Neuroplasticity from a podcast

THE HUBERMAN LAB.

I’M WALKING THROUGH THE BUSH BY A RIVER. DOPAMINE IS CASCADING THROUGH MY NERVES, WHICH IN TURN STIMULATES MY FOCUS. STEP BY STEP I TRACE LINES FROM THE SUNRISE ON THE HORIZON DOWN THROUGH BLADES OF GRASS IN DAPPLED LIGHT, DODGING MUD AND SNAKES, AIMING FOR A PATHWAY THROUGH THE ROCKS AND BRANCHES.

In three days, I had tricked myself into sleeping well, distracting myself from unhelpful thoughts, and focussing on the little things that matter most.

Looking at the sunrise in the morning triggers a healthy dose of cortisol to get the body moving, and it also preps the body to release melatonin in the evenings. Tracking the eyes left to right while walking forwards to a destination elicits a dopamine-epinephrine- serotonin response which instils a sense of motivation, striving and satisfaction. Switching the focus back and forward between the horizon and the ground creates a habit of flexible focus, which turns out to be useful for distracting the attention away from anxious thoughts or tempting rabbit holes.

For years I visited a psychiatrist because I wanted to bring an end to the anxiety I was experiencing daily. I tried SSRIs and sedatives; I took some meds that treated conditions we both knew I didn’t have… The closest I came to succeeding was to take a combination of stimulants and depressants – it worked, for a while, but it made me wonder why I wouldn’t just take up smoking and drinking instead. Then, searching Dr Google one day, I stumbled across a reference by Dr Andrew Huberman, which claimed that claustrophobes experience anxiety because they can’t zoom their focus out in a confined space. I clicked through and found a simple eye exercise to do while walking outside. Every ten seconds or so, zoom my focus in and then out, onto whatever scenery is available at the time. Before I knew it, I had uncovered whole new worlds. I had walked for years, not realising that there were so many things to pay attention to, outside the ideas in my head.

Neuroplasticity causes us to learn new ways of being – that’s my takeaway from the podcast series I have been geeking out on recently. I’ve managed to restore my sleep, find new energy each day, wean myself of a host of medications and carve myself a new identity. Other things I learnt from this pod cast: how stress ideally leads to focus, and how to relax at will; why mistakes are so valuable when learning; and how to heat up and cool down the body in just seconds with a simple technique.

Yeah, I’m trying to push this podcast series on to you – go and find it. Especially if you are interested in science. And take your friends with you :D