Your Brain; Your Power: A Scientific Guide to Mental Empowerment Throughout Life

© 2012 Lawrence A. Olatunji, Ph.D.. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 12/13/2012

ISBN: 978-1-4678-8882-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4678-8881-3 (e)

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Contents

Acknowledgement

Introduction

Chapter One GETTING TO KNOW YOUR BRAIN

Chapter Two YOUR BRAIN IS YOUR POWER

Chapter Three THE LOGIC OF THE BRAIN

Chapter Four USE IT OR LOSE IT

Chapter Five BRAIN KILLERS

Chapter Six BRAIN-DISEMPOWERING CONDITIONS

Chapter Seven BRAIN AND STRESS

Chapter Eight THE MIRROR OF YOUR FEELINGS

Chapter Nine STRATEGIES FOR KEEPING YOUR BRAIN EVER POWERFUL

To the one I dearly love.

Thanks for believing in me and inspiring me to always learn to improve my brain capacity for greater results. You will always be in my brain.

To my fabulous Fulfillment;

your kind understanding is simply divine. You amaze me with your brain wired for great humor, wisdom and feats. I treasure the values we share together. I am proud to call you my son.

Acknowledgement

Writing has been said not to be a profession but is a way of stimulating, Organizing, informing, preserving and affirming thoughts through an extensive refining process. It takes a great team of valued thoughts to be dedicated to a project that will be a blessing to humanity. I have been privileged to have such people working with me on Your brain; Your power, and I deeply appreciate everyone who has contributed.

First, I would like to thank many people who have helped to develop my brain capacity—my academic mentor Prof. A.O. Soladoye (The dean of Faculty of Basic Medical Science, College of Health Sciences, University of Ilorin) who influenced me to pursue medical sciences as a discipline. I am forever grateful for your fatherly support and kindness in my journey of mental development. Other special people of such include Prof. A.B. Okesina "(the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Osun State University) and Prof. A.B.O. Omotosho (the provost, College of Health Sciences, University of Ilorin), for your interest and encouragement.

I wish to express my profound gratitude to my uncle, Prof. G.A. Olatunji, who inspires me to pursue science education as a means to help others. Sir this work is a product of your ideology.

I want to thank many authors whose books have helped develop my ‘brain infrastructure’ and neural connection.

I want to thank the dedicated volunteers of HACEY(Health Actions Concerning the Environment and You) and my students over a decade that have been fueled for mental empowerment, on whom most of the information provided in this work have been tested and yielded positive results. You are my jewels.

My parents are greatly valued for their support, prayers and discipline. I thank my brother, Bimbo Olatunji for you dedication to see that the book is completed as planned.

I particularly appreciate my mentees Isaiah Owolabi, Rhoda Robinson, Aaron Adah, Toyib Olaniyan, David Adewoye, Bisi Ayoola, Yanju Tiamiyu and others for your respect and trust in me.

I acknowledge the support from International Brain Research Organisation (IBRO) and The DANA Alliance for Brain Initiatives (USA).

Lastly to my number one best friend, Dr. V.A. Olatunji. Thank you my love for the sacrifice and for allowing me to use my brain for a worthwhile course. Fulfillment thank you for the privilege to learn how to be the best father in the world.

. . . . "even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil’’

—Hebrews 5:14

Introduction

WELCOME TO YOUR BRAIN;

YOUR POWER

He that cannot see the end at the beginning can be enslaved by the beginning

You may have no time to learn, but certainly you have the capability to.

Whether life is working for you or seems to be working against you, everyone wants to be better. We all want to be more productive, proficient, and prosperous in all our endeavours. We want to be persons of more influence or power. As an individual, you need to understand the intricacy of your brain. It is the only kind in your body that is so complex yet fascinating. Your brain is a unique single ‘servant-leader’ organ—ensuring proper functioning of other organs which in turn get served by the organs. It is the key to your everyday meaningful living and success. However, many people have access to very little or no information about their marvelous heritage that could be an asset or a liability depending on how it’s handled.

The most tragedic situation in life is not when your heart stops beating (i.e. death), but when your brain starts misbehaving.

Living without ambition, hope, aspiration, vision or goal seems to mark the beginning of the end of meaningful living. Ambition, hope, aspiration, vision or goal keeps you going in life, giving you power to climb the ladder of success. Without the brain, it is impossible to conceive or bring to fruition ambition, hope, aspiration, vision or goal. People without ambition, hope or aspiration live for nothing by living for everything. No wonder hopelessness is one of the major causes of suicide.

As the body develops to maturity, which is sustained by food, so your brain as an instrument of power is developed to maturity and is maintained by learning. When a particular area of your brain is disabled or starved with the required information, then it will adversely affect your whole life. Needless to wonder, why that great philosopher and politician; Chief Obafemi Awolowo, during a book launch in University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) in Nigeria once said

When people are starved with books particularly the right type of books, they suffer intellectual malnutrition, catastrophe and stagnation.

For over a decade that I have been teaching medical college students, I have been bothered by the decline in basic understanding of students, despite the enormous information available to these students in different formats. Then, I discovered that storage of information is much favoured over retrieval capacity. The institutions of learning—colleges, universities, postgraduate (or training) centres are now merely certificate—or degree-awarding institutes. Over the years, I have learned that improving the brain capacity is one of the most important ways to achieve your ambition, vision and goals, even in the face of poverty, hostility, discrimination, and conflicts.

I have always imagined that paradise will be a kind of library.—Jorge Luis Borges

Learning has been with us since infanthood and it is the primary reason for attending school, college, university or any training programme, and now that you are aspiring to be better or more powerful, learning cannot be ignored. In a globalized world—whether we like it or not, we live in an environment of multifaceted challenges. Modern times are more demanding and competitive, and individual need to realize that yesteryear knowledge is just limited, and can be disadvantageous, making you outdated when not updated. You may begin asking yourself when you will stop learning. Learning is for as long as you want to be in charge, becoming more effective in your pursuit in life. Honestly, you may also want to know how to become a better learner—a better you.

One of the biggest challenges facing humanity today is how to turn an ever-challenged demoralized, overworked, depressed and/or overstressed individual into a proactive and highly motivated person that delivers effective and high-quality results or services every day. Poor mental capability is a major reason for the frustration, the sense of futility and failure that countless individuals, particularly people working to make a difference in their careers, businesses, studies or relationships have when they fail to have enviable and sustainable results. However, an attempt to get bigger results without a better brain will surely earn you more frustration, disappointment, stress and even distress, creating a vicious circle of ineffectiveness, inefficiency, dismay, and failure. Addressing this challenge requires conscious efforts at improving your brain fitness throughout life and accepting total mental responsibility—learning.

Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.—Frederick Douglass

Hundreds of millions of persons worldwide are afflicted with brain disabilities—conditions that range from learning disabilities, to sleep disorders, depression, and brain injury. Most of us may not have brain disabilities though, however scientific reports have it that nearly one in five of us will be directly or indirectly affected by knowing or showing concerns for someone who is personally affected by a form of brain disability. Currently, leading brain researchers report that over 1,000 disorders of the nervous system result in more stigmatization and hospitalizations. For instance, brain damage by stroke is recorded as one of the three greatest medical sources of death (mortality), depression, the greatest cause of disability for adults under the age of 45, while aging-related neurodegenerative diseases is of an increasing public health concern.

In this book, I hope to present information on the power of the brain and how your brain can work for you and not against you. I have endeavoured to make the book informative, understandable, interesting, and helpful. I have included strategies to empower the brain. Many of the insights into the normal and abnormal functions of the brain come from the thought and practices of numerous experts. Reading these materials is of essence because of the enormous implications of disempowerment of the brain.

The things I want to know are in books. My best friend is the man who’ll get me a book I [haven’t] read.—Abraham Lincoln

National Institute of Mental Health (US) defines a mental illness as a health condition that changes a person’s thinking, feelings, or behavior (or all three), and that causes the person distress and difficulty in functioning. There are many different mental disorders, including depression, schizophrenia and addictions. Brain disabilities also include developmental and learning disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism, learning and anxiety disorders. Each alters a person’s thoughts, feelings, and/or behaviors in distinct ways.

I can’t imagine why you should still fold your arms, sit on the fence, and choose not to be interested in this tour of empowerment through the instrumentality of your brain. This book is truly intended to make your brain understandable to you. It covers some of the most unusual facts that are often ignored or misrepresented. It is particularly intended for young and adults who are interested in enduring greatness. But I also hope that it will interest everyone regardless of age, sex, colour, or socio-economical status. You will find in the book practical tips that will help you put your brain to work and become better. Hence, the book is a must for everyone who wishes to improve their results—by learning new skills, procedures, processes, tactics and strategies. The book will also help you reinvent and empower yourself, and make you your own coach. If you feel you cannot improve your results by reading this book, consider at least reading the first two chapters and the last two chapters. Thereafter, you may decide that you have no time to learn, but never again will you say that you have no capability for learning—mental empowerment.

Your brain; Your power is simply a guide that no home should be without. In its pages you will discover:

• The secrets of the brain power

• How the brain works

• Brain development

• How your brain can empower you

• How to preserve your mental capital

• Brain betrayers

• Strategies to keep the brain ever powerful

I would not know your reasons for picking up this book. This book is written to help you become a better you and to aid you produce bigger results irrespective of your status throughout life. Hence, the book is a must, for those who wish to become a better person that will improve their results by learning new skill, procedures, processes, tactics and strategies.

Whatever your reason for reading these pages, the chances are pretty high thatYour Brain, Your Power will be helpful to you and possibly your loved ones throughout life. I hope that you will enjoy learning from this book as much as I have learned and benefited from preparing it for your empowerment.

Let’s move on this great journey together as we explore the unlimited power of the brain to achieve great feats at any stage of life… .

I AM A LEARNER

No matter your present status, the first step to greatness is the commitment to become a learner.

In this life,

there are learners and there are teachers,

I learn to teach.

I am a learner,

I like to learn, I love to learn, I prefer to learn.

Learning is my way of life.

I will learn great things that I deeply care about,

I will learn what’s needed,

but not much of what’s wanted.

So that I can have enormous amount of energy

to do great things for fellow humans.

My learning always creates more.

I inspire others to learn and like doing so.

It’s my subtle mission to give and motivate

other people—knowledgeable or not to learn

so that human dignity is reinvented on the earth.

Learning has been with us since the beginning of our lives.

Learning is natural.

Learning is adventure.

Learning is beneficial.

Learning does not only add but also multiplies

and makes me feel complete and fulfilled

Learning makes me feel

that I make a real and important difference

Learning is one of the main reasons

that I enjoy being a success;

for success without learning—a pathway to

successful failure.

I have words,

I save knowledge,

I invest in wisdom,

I use words for learning.

Learning indeed is my power.

I

…………………………………………………………

(Insert your full name)

declare my open unalloyed commitment to

learning as a path to mental empowerment.

Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase. Just take the first step—Martin Luther king Jr.

Chapter One

GETTING TO KNOW

YOUR BRAIN

If you have knowledge, let others light their candles at it—Margaret Fuller

Your brain is 100 billion cells with 1,000 trillion synaptic connections, all packed into 1.5 liters and weighing 1.5 kg.

Your brain is highly adaptable. It is able to do things that have never been done before, and can tolerate things going wrong. It functions reasonably well for a life-time, and even in old age. The brain is still capable of learning new things. Today’s robots are very good at doing the restricted range of tasks for which they have been designed—like building a bit of a car—but much less tolerant when things go wrong. Our brain contains roughly 100 billion nerve cells, 3.2 million kilometers of ‘wires’, a million-billion connections, all packed into a volume of 1.5 litres, but weighing only 1.5 kg and consuming a mere 10 watts. If we tried to build such a brain using silicon chips, it would consume about 10 megawatts, i.e. enough electricity to power a town. To make matters worse, the heat produced by such a silicon (artificial) brain would cause it to melt! The challenge is to discover how brain operates so efficiently and economically.

Your head is made up of a very hard piece of bone — your skull. Inside your skull is your brain. The skull protects your brain. There is a special kind of fluid inside your skull that keeps your brain in a special bath and prevent it from bumping against the side of the skull and getting squished.