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I am sure that almost every person has stated, “What is the matter with me?” or “I can’t believe I just did that!” There are so many possible reasons to explain those exasperating moments. I love teaching my counseling clients and students about the possible explanation of brain wave dysregulation.
Most of us, at birth, started out with brains that worked effectively and efficiently. However, if we have the privilege of living life, situations occur to dysregulate our brains and brainwaves. I know each of you can think of many situations that may have caused your brain’s delicate and very complex symphony of electro-chemical neurotransmitters to jolt out of healthy regulatory states. Here are a few questions for you to answer. Are you too stressed? Do you practice good sleep hygiene with at least 7 hours of sleep per night? Are you exercising daily? How many cups of coffee do you drink every day? This list goes on and on. By now you get the picture of ways brain dysregulation transpires.
Of course there are many other sources of dysregulation. Think about your genetic predispositions. Ask about your own prenatal and birthing situations. Recall any high fevers over 104 degrees. Assess your daily diet. Have you ever had a brain concussion? Truly, one out of three of us have had a concussion and may not even know it!
Gauge your drug and alcohol usage. Actually total up the amount of hours you are sitting and the amount of hours you spend on your iPhone, iPad, iWatch, laptop and more. I am really in trouble in this category!
Let’s keep going. Does chronic pain exhaust you regularly? Count the number of surgical procedures you have had using anesthesia. There are many more sources, but these few give you an excellent picture of potential sources of brain dysregulation.
When these risks take place frequently, the result may be three, very unique brain state categories: under-aroused state, over-aroused state and unstable state. Just looking at the descriptions offers some clues and behaviors of each state. You know people or even yourself, perhaps, that may be depressed or have low energy. These folks have brainwaves that are under-activated and under-aroused. You also know friends, colleagues or others who fall into the over-aroused state. Their dysregulated brains may exhibit behaviors such as anxiety, fast-paced lifestyles and over-activated brainwaves. Unfortunately, this is where I reside most of the time.
The final brain-state category is not as easy to figure out. The unstable brain has difficulty making the transitions from one brain wave state to another. For example, when it is time to sleep, this type of brain cannot shut off beta and move seamlessly into alpha and then theta to the sleep-like state of delta. Because of this instability, you may know someone who could be bi-polar or have severe migraines. None of these examples fit perfectly into the under-aroused, over-aroused and unstable categories. You have a better understanding now, however, what the sources of possible dysregulation may be and the direct correlation to certain behaviors.
So if you think your brain may need some brain spackle to fill in the gaps in your life, begin to assess and analyze any of the sources mentioned above. Knowing some of the causes of your dysregulation will be the first step in knowing how to learn self-regulation skills. That will be my topic for next entry: strategies for emotional and physiological self-regulation.
I truly hope you enjoy the upcoming holidays. Of course, our holidays may give us even more brainwave dysregulation, and then we will need more brain spackle!
For more information on brain dysregulation and counseling make sure to check out the Bradley University Counseling Program.
