The Reptile Mind Wrestling the Inner Dragon by Emmett Miller, M.D.

The Reptile Mind
Wrestling the Inner Dragon
by Emmett Miller, M.D.

Q. I have been meditating and reading spiritual books for fifteen years, and yet I'm still consumed by fears and worries that affect my health. If my brain belongs to me, why can't I stop it from creating thoughts, feelings and behaviors that I don't want to have? Why won't it do what I want in certain situations?

A. The problem is... you have two brains!

I know that sounds like a Steve Martin joke, but all kidding aside, each of us, has several rather distinct brain portions that developed at certain times in our evolutionary history. These include the 'reptilian' brain and the intellectual cortex (plus other working parts we'll mention later) and we need to learn how to use them both skillfully. And when you do you will discover that, indeed, "two heads are better than one."

Your Bodyguard,

The Reptilian Brain:

In 'Genesis,' there is a well-known story in which a happy-go-lucky couple entertains a certain reptile who presents them with a questionable gift. Upon eating this particular produce item, they awaken to their animal natures and can no longer enjoy the peace and tranquillity of their garden home. Unable to successfully manage and control these new awarenesses and urges, they are forced to relocate to a dangerous neighborhood. Their unsupervised sons, Cain and Abel end up fighting, and tragedy results.

In actuality, we all have this animal nature already, controlled by the reptilian brain at the very core of our brain. It is our bodyguard which sends us the crucial 'fight or flight' signal when danger approaches. But, as Cain and Abel discovered, it can also cause problems.

Like all other hunting meat-eaters, we have our eyes in the front of our heads, rather than on the sides. Our brain, a combination weapon and shield, has a self-healing instinct and a killer instinct as well. It is designed to keep us alive, even at the expense of ourselves and others (for example, the coyote will intentionally chew off a leg that is caught in a trap). The bad news: the reptilian brain is not known for long-term solutions. Like a loaded gun, it needs to be deactivated sometimes for safety's sake. And because it bases its reactions on primitive reflexes, it must be placed in the service of higher levels of the brain, mind, and Self (Soul, Spirit), in order to truly serve us. This awakened yet monitored position, is the key to mind-body medicine. With it you can take charge of your mind and body for healing and optimal performance.

Unfortunately the self-healing instinct that can enable us to change for the better can come into conflict with the killer instinct, especially in our modern environment.

A bodyguard is trained to suspect anything out of the ordinary and respond defensively. While such vigilance is appropriate at times for the trained warrior, soldier, or policeman, it can be most annoying in a social situation (friends don't like being shot at or sprayed with Mace). Similarly, your reptilian brain is a highly specialized bodyguard, equipped to deal with danger, and, like every bodyguard, it needs to be trained to know when to go 'off duty.'

The Reptilian Brain -

Not a Housepet

The reptilian part of the brain developed very early in the evolution of our species and gave us an enormous evolutionary advantage. It enabled the earliest reptiles to make primitive but vital choices- the reptile asks only three basic questions of any thing or situation it encounters:

1. Can it eat me/hurt me/kill me?

2. Can I eat it?

3. Can I have sex with it?

If the answer to all these questions is 'no,' then the object is deemed to be a 'rock,' and no further notice need be taken of it. But when this part of the brain makes important choices for us, we are often blocked from growing into our full stature as human beings. Such black or white decisions (common in the bigot, the traumatized veteran, the agoraphobic and the vigilante) are too crude.

To probe deeper into the meaning and importance of life and to sift through complex situations, a higher part of us must be in charge.

The Mind as a Filing System

If it isn't black and white, why isn't it? (John Wayne)

One of the questions which intrigued me for a long time was why people seemed so resistant to using their minds to look at deeper issues that could bring deep levels of healing. People tend to prefer 'quickie' tricks and pills that suppress symptoms, but avoid the deeper causes. One important reason is that we avoid the unknown, even the healthy unknown. The brain/mind is, fundamentally, an ambiguity reducing device and at the most basic level, is here to help us decide whether something is a rock or a rhinoceros, a kitty cat or a saber-toothed tiger. This is of great value in the jungle because it leads us to build walls, filters, nets, umbrellas and Sherman Tanks, but in terms of health, it is a liability, because higher development of the mind and spirit requires us to deal with ambiguities that have no easy, black or white, solutions. The intellect is too often in such a hurry to solve the ambiguity that it jumps to the wrong conclusions and won't let go.

Dominated by the survival-driven reptilian brain, the mind can contribute to disease by missing the big picture and build a whole defense structure around a small part of the whole and throw us out of balance. This, combined with our fundamental nature as hunter/killer can lead us to try to subdue and conquer everything around us.

The result is the raped and ravaged planet we live on, and the environmental disasters our bodies and relationships have become.

So, to heal our minds, bodies, emotions and behaviors, we must develop a certain kind of patience and inner serenity. We must learn how to trust our wisdom, and allow situations in our life to develop so that more subtle distinctions can be made. This intentionally induced inner relaxation protects us from the unwanted behaviors of mind or body.

Symptoms and Defense Mechanisms

If the higher, wiser parts of the brain/mind system fail to achieve proper relaxation and control, the reptilian brain triggers such ego defense mechanisms as:

·Social withdrawal, depression

·Denial, becoming blinded to the existence of the problem

·Dissociation, slipping into another ego state, or personality

·Aggressive behavior, attack

·Obsessive/compulsive thoughts or behaviors which produce a self-powered, ongoing distraction - designed to keep the experiencing, intending part of the mind occupied away from the discomfort,

·Symptom formation, headaches, stress-related diseases, phobias, etc.

In other words, the brain, in its attempts to avoid a potentially painful situation, grab a tasty bite to eat, or have the pleasure of an orgasm, will secrete chemicals (neurotransmitters) that affect every level of the body and mind. This process is the source of the internal and external behaviors that produce the symptoms we experience as illness, pain, and dysfunction in body or behavior. These include physical diseases as well as the ultimately self-harming behaviors referred to by psychologists as obsessive-compulsive disorders, depression, anxiety, addictions, child, spousal and self abuse, etc. Spiritual teachers call these ego attachments, and seek to treat them with the relaxation and higher control reached through meditation and prayer.

One of my central goals in practicing mind-body medicine is to teach my patients how to train and manage the intellectual part of the brain so it can strive toward higher goals. We can accomplish this by modifying our perceptions and our behaviors so that we respond, rather than automatically react, to the challenges in our lives.

Wise, compassionate, loving, inspired, artistic behaviors and choices, as are found in the most advanced and enlightened people, result when we rescue the cerebral cortex from the egocentricity, consumerism and rapacity of the reptilian brain and place it in the service of a higher Self, community, family, and Spirit.

So, in answer to your question, the ultimate tool for controlling your unruly brain is the ability to align your thoughts, images, feelings, words and behaviors with your true mission and purpose in life. This brings to mind the Hindu concept of Dharma:

·Your duty to the deepest part of yourself. To reach the highest levels of health and performance, you must face the challenge of bypassing the quick fix and attuning to your Higher Self·This process is also referred to as personal growth, maturity, coming into ones own, developing wisdom. It requires us to be willing to let go of how things were in favor of how things are, and in favor of how things might be.

To learn more about self-healing and how to harness your stress for peak performance, read Deep Healing: The Essence of Mind/Body Medicine, (Hay House, 1997) by Dr. Emmett Miller, or purchase one of the tapes mentioned in this article by calling Source Cassettes Learning Systems, Inc. at 1-800-52-TAPES. For individual consultation by phone, a calendar of appearances, workshops, lectures, or to bring Dr. Miller to your community, call (916) 478-1807. You also can reach Dr. Miller on the internet at http://www.docmiller.com