From an outdated “triune brain” to a “theory of constructed emotions”

It’s time to upgrade the science.

The outdated triune brain theory separated your thoughts (neocortex) from your emotions (limbic system) and instincts (reptilian brain). Sounds innocent, right?

3 deriving fallacies that disempower you (and keep you stressed out):

1. “I experience reality”

Despite the common sense knowledge that reality is distinct from its appearance… Our brain’s ongoing simulations and predictions – are perceived as undisputed “reality.”

“Scientific evidence shows that what we see, hear, touch, taste, and smell are largely simulations of the world, not reactions to it,” Lisa Feldman Barrett, The Theory Of Constructed Emotion.

2. “Animalistic” parts of my brain respond to this “reality.”

But our emotions are not reactions of specific regions of the brain. Emotions are “constructed throughout the entire brain by multiple brain networks.” 

“Each time you feel happy, for example, your brain could be creating that experience using different combinations of neurons,” (“How Emotions Are Made”).

Practical ramification: you are responsible for your emotions (the concepts that construct them), not some automated “animalistic” brain region.

3. Thoughts are rational/separate from the primeval black box of emotions.

But your thoughts are constructed by the same goal-oriented stream of concepts that make your emotions…

A long story short,

If you want to be happy (engage with a more realistic world), you will need to unlearn these and other deriving fallacies. 🎓 So that you can finally start fine-tuning your simulation the way you want.