How the Brain Got Liberated

The mystery of the human brain recently took a step closer to being solved. This didn't happen through a single breakthrough or because of an Einstein moment. Instead, an old belief was overturned by many separate researches. The old belief held that the brain couldn't heal itself. Unlike almost every other organ, healing supposedly didn't exist in the brain, so that once wounded or impaired, the damage was permanent. Now we know that's not true.

The human brain not only can heal itself, but it turns out to be amazingly adaptable to trauma. The term for this is neural plasticity, and once discovered, it sprang up in many areas. Stroke victims have learned to regain function after paralysis. The blind have acquired new abilities in the visual cortex. Skills limited to the right or left side of the brain have jumped across to the other hemisphere. Thanks to neural plasticity, we've learned to see the human brain not as a fixed structure with brain cells dying every year -- the old view -- but as a fluid, constantly evolving process.

The brain has been so liberated, in fact, as to be barely recognizable. We now know that the aging brain can continue to develop new connections. Stem cells continue to give rise to new neurons throughout the human life cycle. Most important of all, the experiences you have at any time of life create new neural pathways, and it's these pathways that form complex patterns far more vital than new neurons. At this moment, your brain is adapting to everything you see, hear, touch, taste, and smell.

I don't want to go into technical details, simply to note that there's a next step that is even more liberating. A recent study by the Preventive Medicine Research Institute showed that people who adopt beneficial lifestyle changes, such as improved diet, exercise, and stress management, trigger changes in expression of over four hundred genes. Like the brain, your genes are tuned in to your experience, and when you decide to change your life, the millions of molecule signals that tell your genes what to make and when--the epigenome--respond accordingly. They must, for any new function in any cell requires translation into chemical reactions, and those are mediated by the gene.

Now put these two discoveries together, the changing brain and the changing epigenome, and the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts. Every thought, intention, wish, dream, insight, and memory you have is creating change at the genetic level. Your genome and epigenome together are nothing less than a quantum computer, making thousands of decisions per second in every cell. These decisions aren't mechanical or preprogrammed. They await your intentions; the quantum computer runs on behalf of your consciousness.

Since every cell contains the same strand of DNA, the quantum computer is in very cell, and it is coordinated with every other. This computing ability, by which a heart cell knows what a brain cell is doing, the liver communicates with the kidneys, the endocrine system eavesdrops on the emotions being triggered in the limbic centers of the brain, is infinite. What will finally liberate our brains is the realization that infinite intelligence, creativity, and organizing ability isn't a pipedream or spiritual wish fulfillment. It's the very basis of the human body.

I've left out dozens of discoveries that support this revolutionary contention (an excellent source for reading up on the breakthrough research is Sharon Begley's well-written book, Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain). As the title implies, it's by changing the mind first that the brain adapts, and there seems to be no limit to this adaptation. What is human evolution, after all, but neurons learning new skills over a very long period of time, and then passing those skills on through genes to new generations?

Unlike our evolutionary ancestors, we have the opportunity to consciously shape our brains, using this newfound knowledge of neural plasticity. Medicine has already made inroads, for example, as in the intensive recovery programs for stroke victims that teach their brains to use new, undamaged areas. Stroke recovery is therefore miles ahead of where it was twenty years ago. But medicine deals with trauma and disease. The liberated brain has enormous potential in everyday life, which will be the topic of my next post.

(To be cont.)

deepakchopra.com

 

Follow Deepak Chopra on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Deepak_Chopra

Comments

[MaxBenavidez]

It's about plasticity in general. Our neurons are plastic and malleable as are our genes, as Chopra notes. It begins with our attitude, a consciousness that creates the intention of being open to change and adapt-ability. Darwin famously said that those who adapt survive. Just as our neurons are plastic and our genes can "sense" our intention, it's beneficial to adapt to new things, to be open to new experiences. Fluidity works for the brain and works for us as human beings in the world dealing as we do with social crises and personal trauma. If we allow ourselves to harden, we lose our plastic, fluid ability to adapt to change. It's simple yet we see people who are hardened, who can't or won't accept change, who, in fact, do everything they can to stop change. Change is the essence of who we are, of nature. Adapt. The mix includes chemistry, of course, but it's also how we see the world and behave. What we do and what we think has an impact on our health and thus on our neurons and on our cells Just ask any addict. Change your behavior and you change your body.

[myopinion2]

The hypothesis that a change in consciousness can help 'reprogram" certain neural patters over time and effort has a reasonable basis both in science and experience. The notion that an individual's level of consciousness can in part determine on a genetic basis the consciousness of off-spring is the kind of fanciful "new ageism" that hinders getting people to take spirituality and consciousness raising seriously. (In my opinion.)

[krocklin]

A doctor I know has always relied on prescription drugs - Ambien and Vicadin mostly. He has had to go into rehab a number of times.

[krocklin]

When I was growing up few people took medications except in mental institutions. And almost all of those have been discredited.
One only has to watch all the ads for pharmaceuticals on Tv to see what a fraud all this pill taking has become.
At least twice as many prescription drugs are prescribed now than just 10 year ago.
It has led to MORE anxiety and depression than less.

[johnsopinion]

One should also listen to the side effects given,
they'll scare the hell out of you!

[cktirumalai]

The Old Frontier of medicine: Disease and its cure. The New Frontier of medicine: Health and its more resilient expression.

[stewcat]

Knowing first hand of the brain's plasticity, and working very intensively to retrain my brain due to a significant TBI, I have come to know firsthand how true this article is. Opening oneself to possibilities is a large part of the process also. Good nutrition is also very important in helping the brain to work optimally.
Thank you Dr. Chopra for an excellent article.

[Mind Sparke]

The possibilities offered us by the discovery of adult brain change are many and varied. But people should not be mislead into think that such change comes easily. Buddhist monks have different brains from regular people, but they have meditated for tens of thousands of hours to produce those changes. Last year scientists showed that intensive working memory training could increase intelligence; this is a phenomenal result, but it required focused attention on a difficult task for at least ten hours over the course of a month. Exciting times, but anything good takes effort.

Martin
www.mindsparke.com

[johnsopinion]

"... and when you decide to change your life, the millions of molecule
signals that tell your genes what to make and when--the epigenome-
-respond accordingly. They must, for any new function in any cell
requires translation into chemical reactions, and those are mediated
by the gene."

I will go out on a limb here and take this one step further, saying differently
what you have said--everything in life, molecules, genes, epigenomes, etc.,
everything--has consciousness.

Thank you for bringing this all together.

[Bradson]

Maybe we could also say, beyond "everything has consciousness", that everything is consciousness...or consciousness is everything.

[JohnFromCensornati]

...or everything is everything or consciousness is consciousness.

...or better yet, meaningless is meaningless.

[Liberal2]

Oh...bull. The brain has a degree of self-repair, but far less than the skin healing a cut.

In the 19th century, gullibles like you believed séances were way to communicate with the dead.

[Ramkshrestha]

Dear Dr Chopra,
Thanks for your wonderful effort. This is new, but not new. This is new for them who are around science, but not new who are around spiritual world. It is nothing new as more than 2500years ago the Buddha had taught about liberating the mind. Not to just believe but to find out the truth. He also point to the mind as the forerunner of all things. He taught the method to attain cessation of suffering. So your effort trying to bridge between scientific and spiritual worlds.

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/deepak-chopra/how-the-brain-got-liberat_b_319677.html

[seawolf77]

Was the greatest generation wrong about everything? I turn 50 this year and I'still have yet to see or hear one of them admit to being wrong about anything ala W,Cheney,Palin and all the rest of the perfect people. We all mercifully grew up with the perfect generation. How's that working out for you? As for the brain, well I'm sure we'll find all kinds of goodies in there if we scuttle the dream police. But we won;t. They don;t want you finding those goodies, only the goodies they want you to find ala sex education in America today.

[RocknRollChef]

"The Greatest Generation, is a term coined by journalist Tom Brokaw to describe the generation of Americans who grew up during the deprivation of the Great Depression, and then went on to fight in World War II, as well as those whose productivity within the war's home front made a decisive material contribution to the war effort."..­..........­......Wiki­pedia

That doesn't include Bush, Cheney, Palin or any of their peers. Their brains are trained in denial. I doubt seriously that any of them even understand Dr. Chopra's words.

[GrainOSand]

All is one.

[ThoughtShaman]

This is a good effort by Dr. Chopra to connect the individual consciousness to long-term evolution, and thus the physical.

Whether or not this altered gene expression is significant enough to change what is transmitted to the next generation is something to investigate.

As another poster pointed out, this likely requires us to change our understanding of evolution, as this phenomenon of conscious directed gene expression is different from natural selection/­­adaptatio­n and genetic drift.

[NicoloM]

TS- thank you for adding to the concepts.
If genes are changed by life processes, why wouldn't those changes be passed if they occurred prior to reproduction? Especially on behavioral characteristics, or inherited neural wiring? (the repeated adaptive wiring for "sabertooth tiger danger" probably shaped the basic package we get at birth.) Maybe the significance of genetic expression in a social animal is the collective expression of the genes modified by "individual" effort?
Isn't it fascinating that our "understanding" of evolution is evolving? Possibly, as we learn more, what we thought was genetic drift or mutation, has a greater intentional component than the perspectives of the past hundred years could imagine. In either case, the more evolved persist if they are better adapted.
Which raises an interesting question-- what experiences do we promote in our young before reproduction which might find genetic expression? Violence and war? Trivial self-preoccupation, greed, and consumerism? On the other hand, what about spiritual worship, caring, compassion, and cooperative effort?

[Liberal2]

Duhhhhh! Genes are not "changed by life processes. Genes are turned on and turned off by chemicals that enter the cell. This is why chemicals in the emvironment are causing increasing numbers of birth defects. Google "thalidomide" for an example.

[neurogrl]

Here's my take on the passing of gene expression to our offspring. If our behavior alters our gene expression (and there's no doubt this does happen) and if our behavior serves as a guide for the behavior of our offspring (again happens all the time), then it stands to reason that our offspring are very likely to "inherit" this form of gene expression. The caveat is that our offspring have to adopt the same behaviors that we have in order to produce this gene expression. In addition, the gene's that were are claiming to be expressing have to have been passed to those offspring rather than some other gene from the other parent.

[ThoughtShaman]

This already goes on and we capture it as genetic drift. The important thing is to measure in some form "how much of this is due to conscious direction" compared to simply adapting to a particular environment or breeding within a specific population.

Therefore the test must first estimate changes due to both the passive processes, and then measure/estimate changes attributable to the active conscious direction. Next, it must demonstrate that the change is significant, Further, it must show that this change is inherited, and lastly show that the inherited traits produce a similar change in behavior in the offspring. A very tall order, but worth investigating.
,
Note: I am not trying to define consciousness. I simply assume that the ability to make a choice indicates consciousness.

[sarnold15]

Excellent article.

Dr. Chopra has a wonderful talent for tying together vast amounts of scientific data and showing what it means. The potential of our species is awe-inspiring!

Thanks for the perspective.

[khanti]

Mind over matter?
It is nothing new more than 2500years ago the Buddha had taught about liberating the mind. Not to just believe but to find out the truth. He also point to the mind as the forerunner of all things. He taught the method to attain cessation of suffering.
People who strongly hold on to beliefs cannot simply be liberated. To throw away their beliefs is like pulling away the floor where their ego stand on. There will be a feeling of uncertainty, of being lost because they have never experinced what a freed mind is like.
In your previous article I told you to let them be but I did not emphasize.

[Kalyan]

I agree with you there.
"Man always goes from lesser truth to higher truth and not from error to truth" - Vivekananda
Holding on to a belief is alright and anyways one must take it to it's logical conclusion one day. We are living one big experiment and experience is our only teacher.

[khanti]

What Vivekananda said is very true. The awaken can only come from within when the question 'why?' arises. That will set the perfection of wisdom rolling until then whatever religion exist is meant for the good of humankind and so humane qualities like compassion, morality and generosity need to be cultivated. In this sense it is better if we assist our human brethrens to cultivate these qualities.

[Shirley Fisk]

10/13/09
9:13pm
Alexandria,VA

True.
Great.
Wonderful.