10th Anniversary of a Better Brain

“Every man can, if he so desires, become the sculptor of his own brain” ~ Santiago Ramon Y Cajal

I couldn’t believe that the 10th anniversary slipped by me unnoticed until yesterday!  Where has the time gone?  I thought for sure I would be marking the calendar to pause and observe the event!

Well, actually, truth to be told, I don’t know the exact date, but it’s somewhere within the first ten days of March.  You would think that such a date of significance would be marked and circled for me to remember for eternity, but it’s not.  I don’t know why I didn’t note the date; perhaps it is because once that day came, I didn’t want to look back, and I just wanted to move forward.  I was done thinking about the past — it was time to look ahead to the future, from that day and forever more.

So, sometime in early March of 2002, I began one of the most significant journeys of my life.  Prior to “the day” I was wallowing in self pity and some residual depression, and weighing in at about 225 pounds.  I wouldn’t say I was a “wreck,” but I wasn’t doing that well either.  It all started nine years earlier, when I was in an actual wreck — a car wreck with my mom, and as a result of the accident she was killed.  To say watching your mom die right in front of your eyes is a traumatic experience that changes you is an understatement.  The effects were deep and long lasting.

Without belaboring the point, I slipped into a depression, gained a lot of weight, and struggled in pretty much everything.  I look back and wonder how I made it through college in that state (and how much better I could have done had I made it through “normally”).  I had a hard time keeping a job and staying motivated, and I was lazy.

“The day” came out of nowhere.  Actually, I can pin it down to “the moment.”  I was sitting on the couch watching television in the early evening hours, after supper.  Suddenly, I looked down at my big fat belly, and something snapped within me.  For the first time, I was disgusted and frustrated with what I saw.  Something in my mind was screaming, “This is enough!  Get off your lazy butt and do something!  I’m sick of being fat and lazy!  It’s time for a change!”

The voice continued, “Do something now before you change your mind!  Get up!  Now!  Quick!”  So I did.  (More on this later)  I went into the kitchen, grabbed the phone book, found a gym nearby, and called and inquired about a membership.  I hopped in my car, drove to the gym, and signed up.  I left the gym, went to the store, got some exercise clothes and shoes, and came back to the gym for my first workout in years.  I went at it five days a week, taking off on the weekends.  I changed my eating habits, and within a year, I had lost seventy-five pounds.  I felt great!

Now I thought that the benefits of being healthier and losing weight were going to be mostly physical.  What I didn’t realize (until years later) was the significant impact getting in shape had on my brain and mind.  Not only did I build a better body, but I also rebuilt a better mind!

Through my journey that started ten years ago, I learned some valuable lessons and shaped my brain as a result.  The eventual outcome was that I was more motivated, more positive, and just had a better outlook on life and its possibilities.

Before I end my post today, I want to quickly go back to the “voice” in my head that was screaming at me to do something before I “changed my mind.”  I am forever indebted to my “conscious” mind, because it was “the voice” that was screaming at me.  It must have caught my “unconscious” mind sleeping, or it must have gagged it or knocked it out or something, but it knew it could get through to me at that single moment, and as long as I was motivated to change, I could overcome my “unconscious” mind’s desire to remain fat and lazy and unmotivated.  Maybe your “conscious” mind has been trying to shout over your “unconscious” mind to tell you it’s time for a change, and I encourage you to listen to it, because it can change your life!

I want to share with you the lessons I learned as I built a better mind for myself, and I plan on doing so through a series of posts to come.  I hope you enjoy hearing about my journey to a better brain, and how changes in how I thought led to many revelations that forever changed my life.  As I look back on what I had learned, and now consider what science has revealed about the brain and the workings of the mind, it all makes sense.  I look forward to sharing my stories with you.  Until then, have a great day!

-Victor