Chapter 7 - Retraining the Brain

Teaching kids about their brain can be very fun because generally they are interested in learning about their brain and it helps make sense of a lot of the things we've discussed in this book.  Generations back, we may have needed our amygdala more often to escape animal attacks, etc, but in our modern suburban living, it doesn't have as much real use, so the amygdala spends its time making up things to be scared about!  Once children understand this, it's an easier sell to get them to "talk down" their amygdala with the externalizing strategy.

KEY CONCEPTS:
1.  Seek out the uncertainty and the distress it generates within you

2.  Understanding the brain:

• amygdala - alarm system
• prefrontal cortex - rational problem-solving

3.  Train the amygdala - being uncomfortable on purpose

• Self-talk
• Stepping into the threat

TAKE ACTION:

• Plant the seeds of how "alarm systems" and "thinking parts" work in the world.
• Model the process of talking down the prefrontal cortex.