Curiosity a vital pillar of human growth
The second trait that helps to grown great humans is being curious. Our brain is wired like a jigsaw puzzle. It does not get all the information it needs in a split second to make a decision, so essentially fills in the gaps.
Flavoured by reptilian brain function of negative bias we tend to assume the worst and are programmed to activate our amygdala, or as I call it the grumpy unit. Now, you may not know it but you do have a grumpy unit. It is an almondshaped and sized structure that sits deep in the temporal lobes of the brain.
It is considered part of the limbic system – no, not some galaxy far, far away in a Star Wars movie but our seat of emotion and aggression. I remember describing the amygdala at a conference in Melbourne some 20 years ago and said it was a Latin word meaning almond or tonsil.
A man yelled out from the audience saying he was Greek and amygdale was a Greek word, not Latin. I apologised and said I thought it was Latin, to which he yelled, ‘‘The bloody Romans! They steal everything.’’ Talk
about historical grudges and the amygdala in action.
Negative bias may have had some evolutionary advantage by the stress response protecting us from harm. However, now we are faced with danger at every corner, news item or social media post, our alarm system goes crazy with false assumptions and presumptions.
When someone cuts you off in the traffic or your partner doesn’t return your message immediately, your programmed belief-based brain may make up a story about why this is happening.
Negative bias means the jigsaw is filled in with potentially unhealthy thoughts that may not be true. My research tells me that about 90 per cent of the thoughts that make us experience emotions such as anger, stress, disappointment and anxiety are not factual.
Our brain has filled in the gaps with worst-case scenarios, triggering a cascade of hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol that flood our body, putting our blood pressure up, creating muscle tension and stomach aches, making us gain weight and wrinkling our skin. It’s the downside of an overactive fight, freeze or flight system.
So, a way to trick the amygdala and keep it dormant and relaxed is to develop the curious part of the brain. This is thought to be the dentate gyrus located in the hippocampus. I am a great believer in neuroplasticity, the ability to tread new paths in the 10 trillion networks in our brain.
So, find it interesting when someone cuts you off in the traffic, wonder why they did. Did they not see you, are they in a hurry, is their child in hospital, are they impaired by sleep apnoea or methamphetamine? If a friend doesn’t comment on your social media post or your child doesn’t want to do their chores be curious about why. Don’t jump to conclusions.
Human beings behave in ways and for reasons many of us haven’t thought of. It seems we lose the ability to be curious as we age. Maybe the dentate gyrus is overwhelmed by the more activated amygdala.
Curiosity may have killed the cat but don’t let it kill your sense of wonder, investigation and asking why. It may just prevent catastrophe and take you down paths you may not have dreamed of. Be curious, my friends, it is a pillar of human growth and potential.
● kyndwellness.com
● drtomonamission.com ● healthythinking.biz
Dr Tom Mulholland is a GP with 30 years’ experience in New Zealand. He’s currently on a mission, tackling health issues around New Zealand.