How your body changes your brain

Author: Sarah Berry

We can have the sense that an experience changes us, and in his New York Times best-selling book, Dr. Norman Doidge explored how our experiences actually change our brain's physical structure-a concept known as neuroplasticity.

The Body-Brain Feedback Loop

While we often think of the brain controlling the body, the communication goes both ways. How we move, how we hold our posture, and the physical sensations we experience constantly reshape the neural pathways in our brain.

Therapies like the Feldenkrais Method utilise this feedback loop. By introducing new, non-habitual movements, we feed the brain new sensory information. This stimulates the brain to create new neural connections, which can overcome chronic pain, improve coordination, and even aid in recovery from neurological injuries like strokes. Moving better literally builds a better brain.