Calming Down the Horse

Guest Blogger: James Campbell LPC, LAC, MAC, AADC

Target Audience: Service Providers, General Public

Full disclosure- the lowest grade I made in any class in my entire collegiate career

was biology. Ironically, it is what I spend most of my time teaching on today,

specifically about the brain. It is always wise to approach talking about the brain

with some humility. With our best guess being that we have around 86 billion

neurons in an adult brain with multiple neurotransmitters going across the spaces

in between, to talk about the brain as though we have all the answers is arrogant.

That said, we do know a lot more than we once did through things like PET scans,

MRIs, and SPECT scans.

Our brain’s primary goal is to keep us, as individuals, alive and us collectively, as

the human race, alive as well. Everything our brain does is related to one of those

two goals. It does that through two main systems of the brain-the limbic system

and the prefrontal cortex. Though they have the same goal, each system

supports that goal differently.

The limbic system is the gas petal of the brain. It gets up off the couch doing the

things we need to do to survive. Hungry? That is your limbic system. Thirsty?

Limbic system. Have a desire to procreate and continue the species? Limbic

system. The limbic system is not immoral; it is amoral. It simply wants what it

wants and does not care about right or wrong. If you are a psychoanalyst, the

limbic system is your id. If you are a Protestant theologian, the limbic system is

your sin nature. It has other functions, like connecting to other human beings,

etc., but even that is necessary for survival.

The prefrontal cortex is our brakes and steering. Its job is executive functioning

and decision making. The limbic system gets us up and going; the prefrontal

cortex helps us figure out where we are going. If you ever think “on second

thought maybe I…”, then you know that is your prefrontal cortex. (The limbic

system doesn’t have a second thought. If it had a slogan, it would be Just Do It!)

So, the limbic system may let us know we are hungry and need to go eat. The

prefrontal cortex will help us determine whether we have a salad or pizza.

As a counselor of over twenty-five years, I have seen an enormous emphasis on

the prefrontal cortex. Counselors and therapists talk about irrational thoughts,

thought distortions, stinking thinking, cognitive reframes, and a multitude of

other similar words and phrases. We tend to act as though having the right

information will lead us to make the right decision. That is, of course, absurd. We

all know that eating fast food is bad for us, and likely all of us have eaten fast food

in the last two weeks.

The example I use is this:

If you think of the limbic system as being a horse and the prefrontal cortex as

being a jockey, they have to work together to win a race. If you put me (very not

a jockey) on a magnificent thoroughbred, you won’t win. Likewise, if you put the

greatest jockey on earth on the back of a pony, you aren’t going to win either.

For a long time, we have acted as though THE solution for mental health

challenges is to “train the jockey”. This is the heart of CBT, stinking thinking, etc.

This has great utility, but it is insufficient. If we want to “win” or be our best in

life, we also need to learn to help ourselves and our clients calm down the horse.

A calm horse looks like emotional regulation. A calm horse looks like being calm,

engaging in healthy relationships, and being centered. There are a ton of tools

that can help us get there personally and professionally. Mindfulness helps us to

calm down the horse. Engaging in the arts helps us to calm down the horse.

Connecting deeply with others (interpersonally or therapeutically) who are

healthy also helps us to calm down the horse.

So, what am I saying? I am saying that it is great and wise to address those

thoughts that do not serve us well and that have lies woven into them. To do so,

however, without also learning to lean into and soothe the emotional, limbic side

of our lives is to only nurture and care for half of our brain. It is not enough to

only train the jockey. Won’t you join with me in learning what helps you and

those you serve calm the horse as well? When we do, we can cross the finish line

together.

James E. Campbell

LPC, LAC, MAC, AADC

James Campbell has worked professionally in the human services field for over twenty-five years in a wide range of clinical settings, currently serving as the Training and Technical Assistance Manager for Southeast Addiction Technology Transfer Center. His passion is helping individuals and families heal and build on the strengths they possess. He’s a member of both NAADAC and ACA and is a past president of APSC.

James is a nationally recognized author and speaker, a poet, a professor, and a minister; but his greatest credential is being a fellow human being.