Summary: boredom, often seen as a negative state to avoid, you can actually fulfill an important role in the emotional regulation and brain health. When we are bored, the brain moves away from external and active introspective systems such as the network by default, encouraging creativity and self -reflection.
In an era of constant stimulation and overvaluation, allowing boredom to occur can help restore the nervous system and reduce anxiety. Short and intentional pauses of stimulation can encourage creativity, strengthen emotional resilience and reduce dependence on external satisfaction.
Key facts:
Shift Brabine: boredom activates the network by default, encourages introspection and creativity. Stress buffer: embrace boredom can counteract overestimulation and reduce anxiety. Mental health tool: the regular pauses of constant activity support the emotional regulation and restart of the nervous system.
Source: The conversation
We have all experienced boredom: that feeling of diminishing interest or decreased mental stimulation. Finally we lose the approach, we disconnect. Time seems to spend slowly, and we can even start feeling restless.
Whether watching a movie that disappoints, a child who complains that “there is nothing to do”, or an adult who zonizes during a meeting: boredom is a universal experience.
Generally defined as difficulty in maintaining attention or interest in a current activity, boredom is commonly considered a negative state that we must try to avoid or avoid that we experience.
But what happens if there is another way of seeing boredom, as a positive state? Could learning to adopt boredom be beneficial?
The brain in boredom
Brain Network is a system of interconnected regions that work together to support different functions. We can compare it with a city where suburbs (brain regions) are connected by roads (neuronal roads), all working together to allow information to travel efficiently.
When we experience boredom, let’s say, while we see a movie, our brain involves specific networks. The attention network prioritizes the relevant stimuli while the distractions are filtered and is active when we start the film.
However, as our attention decreases, the activity in the attention network decreases, which reflects our diminished capacity to keep the focus on the content not involved. Similarly, the decrease in activity occurs in the frontoparietal or executive control network due to the struggle to maintain commitment to the film without involving.
Simultaneously, the predetermined network is activated, changing our attention to internal thoughts and self -reflection. This is a central function of the network by default, called introspection and suggests a strategy to deal with boredom.
This complex interaction of networks involves several key brain regions “working together” during the state of boredom. Insula is a key center for sensory and emotional processing.
This region shows greater activity by detecting internal body signals, such as boredom thoughts, indicating that the film is no longer attractive. This is often known as “interoception.”
The amygdala can be compared to an internal alarm system. Process emotional information and play a role in the formation of emotional memories. During boredom, this region processes associated negative emotions, and the ventral medial prefrontal cortex motivates us to look for alternative stimulating activities.
Boredom versus overestimulation
We live in a society that undergoes an information overload and high stress. In relation to, many of us have adopted a fast rhythm lifestyle, constantly programming to keep us busy.
As adults we juggle with work and family. If we have children, the habit of filling the day with education activities and after school allows us to work more hours.
Among these activities, if we have time to pause, we can be on our screens constantly organizing, updating or moving to simply remain busy. As a result, adults inadvertently model the need to constantly be “on” for younger generations.
This constant stimulation can be expensive, particularly for our nervous system. Our surpass can feed the overestimulation of the nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system that manages our fight or flight response is designed to deal with stress times.
However, when we are constantly stressed taking new information and juggling with different activities, the sympathetic nervous system can remain activated for too long, due to the cumulative effects of repeated exposure to different stressors.
This is sometimes known as “alostatic overload.” It is when our nervous system feels overwhelmed, keeping us in a state of high excitement, which can increase our risk of anxiety.
Eliminating the state of boredom deprives us in a simple and natural way to restore our sympathetic nervous system.
Could boredom be good for us?
In small doses, boredom is the necessary counterweight for the overestimulated world in which we live. It can offer unique benefits for our nervous system and our mental health.
This opposes long periods of boredom where the increase in network activity by default may be associated with depression.
There are several benefits to give us permission to get bored occasionally:
The improvements in creativity, which allows us to build “flow” in our thoughts develops independence in thought and encourages other interests instead of relying on constant external acquisitions of self -esteem and emotional regulation, because unstructured times can help us sit with our feelings that are important to handle the periods of anxiety and periods of use of the periods of use and rupture of the device of the innovators that are contained to the inductives of the nerves of the users of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves of the nerves. Sensory entry to help calm anxiety.
Hug the pause
Anxiety levels are increasing worldwide, especially among our youth. Many factors contribute to this trend. We are constantly “on”, striving to make sure to program for each moment. But in doing so, we are potentially depriving our brains and bodies of inactivity time they need to restart and recharge.
We need to hug the pause. It is a space where creativity can prosper, emotions can be regulated and the nervous system can restart.
About this news of boredom and neuroscience research
Author: Michelle Kennedy and Daniel Hermens
Source: The conversation
Contact: Michelle Kennedy and Daniel Hermens – The conversation
Image: The image is accredited to Neuroscience News