In a past conversation a woman commented on her grown up daughter’s ‘abnormal’ behaviour. I knew her daughter and my comment to her just slipped off of my tongue without thought;  “My children’s brains all work differently”. Having experienced many brain chemistry and brain function challenges personally in the past, and as a mother of five; I had a front row seat to a diverse range of mood and behaviour changes over many years. I use the image above to help remind me and my clients that members of the same family can have profound differences in brain function and chemistry, not necessarily mental illness, that are sometimes interpreted as ‘ridiculous’ or ‘unacceptable’ behaviour. There are of course extremes in mood and behaviour changes that are considered mental illness and require the help of a qualified professional.

If you or a friend or family member have every had any mental health or mood challenges you know that holiday seasons can magnify the differences in ability to understand, perceive, interact, decision make, function ‘normally’ and cope. Even without qualifying with a mental health diagnosis, a person’s normal brain function can be altered by a number of factors or triggers. Why is one family member so affected by changes that another is not?  Family dynamics are the patterns of relating, or interactions, between family members.  How do you work with the challenges that individual brain function and chemistry differences bring to family dynamics? Understanding the factors that affect brain function and chemistry can help.

Every person’s way of feeling and thinking and responding is based on a unique combination of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual factors. Day to day changes to your ‘normal’ life can translate into changes in brain function and chemistry.

The holidays are a perfect example of how seemingly inconsequential factors can trigger a change in brain function and chemistry and subsequent mood and ability to cope or carry on. Do you notice a change in your brain function, ability to cope and mood during the holidays? Does a tune like ‘I’ll be home for Christmas’ or a happy Christmas movie trigger sadness due to the absence or loss of a loved one, possibly during the Christmas season?

Change in time zones, sleep interruptions, insomnia, stressors, lack of exercise or down time, life imbalance, grief and trauma all have the capacity to alter normal brain function and brain chemistry.

Restoring ‘normal’ brain function and chemistry can be accomplished by correcting the factors responsible for the upheaval and compensating for the chaos by adding in correcting and restorative measures.  Changing the valuation that your body and mind have given to past and present factors can change the way you respond physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. You can learn about these in my books THE WHOLE PERSON WELL-BEING EQUATION and DEPRESSION: Gone.

Elisabeth Hines, C.N.C., C.B.P., Holistic Wellness Practitioner, www.mybodycanhealitself.ca

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