I had dinner with a good friend that told me if there was a germ out there, he would catch it. If someone in his family got sick, he was bound to get whatever they had, and usually worse! Experience had shown him that this was the case, reinforcing his belief.
There is an expression I learned in chiropractic college, “you don’t catch a cold, you accept it.” It comes from a holistic health perspective suggesting that while we are constantly exposed to viruses, it is our immune system’s condition that determines whether or not we actually become sick. I’m definitely not saying that a positive mental attitude can protect us from all illness, but it is interesting to note that an entire family, or a workplace, can all be equally exposed to a microbe and yet not everyone will succumb. What is the difference?
I have been reading recently about the Red Car theory in Psychology. It observes that if you plan to purchase (or recently purchased) a red car, you will start noticing more of them on the road, wherever you go! It can seem like you are constantly spotting red cars! There is a reason for this, and it is not that you are such a “#influencer” that there are suddenly more people driving red cars! (btw “red car” is our bonus word this month- if you say “red car” before your first visit in the month, you’ll save $5!) .
Our brains are bombarded by thousands of pieces of data all the time, so there is a part of the brain called the Reticular Activating System (RAS) which determines which pieces of data are important to you and what you will “notice”. If you are considering buying a red car, you unconsciously train your brain to look for red cars, and the frequency you see them may even appear like a “sign” that you should purchase one! This is called the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon, also known as a Frequency illusion. This causes pregnant women to see other pregnant women and strollers everywhere. It also means that when you are already anxious, everything can appear dangerous. It is not that the world changes, it is that the filter with which you see the world changes.
This is similar to the algorithms used by social media. If your Facebook account finds out that you are thinking about buying a vacuum, you will be inundated with ads for vacuums. And if you watch just one funny cat video, you will think the entire world is full of cats doing amazing things as your newsfeed is flooded with content that shows cats dancing, falling and getting into all varieties of mischief.
The great news is that with neuroplasticity, we can rewire our brain. Repeated focus will strengthen neural pathways and rewrite your brain’s natural “algorithms”. This is why visualization or gratitude focus works. It is not from some “mystical power”, it is that you are training your brain to work differently and notice different things- detecting opportunities instead of threats. The world will be the same, but by altering the filter, you will navigate it differently!
How does this apply to our health and wellness? Our brain is designed to prove our beliefs correct. If you believe life is against you, you will see ample evidence. If you believe growth is possible, your brain will show you ways it can happen.
Whatever you focus on, your brain shows you more of it.
So how do we use this in health? Try daily journaling with a gratitude focus- choosing how you will respond to the challenges facing you and setting your brain to focus on the positive things happening in your life. See our previous article on Journaling for ideas. Train yourself to look for and experience glimmers in your day (click on the link to read more on the subject). There is much we can do to change our filter.
My good friend that passed away from a brain tumor last year told me at the beginning of his cancer journey that he tended to be an “Eeyore”, and worried that his demeanor would impact his ability to fight the disease. It is true, he was very good at seeing when the “cup is half empty”, and this allowed him to hone an excellent sarcastic wit. However, when he chose to focus on gratitude, he changed in the course of that year and became one of the most positive people I’ve known.
We don’t need to receive a scary diagnosis to rewire our brains. We can choose to train our brains to focus on the positive, changing the lens through which we view the world. With our new lens we will see the good, along with all the red cars in the world!