The Upward Spiral: Using Neuroscience to Reverse the Course of Depression, One Small Change at a Time

by Alex Korb

There might be things you hate about how your brain acts, but that’s just a result of evolution—and there’s usually a good reason for it.

The circuits that helpfully allow us to plan, solve problems, and make decisions are the same circuits that lead to worrying. And the circuits that keep us out of danger are the same circuits that cause anxiety.

if you tend to worry, reduce your options and make quick decisions whenever possible.

In 1571, at the age of thirty-eight, Michel de Montaigne retired to his library tower and spent the next ten years writing essays. Reflecting upon his life, he noted, “My life has been full of terrible misfortunes, most of which never happened.”

Feeling in control reduces anxiety, worrying, and even pain.7

Taking a slow, deep breath—inhaling and then exhaling slowly—actually calms down the sympathetic nervous system and reduces stress

Becoming aware of your emotional state activates the prefrontal cortex and allows it to suppress the amygdala.

Focusing on the present helps reduce anxiety and worry, because it decreases emotional, self-focused processing in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. Attention to the present also increases dorsolateral and ventrolateral prefrontal activity, allowing these regions to calm the amygdala.

All of this means that to be happy in our daily lives, we need a high ratio of positive to negative. And it turns out, after considerable study, that ratio is three to one.

Awareness does not require emotion, because emotion and awareness are mediated by different brain regions.

Lower amygdala reactivity with a hug. A hug, especially a long one, releases a neurotransmitter and hormone called oxytocin, which reduces the reactivity of the amygdala

once habits are in the dorsal striatum, they no longer care about pleasure.

Stress causes dopamine release in the dorsal striatum,2 which automatically activates your coping habits.

To get rid of a destructive coping habit, you can’t just stop doing it, because then you’re left with the stress. Instead, you have to replace it with another habit.

When stressed, you usually act out your most deeply engrained routines or become a victim to your impulses.

We are often under the impression that we are happy when good things happen to us. But in actuality, we are happiest when we decide to pursue a particular goal and then achieve it.

We don’t just choose the things we like; we also like the things we choose.

The important thing here is not actual control, but perceived control. Making decisions may not increase your actual control over a situation, but it will likely increase your perceived control. And when you increase your perceived control, you increase your confidence, mood, and future decision-making capabilities.

sometimes when you feel crappy and think your life is falling apart, it’s just your circadian rhythms slightly altering your mood.

you will probably have many slipups, but if you give up after a slipup, you’ve only trained your striatum to give up.