A little brain trivia

I haven't written much about the conference I attended last week, but I found something in my notes that I wanted to share with you. The keynote speaker for the conference was Dr. Steve Peters, a neuroscientist who specializes in both humans and horses. He is a very good speaker and being able to discuss both human and horse brains covers some of my favorite topics. 

The quote I wrote down was this: [Felt safety and connection] create gluco-corticoid receptors [in the brain] which neutralize gluco-corticoids [also known as cortisol]. 

So maybe it's not a word for word quote based on the number of brackets I needed to use, but the meaning is the same. While Dr. Peters didn't use the words 'felt safety and connection,' he did use terminology to mean the same thing. A person... or horse... needs to experience safety as well as feeling close to others. That would be other people for people and other horses for horses. 

What happens is there are receptors in out brains for a lot of different hormones, each having a unique shape that matches the unique shape of the hormone they are keyed to. In the case of cortisol, the stress hormone, the receptor made for it neutralizes the cortisol. You can think of the cortisol being disarmed. That sounds like a pretty good thing, hub? And it is. The even better news is that our brains can grow more of these receptors making it possible to neutralize even more cortisol. And the way our brains grow these receptors is by feeling safe and having close connections to people who care about us. 

Then it becomes a positive cascade. The more safe we feel and the more close relationships we have with others causes more receptors to be grown and more cortisol to be neutralized. This leads to less stress and more safety allowing us to have even better connections with people and so on and so on. 

This is the neuroscience behind connected parenting. When we create connection and felt safety for our scared and hurting child, we are changing their brain, empowering it to better fight the cortisol that perpetually floods their system. There is a real basis in science as to why this works and not just because it sounds good. 

A couple of points. Have I simplified things a bit? Yes, undoubtedly. The workings of our brains and nervous systems are extremely complex. Second, this is also true for our horses. They need to feel safe and they need the physical companionship of other horses, and not just from the other side of the fence. Modern stabling systems do not always take a horse's actual neurology into consideration. 

Finally, I know a lot of people are having difficulty finding felt safety right now. Lean into your relationships, they are more important than ever, and practice focusing your thoughts on the present moment. (This is assuming that at the present moment you are not endangered.) Remind yourself for this present moment you are safe. Your brain and nervous system needs the break. You need to grow your gluco-corticoid receptors.