INTRODUTION

We all have some things that we wish we could change about ourselves and there are some things we wish we could learn. In this blog, We will learn about neuroplasticity. In this blog, we shall understand how the brain learns something new step by step. And how can we hack it, or how can we make it easier to reset your brain? I shall share a one-month protocol where you can learn something new.

How Our brain takes decisions

All your behaviour and all the decisions that you make about what to do come at some level from fear. Because deep in your brain, in our brain limbic system is an area called the amygdala, which activates the fear network and that is responsible for a lot of decision-making that we do.

So if you want to change something about yourself, first of all, step number one is to learn how to calm down. For instance, think of it as any sport. A player doesn’t just get up and go for an important match, right? Like, there is some warm-up, there’s some preparation, there’s years of training.Similarly calming down is essential for a new change.

Week-by-Week Brain Rewiring Plan

Week-1(Priming Your Brain)

Week one is about priming yourself and getting yourself ready. The way to do this is by learning how to go from a sympathetic state to a parasympathetic state. So a sympathetic state is when your body is in fight or flight. It is constantly agitated. It is exciting. So your brain is constantly shifting from one thing to another. So learning to go from a sympathetic to a parasympathetic state where you are resting, you are calm, and you’re not easily distracted. That would be the first step.

The way to do this is through a deep breathing exercise called Resonance Frequency Breathing.

The format of resonance frequency breathing is that you sit comfortably in a place and you inhale for around 4 seconds and you exhale through your mouth for around 5 to 6 seconds and you repeat this breathing pattern for around 5 minutes.

Once you have done this, you will automatically feel a little calmer, and you will be thinking with some clarity. This effect lasts for some time, and that is a valuable period because this means that your body is now in a parasympathetic state.

Now is the time for you to decide what change you want to bring. What is that new habit that you want to build this month? Think about it. Take your time. What is that one change that you would be very proud of making in your life over this one month?   If you already have an answer, then now is the time to start implementing that change after the deep breathing exercise.

Now, how do you introduce a new idea? Every new idea comes in the form of a trigger. There is novelty and it automatically drags your brain’s attention to it because it’s new. Because guess what? Your brain likes new things. So, every time something new and exciting pops up, your brain’s dopamine levels spike.

Now, this is most commonly seen when you have a crush on somebody and you get those butterflies. But the effect of that initial trigger only lasts for a few seconds to a few minutes. And that is not enough time for your brain to form a new connection.

Remember that when you learn something new, these are neurons that are physically forming new bonds in your brain. That takes between hours to days. So in your first week, you have only one task, which is priming your brain. You do this by doing your resonance frequency breathing every day, and immediately following that, you do that one action that you want your brain to learn.

Week-2 (Setting Intentions)

Now we have to address what happens if motivation levels start falling because something that is new does not remain new. So after day two or day three, you might start getting bored, and you might start giving it up. This is when intention setting comes into the picture. So when you find yourself struggling to get motivated to do something, this is when you say out loud or write it out what it is that you want to do.

For example, if the habit that I want to set is to go to the gym, I will set my intention, and I will say it out loud that I am going to go to the gym today, and I will write it down so that that thought is now implanted in my brain.

This sort of intention setting is useful because it is a form of self-talk. So it just makes your own decision-making easier. So in week two, this is the strategy that you’ll be applying.

Week-3 (Reinforcing The Action )

All the things that you were doing in week one, which included your deep breathing, followed by your action. Now, assuming that you’ve managed to successfully go past week one and week two, week three is where it gets really important because now is the time to reinforce that action in your brain by increasing the difficulty level.

Now, this might sound counterintuitive because why would your brain want things to get more difficult? Isn’t it difficult enough to learn an action in the first place? But that’s not true.

For example, if I want to learn the guitar and I’ve been playing guitar for 2 weeks, after the second week, I’m getting a little bored. So, I now need to increase the difficulty level. Either learn to play it faster or learn some chords that I’ve never tried before, for my brain to maintain that interest.

We need to understand how to keep our brains entertained so that they can learn. So, increasing the difficulty level reinforces that habit in your brain.

Week-4 ( Consolidation Of New Habits)

Now we have reached week four. And this is when we consolidate that rewiring in your brain, because already those new neuron connections have happened. There are new synapses that have formed in your brain. There is an entirely new network that is getting constructed.

Your entire brain’s working has now shifted to include this new thing that you have started doing. And that is how identities change.Because if we look back after a month we’ll remember that a month ago there was this whole new habit that was never a part of your life and now it is.

Which means that there are new networks that exist in your brain today that simply were not there a month ago. Isn’t that amazing? Congratulations. What you’ve just achieved is neuroplasticity.

But how do we consolidate it? Are there more things that you can do? Thankfully, there is. The first way is to start getting feedback from others. Start sharing what you have done in the past 3 weeks with others. Let them comment. Let them validate what you’ve done. Let them give feedback, and that acts as a positive feedback loop because we really value community. We value what other people have to say.

Another way of consolidating a change and making it grow is by teaching other people. So whatever it is that you have learned in the past 3,4 weeks, start teaching others. become an ambassador for that habit, because now you will find that it is part of your identity, because in the end, an identity change is the ultimate example of neuroplasticity.

Now there are a couple of things that I didn’t mention in this blog which are, the importance of diet and the importance of sleep in neuroplasticity, because both of them keep your brain healthy. But In my another blog “How Diet Influences Brain Health: Science behind food and brain health” i have shared what to eat and how to sleep to keep your brain healthy. Do read it because then you will get a complete idea of how to rewire your brain in 30 days.