Interested in learning more about
how the brain works?
There is a huge and expanding body of information for the individual interested in reprogramming their brain. While we cannot hope to capture all of the resources in the burgeoning field of Applied Neuroplasticity here, our goal is to give you a useful ‘on-ramp’ with a few tools and materials that will make the learning easy.
As a reminder, a useful definition of NEUROPLASTICITY is the ability of our brains to reorganize themselves by forming new neural connections and disconnections throughout life.
1) Start here – Search The Internet
Simply Google ‘neuroplasticity’ and you will be presented with nearly 800,000 results. Start with this very good wiki on Neuroplasticity that will give you a solid grounding in the concept and its emerging applications.
As you search online, you will find online many useful definitions, ideas, handy videos and articles explaining the concept of neuroplasticity and its practical applications and benefits for the individual, the professional and the organization. So start Googling, exploring, reading and experimenting.
2) Books
One of the easiest and most impactful book on reprogramming the brain is Dr. Barbara Arrowsmith-Young’s must read now “The Woman Who Changed Her Brain.” This is an amazing story about the application of neuroplasticity on a very personal level. Arrowsmith was born with three severe congenital defects in her brain which made her life almost unlivable but she was able to reprogram her brain and cure herself and now she does the same for others, especially kids with learning disabilities.
By the way, if you are not a good reader or if you would like to improve your reading skills, this book will give you some good ideas on what you can do and how.
Next we recommend that you read “The Brain That Changes Itself” by Dr. Norman Doidge. In this book Dr, Doidge will give you a dozen case studies where each individual was able to harness the innate plasticity of their brains to cure themselves of different conditions.
Next take a look at Norman Doidge’s second book “The Brain’s Way of Healing” which documents yet more powerful and exciting ways of using Neuroplasticity in the field of healing.
These three books are excellent and engaging introductory works written in layman’s terms. Your Google search will surely provide dozens more to expand your view of the world in a most captivating way.
3) Watch these Video Clips
No time to read? No problem.
- In the first of a three-part ABC TV video series called “Redesign My Brain”, Todd Sampson explores the use of neuroplasticity to improve his brain’s function. Truly mind boggling and wildly entertaining.
- In this informative video, Dr. Norman Doidge talks about his work in changing and healing the brain..
- Here Dr. Barbara Arrowsmith-Young gives a TEDx talk on her heroic brain reprogramming journey.
- On The Science Page, I explain how to use a very simple neuroplastic brain reprogramming technique called The Eye Roll to help you start a conversation with your own brain. My friend and colleague Professor Steve Enders explaining the Eye-Roll technique to a colleague here. Now practice it yourself.
- In this very interesting lecture, Dr. Vince Clark explains some of the benefits of using electrostimulation.
Change your brain ~ Change your life
4) Interesting Articles
Here is a very small sample of interesting and engaging stories on the extraordinary field of Brain Reprogramming.
- “Brain-zapping gadgets promise to make you a better you — smarter, stronger, even happier” - read here
- This is a well articulated article by David Siever who summarizes the history of transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) and how it is used today.
- We can often reduce stress in our lives through breathing. Here is a useful e-book on breathing to improve sleep from the HeartMath Institute
- Audio-Visual Entrainment: A Novel Way of Boosting Grades and Socialization While Reducing Stress in the Typical University and College Student - download here
- Cranio-Electro Stimulation: Two Earclips, Wires, a Little Box and Presto - the Wonderful World of Cranio-electro Stimulation - download here
5) Learning Aids
If you would like quick and easy way to learn how the brain is put together and the roles that each major part plays in the way the brain functions, this model brain will come in handy.
I use this very simple model of the brain to educate my clients. It displays a normal Right Half Brain featuring Frontal, Parietal, Occipital and Temporal lobes, Cerebellum, Corpus Callosum, Pons, Midbrain, Olfactory bulb, Optic nerve, Optic chiasm, Mammillary body and Medulla oblongata.
I recommend this model as an easy way to start to interact with your brain and to understand how to use Neuroplasticity to improve the performance of each area of your brain to give you the results you are looking for.
Another easy tool I use especially when I am teaching is this fun Do It Yourself Brain Hat. I actually get my students to print and make their own and to wear it during the training session or our time together. It is available to download free here.
When you look at the illustration below, you will notice that different areas of the brain have been coloured differently. These coloured areas are the Brodmann areas and they are very important. Brodmann areas were originally defined and numbered by the German anatomist Korbinian Brodmann based on the architectural organization of neurons he observed in the cerebral cortex. Brodmann published his maps of cortical areas in humans in 1909 and they are still in use today!!
If you are scientifically inclined, you will find a detailed map of all of the Brodmann areas together with their specific functions and the related academic literature here.
Just keep reading and exploring the field a little everyday and you will soon pick up the skills you want.
Change your brain ~ Change your life
6) Additional Material
Still with us? Watch this space. We will continue to select relevant and timely resources and publish them here for your enjoyment. If you come across interesting material, please be sure and send it to us and we will add it to our collection with our sincere thanks for your contribution.
Finally, as you explore and discover more in this vast literature on reprogramming the brain, you will find these texts to be valuable amplifications in your journey:
- “The Body Electric: Electromagnetism and The Foundation of Life” by Dr. Robert Becker tells the fascinating story of our bioelectric selves. A pioneer in the field of regeneration and its relationship to electrical currents in living things, Dr. Becker challenges the established mechanistic understanding of the body. He found clues to the healing process in the long-discarded theory that electricity is vital to life. - view on Amazon.com
- “The Art of Selfishness” by Donald Seabury offers tools we can all use to free ourselves from the manipulation of others. Although it is out of print, you can still find a copy on sites like ebay. Highly recommended.
- Dr. Horst Meuller is an extraordinary Canadian psychologist with a host of useful resources and references on his website here.
Enjoy your explorations and pass on to others the most useful information you find.
NO PRESSURE. NO OBLIGATION. PROMISE.