“What fires together, wires together.” This is a paraphrase coined by a psychologist Donald Hebb, it has become the catch phrase to describe how neural networks are formed in our brain. Every time you experience something you create new neurons.  So practicing the piano, increases the neural networks.  It is why we connect people and places together.  If something traumatic happens, our minds stick with it and play it over and over.

Neurons are like a social network in our head.  The more positive things that happen the more positive networks that are created.  The same works with the negative. So the question is what type of neurons would you consciously create?

Neuroplasticity, which means that our brains change physically when learning new things and having experiences.  Neural networks are formed. Our brains run patterns, and the more we run a pattern, the more neurons we develop. This is how our habits are formed.

According to Dan Siegel, a clinical professor of psychiatry and co-director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center, there is magic in using the mind to awaken our lives.  We can learn to focus our attention on the internal world of the mind in a way that will change the wiring and architecture of the brain.

Most of us grew up in an era in which there was no language for the idea of controlling our emotions or minds. I am not talking about denying or ignoring feelings.  I am talking about dealing with the emotion, allowing it to dissipate, and then choosing how you would rather feel.

All of this puts more control in your hands than we were previously aware of. Which once you wrap your head around (pun intended J ) this concept it becomes pretty liberating! You have the choice and power to begin choosing your emotions, reactions and behaviors.  Yes it really does work!