My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey

by Jill Bolte Taylor

More than anything, I am grateful to be alive and celebrative of the time I have here.

This book is about the beauty and resiliency of our human brain because of its innate ability to constantly adapt to change and recover function.

As much as we would like to think that human life has attained biological perfection, despite our sophisticated design, we do not represent a finished and/or perfect genetic code. The human brain exists in an ongoing state of change.

It is interesting to note that although our limbic system functions throughout our lifetime, it does not mature. As a result, when our emotional “buttons” are pushed, we retain the ability to react to incoming stimulation as though we were a two year old, even when we are adults.

Although many of us may think of ourselves as thinking creatures that feel, biologically we are feeling creatures that think.

At the opposite extreme, if we are oversensitive to stimulation, we may avoid interacting with our environment and miss out on life’s simple pleasures.

Part of getting out of my own way meant that I needed to welcome support, love, and help from others.

I may not be in total control of what happens to my life, but I certainly am in charge of how I choose to perceive my experience.

My stroke of insight is that at the core of my right hemisphere consciousness is a character that is directly connected to my feeling of deep inner peace. It is completely committed to the expression of peace, love, joy, and compassion in the world.

Many of us spend an inordinate amount of time and energy degrading, insulting, and criticizing ourselves (and others) for having made a “wrong” or “bad” decision. When you berate yourself, have you ever questioned: who inside of you is doing the yelling, and at whom are you yelling?

When my brain runs loops that feel harshly judgmental, counter-productive, or out of control, I wait 90 seconds for the emotional/physiological response to dissipate and then I speak to my brain as though it is a group of children. I say with sincerity, “I appreciate your ability to think thoughts and feel emotions, but I am really not interested in thinking these thoughts or feeling these emotions anymore. Please stop bringing this stuff up.”

To counter their activities, I keep a handy list of three things available for me to turn my consciousness toward when I am in a state of need: 1) I remember something I find fascinating that I would like to ponder more deeply, 2) I think about something that brings me terrific joy, or 3) I think about something I would like to do. When I am desperate to change my mind, I use such tools.

To experience peace does not mean that your life is always blissful. It means that you are capable of tapping into a blissful state of mind amidst the normal chaos of a hectic life.

By breathing deeply and repeating the phrase In this moment I reclaim my JOY or In this moment I am perfect, whole and beautiful, or I am an innocent and peaceful child of the universe, I shift back into the consciousness of my right mind.

To experience pain may not be a choice, but to suffer is a cognitive decision.

“I must be willing to give up what I am in order to become what I will be.”