Living in a world with so much uncertainty, and overwhelming amounts of information available at the touch of a finger, feeds directly into feeling a lack of control and consequently, dread and anxiety.
What does it take to learn how to access the state of mind which feels calm, peaceful, open, and loving? Join us as we explore the evolutionary origins of the nervous system to gain insight into achieving this way of being. Understanding that we possess BOTH the primitive “fight or flight” mechanisms on which we depend for survival, AND the vast realms of our conscious mind enabling thought and imagination, is an important first step in this journey.
Born naive to the outside world, and operating with an innate drive to attach to others, our nervous system is ready to fire and wire-up according to the information presented to us. Realizing that our brains are social organs, built on experience, allows us to explore the genesis of our personal narrative. We see that our early experiences chiefly inform that narrative and that these are “stories we tell ourselves,” and not necessarily how we need (or want) to define ourselves. Further elucidating the role that narrative plays in our nervous system, we gain perspective and objectivity, ultimately being able to rewrite the story of who we are, and allowing us to move forward as the author of our own life.
Bio
Dr. Mary Meador is a Board Certified Family Physician in private practice, currently focused on mental and behavioral health. Drawing on Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB: the science of what it means to be human), she teaches and writes, helping health care professionals and others to understand their inner lives with more clarity, and how to use that knowledge to enhance relationships with others. She serves on the GAINS Board of Directors where, on the Education Team, she conducts monthly webinars. For six years she taught The Science of IPNB for the IPNB Certificate Program at Portland Community College and Portland State University. Mary received her MD from Weill Cornell Medical College and did her residency in Family Medicine at Oregon Health Sciences University. She enjoys life in Bend, Oregon with her husband and two dogs.