Rewiring our brains

2/14/2025

Surviving the trump administration, A Daily Thread. Episode 23: Rewiring our brains

It snowed in Portland today, so I’m going to take this opportunity to talk about neuroplasticity! What does a snowstorm have to do with the wiring in our brains, you ask? Let me tell you!

This is a metaphor that I heard from one of my early therapists. We all have habits, which often correspond with beliefs: this is the way I do it, therefore this is the way I HAVE to do it. This can be from something as simple as the way we cook our eggs (oops, sorry to bring up a touchy subject – how expensive are eggs in YOUR grocery store?) to something as deep as the same toxic relationship we keep choosing because we subconsciously believe we’re not worthy of healthy love.

NEUROPLASTICITY refers to our brain’s ability to CHOOSE A DIFFERENT PATH.  Like a kid dragging a sled to the top of a hill, we don’t have to put the sled down in the same path we’ve always taken before. Yes, it’s easier to choose the path that’s already been made. But it’s also possible to take a few steps in a different direction, put the sled down, and carve a new path. Will it be harder than choosing the familiar path? Yes. But is it possible? Also yes. And if we do that again, and again, and again, eventually we can form a new habit or belief – one we’re CHOOSING instead of one we’re doing on autopilot.

As an additional note, there are a lot of ways to help make choosing that new path easier. One of the early ones I practiced was EMDR: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. This is a trauma-recovery technique that was first developed for use with veterans with PTSD. But it is now widely used by therapists for healing from all kinds of trauma – and I found it a truly liberating way to learn to access my emotions and become a more embodied version of myself.

Another method that has now been legalized in Oregon and Colorado so far (and has been used by Native people worldwide for centuries) is psilocybin mushrooms. Utilizing psilocybin in a therapeutic context involves identifying the beliefs or habits we want to change, and then creating intentions around them for the journey. Then, the psilocybin metaphorically provides our brains with a blanket of fresh snow so that, in the weeks immediately following the journey, it is easier to make the choice of where we want to place our sled. It can be a kickstart into forming mindfully healthier habits and beliefs.

I spent most of 2024 completing a psilocybin facilitator training program, and I feel so lucky to be exploring this magical way into healing. One of the lessons I know is true is that there is no one-size-fits all for healing. BUT, there are SO MANY ways IN to becoming more self-aware, whole versions of ourselves, and the process is the journey of discovering what resonates. Happy Healing, everyone.

#survivingthetrumpadministration #fightfascism #notmypresident #standupspeakout #strongertogether