Have you ever been in a reflective mood where you stop to think about unhealthy patterns of
behavior in your life and ask yourself why? Why do I think these negative cyclical thoughts and
generally feel anxious and out of sorts? Why do I struggle with managing my emotions? Why
do I react so intensely to certain relationship dynamics? Why does it feel as if I always end up
right where I started and cannot seem to make the healthy life changes that I dream about?
Generally speaking, there is always a why behind a what. We, as individuals, are wired based on multiple layers of experiences we have from the moment we are born. And those early childhood experiences are especially significant. Which means, they really matter in how our mindset is shaped and formed. If we experience trauma, this also serves to compound our issues, as trauma affects our wiring and can negatively impact our mental health and well-being in a variety of ways. Here is the part that I want you to take in and that I hope will serve as encouragement. Our brain has the ability to rewire itself. The scientific term for this is neuroplasticity. In a nutshell, neuroplasticity means that our brain is flexible enough to take in new information, organize it, learn from it, and adapt. Why is this particularly important? Because neuroplasticity is what makes it possible for change to occur.

When you make the decision to see a mental health professional of your choice, and you sit with
your counselor week after week, you are going through a therapeutic process that is grounded in
the concept of neuroplasticity. Your therapist, trained not only to hear your story with sincere
concern and respect, but to understand the why behind the what of your story, determines the
treatment approach that best fits your needs according to your specified goals. As your therapist
works with you using different modalities, you begin to gain new information and insight that
your brain organizes, learns from, and adapts to. It is in this process of adaptation where the
rewiring of your brain occurs.
Neuroplasticity is what makes it possible for you to reconfigure your thought patterns, manage
differently your emotional responses, and make behavioral changes. It is about changing the old unhealthy wiring for the new. This may be the first time you think of the counseling process as
one where your brain is rewired, but it is precisely because of the rewiring that changing the
unhealthy behaviors to healthy ones is possible.
So…are you ready to discover the why behind the what?
Mirla Zinicola, M.S.
Registered Mental Health Counselor
IMH 22558
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