that it was hard-wired, and fixed by the time we became adults

but recent advances in only the last decade now tell us that this is simply not true

the brain can, and does change throughout our lives: it is adaptable, like plastic

hence neuroscientists call this 'neuroplasticity'

how does neuroplasticity work?

if you think of your brain as a dynamic, connected power grid

there are billions of pathways, or roads, lighting up every time you think, feel or do something

some of these roads are well travelled: these are our habits, our established ways of thinking, feeling and doing

every time we think in a certain way, practice a particular task or feel a specific emotion, we strengthen this road

it becomes easier for our brains to travel this pathway

say we think about something differently, learn a new task, or choose a different emotion

we start carving out a new road - if we keep travelling that road

our brains begin to use this pathway more, and this new way of thinking, feeling, or doing becomes second nature

the old pathway gets used less and less and weakens

this process of rewiring your brain by forming new connections and weakening old ones is neuroplasticity in action

the good news is that we all have the ability to learn and change, by rewiring our brains

if you have ever changed a bad habit, or thought about something differently

you have carved a new pathway in your brain and experienced neuroplasticity firsthand

with repeated and directed attention towards your desired change

you can rewire your brain