On neuroscience ‘hacks’
The passive-aggressive quotation marks probably indicate where I’m going with this, but let’s get into it…
Neuroscience is the study of the nervous system, with the aim of understanding how cells within it interact to regulate body functions, human behaviour, memory, emotions and consciousness.
There’s profound value in learning about how humans work, because being a human is weird and hard, and we don’t get much guidance on it.
Advances in neuroscience affect us all. Insights into neuroplasticity have proven that the brain is capable of change and renewal throughout life, and not just primarily in childhood as previously thought, meaning there is far more hope for recovery and change at any age. Polyvagal theory provides a framework to understand the physiological states of fight, flight and freeze, but also clarifies the conditions necessary for ‘rest and digest’, and socially engaged states. This offers insight into stress management, trauma recovery, and the maintenance of homeostasis and healthy relationships.
The benefits of greater insight into the human experience - from better understanding of neurodiversity to more effective therapies for trauma and addiction - are already apparent, at least for those of us who have access to them.
So far so good.
Where I begin to question the application of genuinely useful breakthroughs is when they are presented as neuroscience ‘hacks’. There’s been an interest in ‘hack’ culture, given the tech industry’s dominance in recent decades, with speed, convenience and efficiency valued more highly than ever. While the idea of ‘frictionless’ tech is an attractive one, it’s hard to apply that concept to humanity. Being a human is pretty friction-y.
The basic point being: no amount of research or theory allows us to bypass the human experience.
A deeper understanding of the nervous system might help us to recognise how a perception of threat will activate us into fight or flight, but it doesn’t make the experience of tolerating this any easier. That’s still a natural struggle for most of us, because it’s supposed to be. With better strategies, and through conscious practise, we may become more adept at maintaining calm, or recovering more quickly, but humans are not designed to experience ongoing stress. So while there may be solutions to reducing stress and threat in our lives, there’s no ‘hack’ for that.
There is nothing that you, I or anybody else can do about how hard this is.
I’m often reminded of this when I have upset, threat or crisis in my own life. It doesn’t matter how much I’ve read about emotional regulation - when I have to do it, it’s hard. It doesn’t matter how much time I’ve spent working through my own and others' struggles in coaching. At some point, theory fails. I’m left in the same reality as anyone else - tough stuff is tough. Understanding helps, but doesn’t bypass. The only way through is through.
We’re in the midst of an explosion of interest in personal development, growth and healing. Merriam Webster dictionary’s word of the year for 2022 was ‘gaslighting’. I believe that this is part of a collective shift in consciousness that will have wide-ranging benefits for us all, even if it feels like we’re in the ‘wheels coming off’ phase now. It can also feel like we’re in a mental health perma-crisis, but my sense is that the amount of effort directed towards healing, recovery and re-establishing health on an individual level - as I witness every day in my work - will have a permanent positive effect on the collective. There are a lot of people coming to all healing modalities with the express intention of recovering from their own experiences, and breaking generational cycles of dysfunction or abuse, so that they will not hand on these burdens to future generations.
Does a deepened understanding of our nervous system, neurology, and physiology help to understand our real-life challenges? Yes. All day long yes.
Does it bypass any of the conscious effort required to change our patterns, tolerate discomfort and truly feel our emotions?
No.
But it’s still worth the effort.
We may have come to an understanding of the value of vulnerability. It’s still hard to actually say something exposing.
We may have learned that we need to ask for and accept help. Even so, that might always go against the grain.
We may have finally found the courage we need to speak up. That might always evoke the old fears that bred our silence so long ago.
Understanding our own issues doesn’t automatically switch off the reactions we feel, or sidestep the effort required to change. What we do need is patience, grace and compassion towards ourselves as we bumble along. There’s no such thing as a fully optimised human.
