Many of us are hearing similar words everywhere.
Dopamine. Stress response. Brain networks. Nervous system regulation.
We've heard these terms enough times that they become familiar.
And familiarity can feel a lot like understanding.
Researchers call this the illusion of explanatory depth.
In one study, people rated how well they understood everyday things, like how a zipper works. Then they were asked to explain the mechanism, step by step.
When they rated their understanding again, their confidence dropped.
They knew the words. But when they tried to explain how things actually worked, they discovered gaps in their understanding.
And research suggests this illusion is especially strong when we're trying to explain how one thing leads to another inside a complex system.
Which brings us to the brain.
We might be able to describe the stress response. But can we explain how the brain is coming up with its predictions, and why its using the signals its using? How those predictions change over time?
That's where our understanding can start to thin out.
And it's also where incredibly valuable learning begins.
Because a good and sound explanation can change more than one belief
And other research suggests that asking people to explain how something works can encourage more openness than asking them to justify why they believe it.
There's something powerful about this.
We don't always need someone to point out what we don't know.
The act of explaining can help us discover it ourselves.
And now we have AI
We can generate a fluent explanation of predictive processing, allostasis, or brain networks in seconds.
But reading a clear explanation doesn't necessarily mean we've built a clear understanding of the mechanisms in our own minds, in our lived visceral knowing.
And that's a dimension worth knowing when we're working with the nervous system: our lived, embodied experience.
We can read about interoceptive awareness. But understanding how internal signals shape our experiences also can be supported by an understanding of how we make those signals more conscious in ourselves and others.
The science becomes more useful when we can connect the mechanisms to what we're actually experiencing.
A small experiment for this week
Choose one neuroscience concept you use often in your work.
Try explaining, step by step, how it actually happens, without looking anything up.
Where does your explanation begin to feel shaky or unclear?
And what do you notice in your own nervous system when you reach that shakier place?
That edge is a valuable place to be. It can be where you really tune in to what the concept means to you and how it plays out in your experience.
From there, what words and ideas emerge to help you explain that idea from within your own lived wisdom?
With appreciation for the beautiful, unfinished maps we're all learning to build,
Stefanie
Stefanie Faye
Leader @ MIT - Human Agency Studio
Founder of the Super Regulators Neuroscience Academy
Brain Mapping + Neuro Consulting for Enhanced Performance
Applied Neuro Courses for Professionals -learn more here
A bit about me..
During my years working in clinics with EEG brain mapping, neurofeedback, and biofeedback, I became passionately curious about the neurological mechanisms shaping our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.
I could see patterns of brain activity that people weren't consciously aware of, but that were part of how they experienced and responded to the world.
Those experiences strengthened my curiosity and desire to continue working with brains and people in real time, using physiological measurements to understand how to update our patterns and optimize our brain and nervous system to help us create more of our desired experiences.
Today, I bring that neuroscience perspective to coaches, educators, and leaders who want to understand human behavior and transformation more clearly and help new patterns emerge and shape people's lives for the better.
