Ok, here we are again. Let’s get a short recap going. First we learned about the Lizard Brain, which primarily works off of associations from past experiences. We learned that it is unable to analyze things and is pretty much a knee jerk reaction kind of fellow. The we took some time to understand the next evolution of our brain; the Monkey Brain. Able to analyze to some degree, but primarily provides direction to the Lizard Brains demands. Lizard want food and the Monkey point to a bush with berries. So now we stop to learn about the Human Brain, the logical and analytical part of our brain.

The Human Brain, as I am calling it, is specifically the Frontal Cortex area of the brain. This is a very important tool for us as it provides long-term planning, complex analysis of events, logical decision making and even memory. This is what makes us different from the other animals that we see at the zoo. If we were to look at the scenario of the Lizard Brain signaling that it’s hungry it would play out kind of like this. The Lizard Brain feels emptiness in the stomach and say “Oi! I’m hungry mate!”. The Monkey Brain, being the great friend that it is replies, “Hey! I got you. Just over there is a bush with berries. Let’s go nom on some of those and that will fix you right up.” Then the know it all Human Brain ensures that everyone knows that they are there but adding, “Well, ACTUALLY, that bush is not safe to eat. If you were to remember that last occasion in which we partook in that berry bush we were unable to control our bowel for many days. Perhaps we should find another bush to eat from.” And a digestive crisis is now adverted. But if that is how our brain worked then why does it feel like the Human Brain isn’t always in control? Well, because it isn’t!

You see logical thought seems like it would always be a good idea. The problem is that logical thought take time, and we don’t always feel as though we have time. Sometimes we need to go full Leroy Jenkins, depending on the situation. In fact there is an evolutionary advantage to this. For the vast majority of the almost 200,000 years we have been on this planet we have been fighting to survive. We were not always the dominate predator across the global. Even in modern times we find ourselves in situations in which our lives are truly at risk. During those times those that stopped to ponder the meaning of life, well they got eaten. So instead our brain is programmed to operate a specific way when we feel like we are in danger.

Let’s take a scenario in which you are face to face with a bear, and he seems grumpy. The Lizard Brain says “OI! THAT’S A BEAR AND THEY WILL KILL US!”. The Monkey then chimes in by admitting this is true and that they need to take action. As soon as the Human decides to open it’s mouth in is pondering of when the last time the bear had a hug both other brains tune the human out. In fact, the Human Brain is shut down and disconnected during this time. This is the Fight, Flight, or Freeze response and it is with the Monkey fully in the driver’s seat. It’s important to understand that we someone is in this state of mind, common with individuals who have experienced trauma, that they lose the human side of them. And if you’ve ever tried to reason with a scared monkey then you know that all that monkey is going to do is scream at you and throw poo. Much like a human does who is having a trauma reaction. It isn’t until the perceived threat is gone that the Human Brain is allowed to join the team again. Because when it comes down to survival we need to act quickly and not wonder when the last time the bear had a good solid hug, you know, a bear hug.

Alright I’m going to end this here to prevent it from getting too long. Join me next week as we talk about the nervous system and how your body response to danger, as well as how to snap yourself out of a trauma/panic response.