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GROW A NEW BODY NEUROPLASTICITY

Neuroplasticity, the mechanism by which our experiences
affect the brain’s functioning and structure, is a relatively
...continued from page 27... new discovery for science. However, this cutting-edge dis-
covery also matches what sages have known for millennia
about how the world molds and shapes the brain.

Not so long ago we believed that after the brain developed
during childhood, it remained unchanged for the rest of
our lives. Today we know that in response to an injury, or
as a result of an epiphany or personal realization, individu-
So even if you have a spiritual awakening during a week- al neurons can change and even large-scale transformation
end meditation retreat, unless you make a conscious of the brain, known as cortical remapping, can occur.
effort to reinforce that insight once you return to your
everyday existence, the epiphany will fade away. Neural networks act like filters that screen out certain
experiences, allowing us to perceive only a limited slice of
Our neural networks make us creatures of habit. We stop reality. So like the old Aztec scouts, we will fail to notice
having innovative thoughts and original ideas very early the conquistadors’ ships, which later seem so obvious to
on. In fact, most of our neural networks are set by an us. We may fail to read the emotional warning signs from
early age. The childhood fears, the anger, the suffering, the person we are dating, before we become entangled in
and the feelings of abandonment encoded in our neural a toxic relationship.
networks cause us to repeat the underlying themes of
these memories, even if we don’t recall the events them- Your neural networks create self-fulfilling prophecies. If
selves. you believe the world is full of thieves and liars, then that
is what you will encounter. Talk therapy isn’t very effec-
As I reflect back on my own life, I notice that I have tive in dismantling the neural networks formed during
always suffered around the same themes—lost love, hurt, childhood trauma. Too often, instead of helping us write a
and abandonment. And fear. When I moved to New York better story, it only reinforces the old script.
City for a summer, decades ago, I arrived at my new
apartment on a hot and muggy day. A bunch of beefy guys Studies show that the brain can remap itself very quickly,
in sweaty T-shirts were sitting on the front steps. I was that in effect you can teach an old dog new tricks. In a
convinced I’d moved into a neighborhood of muggers and 2005 study, medical students’ brains were imaged using
killers. Later, I discovered these men were my neighbors, a brain-scan device before and after their exams. In a
came to know them, and found they couldn’t have been few months, the gray matter in the young doctors’ brains
nicer. I had unknowingly superimposed fear-filled child- increased significantly, indicating that the learning was
hood memories on these innocent neighbors. clearly forming new neural networks in their brains and
increasing their brain volume.
Psychological themes run in families, passed down from
par- ent to child. In the Amazon, they call this a gen- Since 2000, scientists have discovered that neurogenesis—
erational curse. It can trigger heart disease or cancer. the birth of new brain cells—happens regularly, particularly
Autoimmune diseases, which involve the immune system in the hippocampus, the brain structure associated with
attacking its own cells, often run in families with poor learning and memory. The shamans discovered the plants
emotional boundaries—family members have trouble ac- that triggered the production of neural stem cells without
knowledging what is yours and what is mine. being able to explain the science.

Whatever willpower we exert to change our habits, we Tasting Oneness from the fractured world of the limbic
often fall back into the old themes because of our ever- brain can help you change lanes in the information super-
efficient neural networks. The good news is that we can highway in your head so that you see the world with new
rewire our neural net- works for joy and more nourishing eyes. It becomes easier to shed old stories and write new,
outcomes. But first we have to detoxify the brain. Re- more interesting, and more beneficial ones that will guide
member, the poisons in our food and water are stored in you to live in abundance and fearlessly. Today we know the
fat cells, and the brain is largely made of fat. We cannot science—and we start by ridding our brain of toxins that
lay neural networks for bliss, creativity, or curiosity if our prevent us from experiencing Oneness.
brain cells are loaded with toxins.

This excerpt has been reprinted with permission from Grow a New Body: How Spirit and Power Plant Nutrients Can Transform Your Health by Al-
berto Villoldo, published by Hay House (March 12, 2019). It can be found online at Hay House, Amazon, and other major booksellers worldwide.
For more information and to order a copy of book, visit: growanewbody.com

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