Yesterday on a podcast, I heard Dr. Henry Cloud share a profound insight on the way our brain reacts during crisis—like the global pandemic that we’re all living through at the moment. Here’s my attempt at a summary and paraphrase.
Generally speaking, our brains make maps about how to do life.
For example, when we are hungry and want to eat a sandwich, our brains have a map that will show us how to get out of our chairs and walk to the fridge. But let’s say, someone rearranged the furniture in your living room over night, and the next time you were hungry, a couch was blocking your way. In this instance, your brain will actually register this as an ERROR according to neuroscientists.
When this happens, your whole system amps up. And for a moment—when your system is really amped up—you lose emotional, spiritual, psychological, and physical functioning and you are thrown off. However, once you recognize that it’s just a couch and that you can walk around it, your body begins to go back to normal.
Right now, we are living in an ERROR.
Because of this global pandemic, our entire lives are registering on our brains—with red lights twirling around and sirens blasting—ERROR ERROR ERROR.
As a result, our bodies have quickly amped up and our normal everyday functioning—emotionally, spiritually, psychologically, and physically—is off kilter. And when we are amped up, according to research, our IQ actually goes down about 30 points, which means that our decision making, planning, and ability to emotionally regulate is all negatively affected.
So if you’re feeling off kilter, that’s actually normal. No one is exempt from this. We’re all in this together.
During a crisis, according to Henry Cloud, we need to find a way to hit the reset button.
Here are the five areas where we need to hit the reset button:
- Connectedness: We need to get incredibly intentional about connecting with God and with others to reset our system, since all the previous ways we had to connect with others—in particular—have been disrupted.
- Structure and Routines: We need to create new schedules and routines to reset our system, since the previous ones have been disrupted. The more you can organize your day and structure it, the more your brain is going to be able to calm down.
- Control: We need to outline the things that we can actually control in order to reset our system, since many of us have lost control of what we can and can’t do on a daily basis.
- Mental Space: We need to “take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Cor 10:5, CSB) to reset our system, since the stress hormones in our brains are creating thoughts that aren’t actually our thoughts. The stress hormones in our brains are creating catastrophic reactions that panic attacks are made out of.
- Spiritual practices: We need to practice the spiritual disciplines to reset our system, since only Jesus can give us rest.
I love what Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take up my yoke and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”