Mental Health
Here’s How I Train My Brain Daily for Mental Clarity and Intellectual Productivity.
I introduce a conceptual and practical system I developed decades ago and use it for my mental growth daily as an example.
Having a strong interest in the brain and mind connection since my childhood, I developed a system with unique tools leveraging scientific breakthroughs during my studies, conducting experimentations, and emulating experiences of successful people in my circles.
This story gives a high-level picture of this bespoke system, hoping it might inform and inspire some readers with some takeaway points. Creating a customized mind gym has been one of the best personal and professional development investments for me.
Such an intricate system might not be possible for everyone or might look like a luxury from the outset. However, the process and approach might help you find more accessible and viable solutions that might suit your needs and goals.
Visualizing the brain like a muscle, I learned to stimulate it with practical exercises both physically and mentally, applying a new mindset and behavioral changes that I’d like to introduce in this story.
Since each of us is unique, my methods and practices might not apply to others. Therefore, I only focus on the principles and highlights of the approach to give you an idea so that you can create and customize a program for yourself.
Some people create such a conceptual and practical system intuitively, and some develop it intellectually. I used both approaches. I envision intellect and intuition as part of our higher self.
The mental tools I introduce are based on lifestyle modifications and can be personalized by anyone unless there are physical constraints or underlying health conditions for some individuals.
For example, some people cannot meditate due to mental constraints, even if they want to do it. I excluded exceptions in this story.
The system might differ from person to person. But the tools I use also have been used by many successfully. They all have some scientific backing as their benefits created interests in science communities. None of them are controversial or unethical.
My specific focus is on cognition, which is the capability of the thinking brain, also known as the neocortex. However, these practices and tools can also affect the emotional and primitive parts of the brain, known as the limbic and reptilian parts.
I provided biological aspects of keeping the brain healthy in a previous article. Thus the focus of this article is psychological aspects.
Our cognitive abilities comprise three functions: thinking, learning, and remembering. The effectiveness of our cognitive aptitudes determines our cognitive health and performance.
Cognitive health refers to the ability to think, focus, learn, and remember effectively. Enhancing these abilities with various tools and processes is called cognitive performance boosting. So my system and protocols include both cognitive health and performance.
As the brain is a biological entity, like all other organs, its abilities decline with chronological age, primarily if they are not used regularly. Therefore, older people experience neurodegenerative disorders such as dementia more than younger ones.
As aging is inevitable, I also focus on creating cognitive reserves, as this concept can be valuable to remain mentally functional as we age and when we face mental decline or cognitive impairment.
From a biological angle, my protocols revolve around neurogenesis, referring to the growth and maintenance of the brain components. We now know that our brain cells and connections can grow at any age.
From a psychological angle, the emphasis is on metacognition which refers to knowing our cognitive abilities, such as thinking about thinking and learning how to learn.
In the subsequent sections, I provide a high-level view of my system, mental tools, and protocols under three headings to give you an idea.
This system encapsulates my five decades of work in a short article. Therefore, it might sound too abstract to some people, but I provide some practical examples.
The first section describes the system. The second section introduces activities. And the third section shows how to measure and continue mental growth.
1 — Created a conceptual mental gym and made it a practical system.
The mental gym is a metaphorical concept emulating the physical fitness gym to improve our mental muscles, similar to the body's muscles.
Nevertheless, this concept covers both the brain and mind from functionality aspects. Therefore, it has biological and psychological components in an integrated way.
I’d like to give a high-level picture of my architected and designed mental gym so that my points in the other sections make sense. My mental gym has multiple physical and psychological tools.
The regular tools are mindfulness, meditation, visualization, self-conversations, breathing exercises, expressive writing, working in a flow state, reading, music, dance, isometric training, barefoot walking, cold/heat exposure, cognitive behavioral therapy, and social engagements.
Some of these tools, such as dancing, walking, or thermogenesis, might look only related to the body. However, as the brain is part of the body and hosts the mind, these tools can influence mental capabilities such as attention, focus, memory, task switching, and problem-solving through hormones and neurotransmitters.
There are many more tools that might appeal to different people. I specifically selected these tools for my needs, goals, and lifestyle by trial and error. I only give them as examples. So you can select your own tools that can align with your aspirations and personality.
2 — Performed activities systematically and habitually.
Identifying these tools and adding them to my lifestyle gave me clarity. They became part of my daily routines as hobbies. I performed some of them by myself and some with others.
Let me give you a few examples. I start and finish my day with meditation. Daily meditation evolved into a hobby as I do it with joy and passion, even though it was challenging for my overactive mind in the beginning. Thus I meditate three times a day, giving me mental sharpness.
Self-talk has been another daily practice for various reasons, such as self-therapy and creativity. Like meditation, self-talk was also challenging initially, but thanks to neurogenesis, it became a habit by rewiring my brain for its practical use.
To physically stimulate the brain daily, I use cold showers, warm baths with Epsom salts, fasting, barefoot walks on the beach or grass, dancing, calisthenics, hopping on the trampoline, and breathing exercises, giving me mental clarity and increasing my creativity and productivity.
These physical exercises can increase the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), putting the nervous system in an advantaged position for growth. They also increase the blood flow and oxygenate the brain, improving mental capacity and performance.
I also use weekly and occasional activities such as going to dry saunas, talking with others, engaging in community activities, and presenting at seminars and conferences.
These activities also stimulate the brain and mind, improving their performance and giving more mental clarity as cognitive capacity increases.
3 — Measured the progress and set new goals for growth.
Measuring progress in all walks of life can keep us on the right track. Unless we measure our progress with data, keeping motivation for our goals can be difficult. Therefore, we might get derailed when we hit inevitable setbacks and even give up our dreams.
Initially, I created a checklist prompting me daily to focus on each item on a formulated spreadsheet with macros. I recorded how many times and how long I spent on each activity.
I used both objective and subjective measures to understand my progress. For example, I recorded my meditation hours in a column and typed my subjective feelings in another column of the progress spreadsheet.
Besides in another column, I created labels like good, moderate, and excellent to obtain qualitative data. It was a tedious task and required some effort and time investment. However, in later years, I started reaping the benefits of this automated structure.
Creating a page for each activity, like meditation, self-talk, cold showers, walking, expressive writing content details, personal interactions, etc., gave me empirical data that I could analyze, modify, and graph to give a picture of the progress.
The visual representation of progress in colored charts showed the strengths and weaknesses in each area.
Seeing strengths further motivates me to continue them. Seeing weaknesses enabled me to focus on them more and make necessary adjustments to improve them.
After a few years, recording data became a habit and did not take much time as the system got matured. And since I automated the charts when I entered the data daily, I instantly saw the result. So initial time investment, in the beginning, paid the dividends later.
Benefits of Having a Mind Gym, Using It Effectively, and Measuring the Progress
This concept helped me to move from comfort to a stretch or risk zone. I accept people, situations, and circumstances as they are.
Setbacks turned into opportunities. I stopped feeling stuck in “Fight-Flight-Freeze” mode and maintained self-control.
Strengthening the cognitive system allowed me to tame the overactive amygdala. Hence my stress and anxiety diminished. With these psychological shifts, I embraced negative criticism and converted the feeling of envy to admiration. I gained more mental clarity.
When the cognitive part of the brain got more robust and the primitive part got tamed, it was much easier to manage thoughts and regulate emotions. Consequently, my adversity quotient (AQ) significantly increased. Thus, I learned to tolerate people's physical, mental, and emotional impediments.
More importantly, accessing vast information sources in my subconscious mind through an improved Reticular Activating System (RAS) allowed me to tap into my higher self easily and recognize flaws in my lower self and improve them as needed.
Conclusions and Takeaways
Habits can make our lives easier as the brain loves patterns and routines. Thus, observing, developing, and monitoring our habits mindfully can be helpful in the long run. Thus, mindfulness practices can help us achieve this goal systematically.
As the body and mind are connected, we must factor in both the physical and psychological aspects of habit-building. Neurons and neural connections can get more vigorous when we establish and strengthen the habits with consistent and joyful practices.
As a result of our habits, we can achieve more with less effort. The mental tools and processes that we use regularly can further improve our cognitive health and performance and create mental reserves as we age.
It might not be possible for everyone to develop such a structured and rigorous mental gym, but creating daily habits to improve our cognitive capabilities can sharpen our minds and contribute to our well-being.
Besides, nowadays, some apps can contribute to habit-building by monitoring our activities and behavior. So if you cannot create a system similar to mine, you might consider such practical apps. Some of them come free with smartwatches or fitness devices.
A simple approach might be allocating specific times for mental activities that you enjoy daily. Scheduling and performing them regularly can strengthen specific brain regions and turn them into habits. Once you build your desired habits, activities can be effortless.
Regardless, improving our mental capabilities is a never-ending journey until we die. Therefore, stretching our efforts notch by notch daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly can be easier and more sustainable.
Despite the ups and downs of life, staying calm and composed with a cheerful disposition is a desire for many people.
This valuable lifestyle capability has nothing to do with wealth or fame. It is mainly about our mindset empowered by a few fundamentals of our biological and psychological needs.
Here are a few takeaways from my experience of staying calm and composed with a clear mind despite challenges and inevitable setbacks.
1 — Tranquillity starts with observing thoughts and feelings.
2 — Clear the mental clutter and emotional entanglements with conscious breathing and gentle movements.
3 — Accept situations and events as they are with no resistance.
4 — Self-love can lead to loving others and increasing compassion.
5 — Count your blessings and cultivate gratitude.
Living a life with mental clarity can be joyful and satisfying. It is a privilege to have a good night’s sleep and awaken fresh in a healthy body and clear mind, ready to connect with others meaningfully and serve them with pleasure.
In this story, I focussed on the logical part of the brain.
However, the emotional part is also vital. To this end, I wrote an article about the limbic system to give a unique and practical perspective.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
Meditation Can Boost the Cortical Thickness in the Brain and Prevent the Thinning of It
I write about various hormones and neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, GABA, acetylcholine, norepinephrine, adrenaline, glutamate, and histamine.
In a recent story, I documented my experience with Neurocognitive Disorders. I hope it provides valuable tips and insights to prevent such disorders via healthy lifestyle choices.
Here’s How to Lower the Risks of Neurocognitive Disorders in 6 Steps.
I also wrote about the nervous system and provided practical tips to make it more flexible and functional.
Here’s How to Make the Nervous System More Flexible and Functional.
If you are into neurostimulation and brain stimulation, you might check out these apps for cognitive training.
10 Popular Cognitive Improvement Apps or Programs for Brain Fitness
Evolve Your Senses with Neurobics to Create Cognitive Reserves for Better Mental Health as You Age.
Evolve Your Senses with Neurobics to Create Cognitive Reserves for Better Mental Health as You Age.
One of my goals as a writer is to raise awareness about the causes and risk factors of prevalent diseases that can lead to suffering and death for a large portion of the population.
To raise awareness about health issues, I have written several articles that present my holistic health findings from research, personal observations, and unique experiences. Below are links to these articles for easy access.
ALS, Metabolic Syndrome, Type II Diabetes, Fatty Liver Disease, Heart Disease, Strokes, Obesity, Liver Cancer, Autoimmune Disorders, Homocysteine, Lungs Health, Pancreas Health, Kidneys Health, NCDs, Infectious Diseases, Brain Health, Dementia, Depression, Brain Atrophy, Neonatal Disorders, Skin Health, Dental Health, Bone Health, Leaky Gut, Leaky Brain, Brain Fog, Chronic Inflammation, Insulin Resistance, Elevated Cortisol, Leptin Resistance, Anabolic Resistance, Cholesterol, High Triglycerides, Metabolic Disorders, Gastrointestinal Disorders, Thyroid Disorders, Anemia, Dysautonomia, cardiac output, and urinary track disorders.
I also wrote about valuable nutrients. Here are the links for easy access:
Lutein/Zeaxanthin, Phosphatidylserine, Boron, Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, PQQ, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, zinc, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine, and other nutrients to improve metabolism and mental health.
Disclaimer: My posts do not include professional or health advice. I only document my reviews, observations, experiences, and perspectives to provide information and create awareness.
As part of my creative non-fiction writing goals, I’d like to share a few stories that might warm our hearts with a bit of humor into weighty topics.
Sample Humorous Stories
Based on my writing experience and observations, I documented findings and strategies that might help you amplify your voice, engage your audience, and achieve your desired outcomes in your writing journey.
I publish my lifestyle, health, and well-being stories on EUPHORIA. My focus is on metabolic, cellular, mitochondrial, and mental health. Here is my collection of Insightful Life Lessons from Personal Stories.
If you enjoy writing and storytelling, you can join Medium, NewsBreak, and Vocal as a creator to find your voice, reach out to a broad audience, and monetize your content.
You may also check my blog posts about my articles and articles of other writers contributing to my publications on Medium. I share them on my website, digitalmehmet.com. Here is my professional bio. You can contact me via weblink.
You might join my six publications on Medium as a writer by sending a request via this link. 25K+ writers contribute to my publications. You might find more information about my professional background.
Here are some of my boosted stories.
Meditation Can Boost the Cortical Thickness in the Brain and Prevent the Thinning of It
Here’s How to Make the Nervous System More Flexible and Functional
A New Clinical Trial Found a Low-Carb Diet Better Than the Dash.
How Writers Can Attract More Readers by Using Design Thinking Principles
Here’s Why I Focus on Nutritional Biochemistry Rather Than Diets
Queer Organisms: Nature’s Lesson for Diversity, Inclusion, and Equality
