Feelings and Your Brain

Inside your head, your brain has different jobs. The Thinking Brain (the Prefrontal Cortex) is like a wise owl. It helps you do math, read, and make good choices. The Feeling Brain (the Amygdala) is like a little guard dog. Its job is to keep you safe. When you are happy and calm, the owl and the dog work together. But when you get very frustrated or angry, the guard dog starts barking! It gets so loud that the wise owl cannot hear itself think. This is why your brain feels 'noisy' or 'tight' when you are upset.

When you face a hard problem, like a big math equation such as $12 + 15 = 27$, you might feel frustrated. When this happens, your 'Feeling Brain' takes over. It sends a signal that says, 'Danger! This is too hard!' This creates a traffic jam in your head. The information cannot get to the Thinking Brain because the Feeling Brain is blocking the road. This is why you might cry or want to throw your pencil. It is not because you aren't smart; it is because your 'Thinking Brain' is temporarily offline.

To get your 'Thinking Brain' back online, you need to quiet the guard dog. One of the best ways is the Five-Finger Breath. This sends a message to your brain that you are safe. When you breathe deeply, you 'pet the dog' to make it stop barking. Once the dog is quiet, the wise owl can come back out and help you finish your work. It turns the 'traffic jam' into a clear highway again!