Diving into the Neurological Body

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 Most of us were never taught how our own nervous system works.

We were taught how to behave.
How to cope.
How to push through.
How to “be fine.”

But very few of us were taught what is actually happening inside us when something hits a nerve, when emotion floods, when we shut down, when we go blank, when we snap, when we freeze.

Neuroscience is simply the study of how experience moves through the brain and body.

Not as theory.
As lived reality.

When something feels threatening — emotionally or physically — a small, ancient part of your brain sounds the alarm.

Before you’ve had time to think.

Before you’ve had time to choose.

Your heart rate shifts.
Your breath changes.
Your muscles tighten.
Your attention narrows.

This happens in milliseconds.

It’s your survival brain doing its job.

It’s often called the amygdala, but you don’t need the name.

You know the feeling.

That sudden “uh-oh.”
That jolt.
That contraction.

That’s your body saying:
“Pay attention. Something matters.”

When this alarm system switches on, blood flow shifts away from the parts of the brain that think slowly and reflectively.

It moves toward the parts that react.

This is why, in the middle of an emotional moment, you can’t always “be rational.”

The reflective part of your brain — the prefrontal cortex — temporarily goes offline.

Not because you’re weak.

Because survival comes first.

So in those moments, you might:

Say things you don’t mean.
Go quiet.
Go numb.
Go defensive.
Go people-pleasing.
Go sharp.
Go distant.

That’s not personality.

That’s state.

It’s your nervous system in protection mode.

Over time, if certain experiences repeat,

 conflict, criticism, unpredictability, neglect, pressure, loss, 

your brain learns their “signature.”

It stores them in deeper emotional memory systems, 

especially in areas like the hippocampus and surrounding networks.

Again, you don’t need the names.

You feel the effect.

A tone of voice.
A look.
A situation.
A phrase.

Suddenly your body reacts as if something old is happening again.

Not because you’re stuck in the past.

Because your nervous system is trying to keep you safe using old data.

The body remembers first.

Thought comes later.

That’s why insight alone doesn’t always free us.

You can understand your patterns perfectly and still feel hijacked by them.

Because the pathways are physical.

They are wired into breath, posture, muscle tone, hormone release, attention.

They live in your vagus nerve, your endocrine system, your autonomic responses.

They are embodied memory.

The brain loves efficiency.

If a response once protected you, it keeps it on file.

If it worked often, it becomes automatic.

Not because you’re broken.

Because your system is loyal.

This is where neuroplasticity matters.

Neuroplasticity means your brain is constantly reshaping itself in response to what you practice and inhabit.

Every time you notice a reaction without shaming it, new neural connections begin to form.

Every time you slow your breath in a tense moment, you’re signalling safety to your brainstem.

Every time you stay present instead of dissociating, you’re strengthening integration between emotional and thinking centres.

Every time you choose a different response, you’re literally building new circuitry.

Change happens through experience, not force.

Through repetition, not willpower.

Often, the first doorway is awareness.

Not analysing.
Not fixing.

Simply sensing.

Where do I feel this?
What is my breath doing?
What is my body preparing for?
What does my attention want to do?

That noticing reconnects your prefrontal cortex with your emotional brain.

It brings choice back online.

Then, gently, you introduce something new.

A slower exhale.
A softer gaze.
A grounded posture.
A pause.
A boundary.
A moment of humour.
A moment of rest.

These aren’t small.

They are biological interventions.

They tell your nervous system:

“It’s safe enough now.”

Over time, safety rewires.

The old pathways weaken.
New ones strengthen.

Not through battle.

Through relationship.

With yourself.

This is why real change feels subtle.

It doesn’t arrive as a breakthrough.

It arrives as:

“I noticed I didn’t react the same way.”
“I recovered faster.”
“I stayed present.”
“I didn’t spiral.”
“I trusted myself.”

That’s your nervous system learning.

Your brain is not a problem to solve.

It is a living record of what you’ve survived and what you’re learning now.

You don’t need to erase your history.

You are teaching it new endings.

Neuroscience, when understood this way, isn’t cold or mechanical.

It reveals how sensitive, responsive, and resilient you are.

You are not late.
You are not behind.
You are adaptive.

And you are still becoming.

References and Further Reading

• Van der Kolk, B. A. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Viking.

• Yehuda, R., et al. (2015). Post-traumatic stress disorder. Nature Reviews Disease Primers, 1(1), 15057.

• Stone River Recovery Center. (2024). Understanding Neuroplasticity and Trauma: Healing Pathways. Link