In many ways, humans have won the battle versus nature. We aren’t yet immortal, but a large portion of the human population no longer shares in the daily survival concerns of every other species on this planet. Developed nations have conquered the natural threats to our species, namely hunger, disease and predation.
Furthermore, the vast majority of Americans enjoy more lavish non-working hours than many historical kings and queens. King Leopold II would’ve (literally) killed for some tasty bagel bites fresh out of the toaster oven. And let’s not forget the medications, the bottles of pills and potions that are engineered to change our brain chemistry to make us feel better. As a result, daily worries shift from survival mode to more today’s vital considerations: how do I maximise ‘likes’ on Instagram?
In light of all these advances, you would expect the modern human species to be overjoyed. The reality is that paradoxically our mental wellbeing seems to be suffering. The 2017 World Happiness report showed declining levels of American happiness despite increases in GDP.[1]
Of course, we can’t possibly know whether modern humans are happier than our ancestors because happiness is a relative, subjective and difficult term to measure. But some disturbing stats paint a clear picture of the current state of American mental health, and these stats play out in Europe and other developed countries too:
- 18.1% (42 million) Americans have an anxiety disorder[2]
- 1 in 6 US adults takes some form of antidepressant or sedative[3]
- Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S.[4]
- There are countless more mental health issues that go unreported
Why do mental health issues abound despite all of the modern luxuries at our disposal?
Here’s the brutal answer: Evolution, the force that crafted our modern bodies and minds, doesn’t care about our happiness. It is nature’s cold, calculating algorithm merely aimed at passing genes from one generation to the next.
“Natural selection didn’t design your mind to see the world clearly; it designed your mind to have perceptions and beliefs that would help take care of your genes.” – Robert Wright, Why Buddhism is True
Our brains come with mental software coded over millions of years of evolution, much of which is outdated or unhelpful in the modern world.
Here’s a simplified overview of how that mental software is organised:
The Triune Brain model presents a layered view of our evolved brains.
Starting at your brain stem, the reptilian brain was the first to evolve in fish around 500 million years ago and eventually in reptiles some 250 million years ago. It’s responsible for self-preserving behaviors like breathing, eating, fighting and reproductive urges, which we might consider “animal instincts” of approach and avoidance.
The limbic system evolved next and can be thought of as covering emotions and memories. We can see how these survival mechanisms are more complex and allowed our ancient primate ancestors to begin navigating the world socially.
Most recently, the neocortex evolved in mammals approximately 200 million years ago and is responsible for reasoning, language and conscious thought. The human brain has tripled in size since we split off from chimps 6 million years ago, and we now have a massive neocortex relative to other species. For our purposes, let’s call the neocortex the “Upstairs Brain” and the limbic and reptilian systems the “Downstairs Brain.”[5]
Alright, so how does this neuroanatomy relate to modern mental health and meditation?
In an ideal world, the Upstairs Brain would serve as authoritative master and we would perform only rational decisions. In Star Trek, this is how Spock and the other Vulcans are programmed. Spock’s emotion-processing center doesn’t drive his decisions, but rather his neocortex always makes logical choices.
“Live long and prosper.”
In reality, the opposite is true of us humans. The Upstairs Brain is in a constant tug-of-war with the Downstairs Brain throughout the day. For example, you might have experienced this when seeing a candy bar at the checkout counter of a grocery store. Your Upstairs Brain knows it isn’t so good for your long-term health, but the Downstairs Brain reminds you of the sweet chocolately taste. Who wins out? Unfortunately, we’re often driven by our emotions and instincts, the Downstairs Brain. We are naturally built such that the neocortex is a slave to the limbic system and reptilian brain.
But evolution has provided humans another gift, one that allows us to “reprogram” the evolutionary baggage that makes us suffer: neuroplasticity.
Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to reorganise itself according to our interactions with the outside world. For example, in 2000 a study found that the sizes of London taxi drivers’ hippocampi (responsible for memory and spatial navigation) were positively correlated with their length of time as a driver.[6] How we direct our attention literally changes the shape of our brains.
“When neurons fire together, they wire together – mental activity actually creates new neural structures…What flows through your mind sculpts your brain. Thus, you can use your mind to change your brain for the better.” – Rick Hanson, PhD
We evolved neuroplasticity largely as a result of our social nature, living in hunter-gatherer tribes where communication was essential to our success. Language meant that we suddenly had culture (which is unique to humans), allowing us to pass down knowledge from generation to generation, rather than just through inherited traits via genes. Cultural evolution selected for a plastic brain, capable of “downloading” new cultural memes. Our brains are built like Playdough, incredibly malleable and able to adapt to new environments.
In light of neuroplasticity, it becomes clear why meditation is so transformative. In practicing meditation you are performing self-directed neuroplasticity, strengthening your neocortex. Studies of long-term meditators show substantial changes in the physical structure of the brain,[7] demonstrating that neuroplasticity has indeed occurred.
Today, daily life is constantly stimulating our Downstairs Brain with instant gratification like social media, junk food, and cigarettes. Meditation allows us to gain more control over the Upstairs Brain,[8] making decisions that are in line with our long-term health and wellbeing.
In short, meditation can help us reprogram an outdated set of mental software so that our brains serve us better in the modern world.
[1] worldhappiness.report/HR17-Ch7.pdf
[2] National Institute of Mental Health
[3] meps.ahrq.gov/h160adoc.shtml
[4] American Journal of Psychiatry and U.S. Surgeon General’s Report, 1999.
[5] If you’re familiar with psychologist Daniel Kahneman’s concept of System 1 and System 2, this model is quite similar in many regards.
[6] Maguire, Eleanor A., et al. “Navigation-related structural change in the hippocampi of taxi drivers.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 97.8 (2000): 4398-4403.
[7] Fox, Kieran CR, et al. “Is meditation associated with altered brain structure? A systematic review and meta-analysis of morphometric neuroimaging in meditation practitioners.” Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 43 (2014): 48-73.
[8] Zeidan, Fadel, et al. “Mindfulness meditation improves cognition: Evidence of brief mental training.” Consciousness and cognition 19.2 (2010): 597-605.