Our Brain as a Liberation Technology: how to free our mind from our past - Mindset Neuroscience Podcast

Mindset Neuroscience Podcast Summary

Episode: Our Brain as a Liberation Technology: how to free our mind from our past
Host: Stefanie Faye
Date: July 30, 2025

Overview of the Episode

In this brief solo episode, Stefanie Faye offers a science-based exploration of neuroplasticity and trauma recovery, highlighting actionable strategies to enhance resilience, self-regulation, and innovation through understanding how the brain can be rewired. Drawing from her background in neuroscience, trauma research, and coaching, Stefanie discusses how trauma shapes brain-body circuitry and how intentional, embodied practices can help us update our "internal technology"—regardless of our past. The episode serves as an audio adaptation of her latest article, aiming to provide listeners with hope and practical tools during the podcast’s summer break.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Science of Trauma and Neuroplasticity

Trauma is not just a mental story:
- Trauma is described as “a pattern embedded into the circuitry of our brain body system.” ([02:14])
- It often manifests as “invisible patterns of stress or dysregulation or being stuck in old reactions.”
- Quote: “Neuroscience is showing us that the brain is not necessarily completely fixed by our past, but it can be actively shaped by what we do in the present.” ([02:47])
Trauma’s impact on the brain:
- Experiences such as “high-risk caregiving,” neglect, abuse, or tragedy can lead to overactive circuits related to “fear, vigilance and self-protection.” This can make calm and connection harder to access ([04:07]).

2. Neuroplasticity: Rewiring in Action

Brain patterns aren’t destiny:
- “These patterns don’t have to predict our destiny. Through intentional experiences, we can create new connections and help soften old ones.” ([04:52])
Importance of embodied change:
- Real, lasting change isn’t just about changing thoughts. “It’s not enough to simply think differently...Real change requires movement and engaging the body and the senses.” ([06:02])
- Movement, breathwork, and sensory awareness are necessary for effective nervous system regulation ([06:34]).

3. Science-Based Tools to Support Neuroplasticity

Stefanie offers a toolbox of strategies to support rewiring the brain and nervous system:

Micro Movements and Sensory Rituals
- Deliberately slowing breath and movements (e.g. hand gestures while talking, eating, typing).
- Noticing and pausing to sense bodily sensations—these are “pattern interrupts,” crucial for building new neural architecture ([08:24]).
- “This kind of deliberate and slower movement helps activate self-awareness related types of circuits in the brain and inhibitory control mechanisms...” ([08:37])
Social Safety and Attunement
- Safe, attuned relationships foster co-regulation via the brain’s social engagement system ([09:40]).
Curiosity and Play
- Engaging in play, creativity, and spontaneous social interaction activates approach-oriented networks, creating more openness and flexibility ([10:15]).
Consistency and Repetition
- “Patterned repetition” is the only way to build new neural circuits; the brain must “allocate resources” when something happens enough times ([12:07]).

4. Tracking Micro-Transformations: The Power of Incremental Change

Micro progress, victories, and wins:
- Growth happens in “tiny micro moments” and is fundamentally incremental, not all-or-nothing ([13:21]).
- Quote: “It is really good for activating motivational circuitry and the different neurochemicals that get us to feel a little bit more excited to keep trying and to keep getting up the next day and trying something else.” ([17:19])
Suggested experiment:
- Each day, notice a habitual reaction (to people, situations, thoughts or body sensations).
- Pause, ask what your body is telling you, and try a tiny shift (e.g. breath, movement) as a “pattern interrupt” ([14:31])
- Track mini-shifts to build evidence for self-efficacy and brain change.

Memorable Quotes

“Trauma is not simply a story stored in the mind. It’s a pattern embedded into the circuitry of our brain body system.” — Stefanie Faye ([02:15])
“The brain is not necessarily completely fixed by our past, but it can be actively shaped by what we do in the present.” ([02:47])
“It’s not enough to simply think differently. Real change requires movement and engaging the body and the senses.” ([06:02])
“Micro progress, micro victories, mini wins ... that is showing you that you are learning. Your brain body system is actually learning a new pattern.” ([13:41])
“The beauty of noticing micro progress is that it becomes self-reaffirming evidence that you are able to reshape your present and reshape some patterns.” ([16:47])

Timestamps for Significant Segments

00:09 – Short update, episode context, and summer break announcement
01:29 – Introduction to trauma as a brain-body pattern, not just a psychological story
04:07 – How trauma manifests in neural circuits and impacts everyday behavior/safety
06:02 – Embodiment and the limitations of “just thinking differently”
08:24 – Practical strategies: micro movements, breath, and the importance of slow, deliberate action
10:15 – Role of play, curiosity, and social interaction in brain rewiring
12:07 – The necessity of repetition and tracking micro-victories; the science of incremental change
14:31 – Reflective experiment: daily awareness and micro-pattern interrupts
17:19 – Motivational impact of noticing small shifts

Tone and Language

Stefanie’s tone throughout is gentle, exploratory, and supportive. She weaves science and actionable insight with encouragement, always emphasizing that meaningful change is possible through small, repeated actions, and that neuroscience offers real hope beyond simply “thinking positive.”

Episode Takeaways

Trauma is deeply embodied but, thanks to neuroplasticity, the brain and nervous system can be rewired with intention and repetition.
Small shifts matter – micro-movements and subtle experiments are foundational for long-term change.
Social safety, play, and movement are powerful regulators that support resilience and learning.
Track your micro-victories to build confidence and reinforce growth mindset.
The process is incremental and ongoing—but every small experiment counts.

For more resources, including articles and upcoming videos, check out Stefanie’s website and YouTube channel.

Transcript

A (0:09)

Welcome to the Mindset Neuroscience Podcast. This is just a quick update to let you know that we're taking a short summer break to work behind the scenes on a few things and the next podcast episode, full episode, will be late August and it will be on the theme of the science of self regulation and a new type of human. In the meantime, I will be releasing self regulation and super regulation videos on my YouTube channel, so those will be@YouTube.com stephaniefay and I thought I would just share an article that I released today to my audience through my email newsletter and it is about the science of neuroplasticity and particularly how we can overcome trauma and discover pathways to rebuilding our lives and rewiring our brains and nervous systems. Despite some of the things that might have happened in our past, Trauma is not simply a story stored in the mind. It's a pattern embedded into the circuitry of our brain body system. For many people, the effects of trauma linger as invisible patterns of stress or dysregulation or being stuck in old reactions. But as you've likely heard by now, and you've heard me say many times, neuroscience is showing us that the brain is not necessarily completely fixed by our past, but it can be actively shaped by what we do in the present. And this is the promise of neuroplasticity. It's our capacity to rewire patterns, even those that we have adopted or gained through our past experiences and our history. Decades of research show that our neural networks and our brain architecture are dynamic and responsive to experience. But after trauma, and this can be from a consistent exposure to chronic stress. And that can take the form of many different things. It can come in the form of different types of what is called high risk caregiving. Whether this comes from a space of neglect or abuse, it can come from tragedy and different events that happen in communities and in families and on very interpersonal levels in terms of violation of boundaries and also again, on the neglectful side of things. But after trauma, and it's not necessarily the event of trauma itself, but but also the existing architecture, the existing resources that exist within a person. Certain circuits, especially those that are related to fear, vigilance and self protection, can become very hyperactive and dominant. And this can make it harder for some people to access states of calm and regulation and connection. But these patterns don't have to predict our destiny. Through intentional experiences, we can create new connections and help soften old ones. As you've heard me reference many times, the work of many different trauma researchers, including Dr. Bessel van der Kolk demonstrate that trauma is held not just in memory, in the mind, but in the body and in the body's physiological responses. We also see that self directed neuroplasticity research can show us that when we engage in practices that combine things like mindful awareness, movement, breath, social connection and social support seeking, we can activate new neural circuits that can help us transcend our past. But as you've also heard me say many times, it's not enough to simply think differently. This is not just a mind thing, a conceptual thought process. Real change requires movement and engaging the body and the senses. And this is why embodied approaches like I mentioned with the movement and the breath and sensory awareness can be helpful for us to access new states of being. And in my work with coaches, leaders and professionals, I like to highlight how much the movement and the body are needed to help regulate and update our nervous system so that we can experience more safety and also more novelty. Because the two are very interrelated. And that can really help us unlock new kinds of activations of patterns in the brain that can be very helpful for us. So here are a few science backed strategies that can support neuroplasticity for updating our nervous system and our brain patterns to help us move through life in adaptive ways. So one is micro movements and sensory rituals really taking deliberate moments of slowing your breath, even slowing your hand movements, whether it's while we're communicating or eating or typing, and just noticing sensations, but then also pausing before we make our next move. This kind of deliberate and slower movement helps activate self awareness related types of circuits in the brain and inhibitory control mechanisms that are actually incredibly important for regulating our nervous system. This kind of deliberate movement, an intentional movement, is a pattern interrupt. It interrupts our automatic patterns and that interruption is part of how we grow brains and grow new architecture. We also can engage in social safe relationships that are attuned and that can help us activate circuits related to our brain body's social engagement system. And this can really help us co regulate our nervous systems with others. Another practice to think about to insert into life is curiosity and play. So the more we do things where there is no serious consequence to what we are doing, we are getting fully immersed in the activity. We are engaging our social engagement system with our voice, our face, our hands, our body movement. And there's a spontaneity and flexibility to all of that. Those are great ways to also regulate our nervous system. Play and curiosity are very approach oriented and so that those are different networks in our brain body system that help us stay open to the moment. And that can be again a pattern interrupt from being very closed off or restricted due to vigilance and defensiveness and self protection. And the last thing to say about all of those, whether we're talking about these micro movements and intentional sensory awareness and slowing down in movement, or we're talking about our social connections or curiosity in play, is it requires consistence. The only way to truly build new neural architecture over time is it requires patterned repetition. The brain requires that things happen enough times for it to allocate new resources to building these more established patterns and circuits. A reflective experiment is mapping your micro transformations. And I talk about micro progress, micro victories, mini wins a lot because this is also part of growth mindset. It's incremental. So it was originally called incremental theory. It's about noticing movement and transformation and progress in tiny micro moments, because that's how they occur. They don't occur in a zero to one kind of fashion. They happen incrementally over time. So we need to make some of the effort to be able to notice micro moments that seem a little bit new, that seem a little bit more updated or different than they were before. That is showing you that you are learning that your brain body system is actually learning a new pattern. So choose one moment each day this week to notice a usual reaction you have. Maybe it's how you respond to a particular person, how you breathe during certain moments of the day, whether it's during a meeting or first thing when you wake up in the morning before you go to bed, or the types of thoughts, maybe negative thoughts that are occurring or tension in your body somewhere. Choose one of those moments where you know that you can get a little bit stuck in something that doesn't feel great to you. Choose one of those moments each day this week and just pause and ask in a sense what your body might be telling you and what tiny movement or tiny breath could you offer as an alternative, as a pattern interrupt? Just ask that question. You don't even have to have it decided yet, just see what comes up when that happens and track these micro shifts over time. These little embodied acts can become the foundation for new neural pathways. And the beauty of noticing micro progress is that it becomes self reaffirming evidence that you are able to reshape your present and reshape some patterns. It's not the cure all for everything, but it's something small. And it's very helpful for us to know that there is even the tiniest shred of evidence that we are capable of improving something about our lives. It is really good for activating motivational circuitry and the different neurochemicals that get us to feel a little bit more excited to keep trying and to keep getting up the next day and trying something else. I hope something in there is helpful for you and I have quite a few related resources and they are listed on the article that I released today. So there's a bunch of stuff on trauma and healing, intergenerational trauma, and a few different related articles on movement and breathing and brain waves. I encourage you to go to my YouTube channel so you can get some of the videos that I will be releasing and throughout the fall I will release a few more regularly. Some of them are ones that I recorded last year but just didn't post. So I'll be putting some of those up and recording new ones and I will be having a free workshop September 9th September so just check out my website. I don't have the page up just yet, but I will send it to all the email subscribers when the registration is open. So you can go to stephanie fay.com anywhere you see where you can add yourself to the email newsletter. You will get updates on that workshop and you can also go to a new landing page I have for a lot of my different resources and that is courses. C o u r s e s.stephaniefay s t e F A N I e f a y-e.com so thanks again for all your support for this podcast and the next episode will be up in late August.