As these changes are taking place, our brainwaves slow from agitated beta to calmer alpha,28 shifting us into daydreaming mode: relaxed, alert, and able to flit from idea to idea without as much internal resistance. Then parts of the prefrontal cortex begin shutting down.29 We experience the selflessness, timelessness, and effortlessness of transient hypofrontality. This quiets the “already know that, move along” voice of our inner critic and dampens the distractions of the past and future. All these changes knock out filters we normally apply to incoming data, giving us access to a fresh
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