This is Cynthia Sue Larson with RealityShifters dot com.
Today I'm talking with you about how you can change your story
and change your life. And actually this is
mostly based on ideas you can find in this book called,
"Remapping Your Mind," and it's subtitled,
The Neuroscience of Self-Transformation through Story." Don't let the subtitle scare you
away,
because actually, if you like neuroscience, you might be disappointed, but
this book does care about
sharing the science with you--but it doesn't do in such a way that you ever
feel overwhelmed by it. So,
for example, when it talks about the ideas about
how does it work when you change your story and it changes your life?
The basic fundamental premise here goes back to
actually a very ancient of viewing story in our lives from indigenous
First Nations people around the world. So if you are thinking in terms if
the idea that there are no truths, only stories--
that might seem extreme, or you might agree with it. But either way,
it gets you thinking. That's a quote that is included in this book. It's a quote by
Thomas King.
Two authors wrote this book;
one of them is a medical doctor, and the other is a psychotherapist.
What they've noticed when working with their clients is that frequently
if someone has a physical problem and they go to their doctor with it,
it's entirely likely
and quite possible that changing the way that they view themselves in relationship
to the world,
to others, to their life experiences--has a lot to do
with if and how well they
bounce back from physical injury, and how they recover from things that some
doctors don't have any idea how to treat,
such as chronic fatigue and so forth. So in addition to a number of fascinating
case studies--
let's get back to that neuroscience I promised you--there is something
that's called the Default Mode Network (DMN) in the brain.
It basically enables people to
keep their mental functions going.
It's something that is built into all of us. You don't need to try to make it work; it's
already working.
And it's doing things whether you wanted to or not. So you might consider it
the subconscious, and in a way that's true. The main
activity that's happening in this Default Mode Network
is that it's going through processes
to determine how you fit in
to your story in life, to other people, the social interactions that you have
or don''t have,
and what the meaning of someone's action or inaction might be,
and how all of this weaves together in the social fabric
of the history and future of your life. And so
the techniques that are utilized
by the two authors of this book, Lewis Mehl-Madrona
and Barbara Mainguy are that they work with people
first by listening.
And this is something I'm a big believer in. I mention it my book, "Reality Shifts:
When Consciousness Changes the Physical World," as being about the most important thing
you can do.
And the reason why is that when you listen to yourself,
you can find your own story and stories. When you listen to
others, you can hear their story and their stories.
Because each of us is a multitude. We have this sort of a master level story
with lots of little subplots running, just like your favorite movie or your favorite
book.
So you might think, "What's the problem with that?
Why should I change anything? If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"
The truth is, lots of times
we inadvertently create
a kind of a narrative that might involve ourselves being a victim, for example.
Another thing I've talked about extensively in these videos
and in my books. You don't want to be involved in a drama triangle where
you consider yourself to be a victim. And you don't even notice you are doing it unless you
tell the story and you start noticing, "OK, here's the evil empire,
and the bad guy,
and so forth, and the princess that needs rescuing, or
what have you. When you look at your own life story, and you listen to the stories
of others, you can start finding ways
to transform these narratives into something that can be a lot more
beneficial to everyone. So
I really recommend this book, "Remapping Your Mind." It's a great how-to book. It's
not just for therapists. It's certainly not only for neuroscientists.
It has just enough science to give your analytical rational mind
an idea that this really works. And it combines it with enough case studies that
you can see how. It's definitely something I do with my life coaching
clients as well, so I can
just very firmly and clearly assure you that this absolutely works.
It might seem strange, but it's powerful because
we really are stories. That's the essence of
everything, and there's actually a quantum logic to it, too.
The future of where we're going
with our science today, so as science moves forward,
it seems to me that we're finding a lot of basic indigenous wisdom
is increasingly evident. Until next time, keep asking
how good your life story can get. This is Cynthia Sue Larson
with RealityShifters dot com.