Most of us have heard and internalized stories about how it is harder to change as we get older. Some variation of “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. For many years, Which turns out not to be true. At all.
Yes children’s developing brains allow them to learn and adapt more quickly. Which totally makes sense. But our brains don’t stop changing when we become adults.
Here is why: Neuroplasticity. A long word that has revolutionized the way we understand our adult brains. The the reason you actually can achieve your goals. Whether that goal is learning a new language, or changing a habit, or learning to react differently under stress.
So what is Neuroplasticity? It is the ability of our brains to grow, change and reorganize. Our brains contain billions of neural networks which are responsible for carrying information throughout the human body. Once a path is established, information flows more easily and quickly.
You may be starting to ask – what does this have to do with changing my habits or learning new skills or developing new ways of responding to the world?
Think about your neural networks like cross-country ski tracks. Once the tracks are created, the skis glide through faster and with less effort. If you want to go a different way it takes more effort, because you have to create a new path.
the easSo far so good. receive information from the world or our bodies and trIn the past 30 years, neuroscientists have discovered that adult brains continue to adapt.