--- In JungMatters@yahoogroups.com, "Elaine" <lizral@...> wrote:
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> With all these thoughts about the mind, brain, body and dopamine, i
began
> thinking.
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> Firstly, someone had written, "Kandel's was one of the most
compelling proofs that the brain is "plastic", and that thinking
changes the brain structure. Indeed, a number of recent studies show
that psychotherapy actually rewires the brain, and it's changes are
no less structural than those seen with medication."
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> A 2001 brain scan study from UCLA of depressed patients treated
with interpersonal psychotherapy -- a treatment Kandel's Columbia
colleague Myrna Weissman developed by taking some key features from
psychoanalytic approaches -- showed that prefrontal brain activity
normalizes with treatment.
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> Why plastic ? If thinking can change the brain structure, surely
the brain must be organic. How could plastic be restructured? How
could plastic be affected by thought? Makes no sense to me.
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> With regard to the development of the brain i had also read :-
"Some of the neurotransmitters involved in schizophrenia include
dopamine, glutamate and serotonin..............Functions such as
attention, memory, and language depend on complex interactions
between cells and different parts of the brain. Specific processing
can be specialized to one area but the overall function depends on
the co-ordination of several different brain areas......These
connections form in a very systematic way as the brain develops. -
(pp.15-16 "Mind, Brain, and Schizophrenia" by Peter Williamson MD;
University of Western Ontario, Canada, Oxford University Press 2006).
Brain development does not stop at birth. In fact, myelinisation goes
on well into adolescence and early adulthood (Benes et al., 1994).
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> This now begs the question, if thoughts can develop the brain can
thoughts also attack and kill off grey matter?
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> Also read, from a paper by Neurophilosopher Patricia Churchland -
"Consciousness is almost certainly a property of the physical brain.
The major mystery, however, is how neurons achieve effects such as
being aware of toothache or the smell of cinnamon".
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> I agree, it appears to me that the brain must have some form of
consciousness as it interacts and can be restructured (rewired) by
thought. Perhaps wired is an inappropriate term as it implies a
merely mechanical function. As the brain continually developes
through differing experiences, ( surely it must be organic. If
consciousness is a property of the brain, whom defines the thoughts
that develop the brain? If thoughts/feelings can alter brain
chemistry and brain chemistry can alter not only the physical form,
but also thinking, then there must be a subject that experiences,
thinks, and feels and an entity of brain matter that also
experiences, thinks, and feels with interaction between both. Is this
the Jungian distinction between the Self and ego self?
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> Love & Hugs
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> Elaine
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well its one of the most primary questions u have put forward... let
me take it in my way a bit. cosmollogically nothing except change is
parmanant as well biologiclly its true that change is a constant yet
we can experiment on one thing that is about the feelings of diffrent
kinds in our persons and we see/experience that pain is not a
constant same is with delight, sorrows and happiness are not
parmanant dweller of one's being, but yet again there is a dweller
and only one of all dwellers that is parmanantly there who sees,
observes and experiences every happening wether its the stress,
distress, joy or sorrow, happiness or pain or even thoughts of all
types all are being observed otherwise there would be no question of
observing because while one thing in the process of a parmanant
change cant never ever obsevre another thing of the same catagory.
that can be called the unmoved subject or you can it the pure
consciousness or the SELF.

love 4 all
abhi