houghts and action, for a majority of us, are a consequence of what we have experienced. We might believe that we are acting out of our own free will but the truth is that in our current state we hardly make decisions at all. Does that mean we are destined to be the product of our past?

Not quite. Brain surgeon and neuroscientist, Rahul Jandial, the author of Life Lessons from a Brain Surgeon, reveals that our brains are simply a flow of electric currents. As he puts it, our brains should be thought of as schools of fish that move and flow, constantly changing and dynamic. This means that no terrain of our brain is fixed. It is highly malleable and constantly changing. The good news is that we can change it. The bad news: it isn’t easy.

The thoughts that we have been conditioned to ‘think’ are automatic. A new thought has to be programmed in and practiced in order to make it more automatic. It’s like building a muscle: difficult at the start and needing regular exercise to keep it strong.

There is also the brain-body connection. How you feel in your body affects your thoughts. The brain may be thought of as a diagnostic machine. When it receives signals from the body, it tries to make sense of it by coming up with possible reasons and solutions. It may look at your immediate environment and speculate about the causes of this feeling. The trouble is that it is often wrong.

The emotional charge that your body is feeling affects your thoughts. In this way, it affects whether your perspective about the same situation is positive or negative. Think about how many times you’ve seen old people who suffer from pain in their body being cranky about seemingly trivial events. In that moment, their brains believe their reaction to be right and fitting for the moment at hand. However, later when they are feeling better in their bodies, they might reconsider it and laugh at themselves.

Practices such as meditation, rhythmic exercise and mindfulness help us connect with our bodies and regulate them. It is where the answer to our sufferings lies. It is also the only way we can reclaim and take charge of our lives. 

Most of us have been taught to believe that our brain is always right in what it’s telling us. We put our trust in our thoughts. In this way, we have lost touch with the root: our bodies. Even when we want to feel better, we look desperately for thoughts and ideas to relieve us. Most of the time, this only provides temporary relief with a distraction.

In the The New York Times bestseller The Body Keeps the Score, author Bessel van der Kolk talks a great deal about this. He recommends that we reconnect with our bodies in more meaningful ways, understanding and acknowledging the pain that it holds from our past.

In a world of ever-increasing distractions, we must allocate some time to connect with our bodies and heed their messages. Practices such as meditation, rhythmic exercise and mindfulness help us connect with our bodies and regulate them. This is where the answer to our suffering lies. It is also the only way we can reclaim and take charge of our lives.

The author writes on culture and identity in Pakistan. He can be reached at uneeb.nas@gmail.com