Stay with me here, we're going a bit science-y again!
As we learned before, every second of our day we have millions of stimuli flying at us from every direction. We couldn't possibly see, hear, smell, taste and experience every single bit as it would quickly become too much and start to overwhelm us. Our brain needs a way to cope with the sheer volume and it, therefore, filters out most of - what it considers - unimportant 'noise'. What's more, it does this before we are even aware of what is happening.
This, in short, means that our brain has already decided what it wants to tell us, before we even experience and process what is going on.
Our Reptilian brain - the very base workings of our brain, which responds first in any situation - mainly triggers in black and white (i.e. life and death). Therefore, it believes that everything we need to take notice of, may be a life and death situation, and is therefore a complete drama!
In today’s world the 'death drama' situation is actually very rare, however, our brain still loves to work this way.
Sometimes it gets the better of us - mostly when we are tired, stressed or emotional - responding to everyday stresses as if they were life and death situations. If we look at a very simple example, one bad experience with a stranger may make our Reptilian brain scream “everyone hates me” and if we've had a bad day, we may listen to it!
What's more, when there is 'drama' in our lives, generally we believe it is everybody else that causes us this 'drama'. However, 'drama' only exists when our brain - mostly the reptilian part - tell us it does, therefore it really is only in our own head.
Everyone’s brain is different and responds based on a number of things, such as previous experiences and current feelings and emotions. This is why some things may seem a complete disaster at one point in time and not so bad later on. There is total truth in the phrase "...you may feel differently in the morning!"
As we have just seen, what we perceive as 'drama' is in our own head, and what we actually do by telling ourselves it is other people causing us this drama, is transferring the blame for not managing our own minds and feelings.
This is actually a natural response (and a defense mechanism) and is mostly a response so that our brains don't have to deal with often more intense emotions.
If we then take the approach of avoiding the people we believe cause us this drama, we will never learn how to deal with - and control - our uncooperative Reptilian brain. We may lose one source of drama, but we can guarantee we will start to find drama elsewhere.
Todays Challenge - Take notice the next time you feel like something is a complete drama in your own mind. Notice that this may be when our Reptilian brain is taking over. STOP. Is it possible you may be overreacting? Write down how you feel about what has just happened and leave the situation if possible to reflect on later in the day. Later on, revisit the feelings and see if you can put it in perspective. What have you learnt about yourself and how you deal with 'drama'?
What to do next....
All the ‘Free Your Mind’ techniques take time and practice. But now you have some new knowledge, why not download my FREE Mindset Map, which will show you how to put everything you have learned into practice. To get your FREE copy straight to your Inbox, click here.
In this FREE Mindset Map, I outline an amazing and enjoyable journey of self-discovery. A journey that will lead you to a happier and more fulfilling future. A life full of energy and positivity and filled with a feeling of calm and inner balance.
I share my signature framework, The 5-Stage Mindset Makeover Method to:
- Get to know yourself better, take back control and uncover what your values and drivers in life are
- Start to see the world differently and develop a mindset which will naturally move you towards a more positive outlook on life
- Start the process of designing your own path forward and creating the impetus to taking those first all-important steps
- Start to make real change, gain momentum and what to do if you deviate from your path (or stop completely!)
- Arrive at your destination and what to do next!
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Photo's used for our 7-day challenge were provided by local up-and-coming photographer Dominique-Alana Photography