react differently, we can start the rewiring process. By meeting each interior moment as a conscious choice point, we can use the light of awareness to comprehend more deeply and choose more wisely. Not with hypervigilance, but with soft awareness; not with self-reprimand, but with self-compassion.
I have my formal practice and I have my continuous practice of living as a conscious being with a sophisticated nervous system. They work together to turn the beam of awareness on itself, making it more likely I will pause in midstream, recognize my patterns, and choose different thoughts and actions that create new neural networks.
I try to play with it, holding it lightly. The opportunities come in moments, and the moments are endless. It’s all practice.
* If you would like to learn more about the fascinating science behind neuroplasticity and how to use it, I recommend these books:
Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence, Rick Hanson (2013).
The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories Of Personal Triumph From The Frontiers Of Brain Science. Norman Doidge (2007).
Photo by Getty Images on Unsplash
I especially love this post! I think about the brain , neuroplasticity, and unlearning unhelpful responses a lot in the field of early literacy — but never really connected it to my own emotional responses. Thanks for a very helpful post! Ken and I appreciated it!
Great to hear Susan. I love reading and thinking about brain science. I used this information a lot when I was teaching emotional intelligence in organizations. Maybe I should do more writing about it.