It has been estimated that about 40-45% of what we do each day is habitual although as we shall see this may depend on the characteristics of an individual’s make up and experience.
In the main habits are really useful learnt routines sometimes involving quite intricate behaviors and/or complex skills which help us to operate effectively every day. Without them our brains would quickly become overwhelmed by the minutiae of day to day life.
For example: if you think about how you start a normal day and go through 5 or 6 of your normal routines from waking up, to getting washed, showering, dressing, making and having breakfast and then getting to work or getting the kids to school, how many of them do you have to consciously think about doing? Imagine suddenly finding a toothbrush in your hand and having to ask yourself what to do next!
Some of us create habits more often than others. We have a preference for routine and the certainty of doing the same things habitually: we are literally ‘creatures of habit’. This can be both a strength and a weakness, the latter because we may, sometimes unconsciously, resist changing familiar but unhelpful or ‘dysfunctional’ routines.
As we shall see later, the habit process or routine becomes ‘reactive’ to a given trigger or cue, whether the trigger is a sensory stimulus or one related to time or environment. Therefore visual and other cues are important both in terms of forming and in changing habits.
We learn a new habit by repetition over time. We start the habit learning process at a very young age. Genes and neurochemical integrity are important in terms of how, how often and when we learn habits. This may be why some children and adolescents are susceptible to learning some unhealthy habits, for example those associated with eating disorders or substance abuse. Although these may be unhelpful, limiting or potentially destructive, they can be difficult to change.
Our brains have the potential to learn, remember and behave outside our conscious control. Although we can carry out repetitive behaviours without being able to remember why, and we might not remember the experiences which created them, once they are lodged in the brain they influence how we act or react on a day to day basis.
When a habit is learnt the mind stops participating in the decision making. It doesn’t have to because the brain unconsciously, rapidly and automatically carries out the actions needed to achieve the outcome which it is designed to deliver.
So habits take the thinking out of a particular routine and allow our unconscious mind get on with it. In fact the speed of the neurochemical circuitry associated with habitual processes is much faster than those which we carry out consciously and deliberately. When the new routine has been learnt there is a measurable change in brain imaging activity which correlates with this unconscious efficiency.
This has led to the comment that when a habit process has been learnt, the unconscious reactions are beyond our control; in other words we don’t really have ‘free will’. We will be looking at some of the research evidence that underlies this comment and also the importance of choice. The choice relates both to how we respond to a given stimulus, but even more importantly how we choose not to respond. This power of vetoing brain circuit activity is sometimes called ‘free won’t’. We will show you how to use this in the H4H strategy for change.
The brain doesn’t differentiate between a habit which is good or bad, useful or not. At some stage there is likely to have been something positive to be gained by learning a particular routine or pattern of behaviour. Even habits which may adversely affect our health and well-being such as overeating or OCD, deliver some sort of reward. Indeed rewards and reinforcement are allies in the process of learning behaviours we should learn and in maintaining their efficacy.
The reward/reinforcement may be a positive or pleasurable feeling resulting from satisfying a craving; or a reduction in the anxiety which would result if we don’t complete specific (compulsive) behaviours to neutralize an obsession. This is despite part of us ‘knowing’ it is not logical, rational or good for our health.
Indeed once established some habits are so strong we cling on them at the expense of our health and well-being. As we shall see later, areas in within our brains called amygdala are constantly monitoring our brain processes for any threats or potential change. This ‘fear’ of change can override common sense, one of the ‘executive functions’ of the pre-frontal cortex of the brain. ‘Waking up’ and reinforcing the ‘executive’ element of our brain function can be an important part of overcoming this fear and achieving change; we will show you how to do this.
Any beliefs associated with a habit can significantly influence the ease with which the change can take place. Belief is an important ingredient both in terms of changing a chronic non-useful behaviour and in making a new rewired habit loop a permanent one.
Beliefs are thoughts which we selectively reinforce (frequently) by collecting evidence which supports them. I am mindful of a client who had spent much of her life worrying that she was ill. Although she wasn’t ‘ill’ she spent every day habitually reinforcing the belief that she was.
A key question here: “Is it possible for me to make the change I want?” Continuing to believe it is impossible to change habitual behaviour may lead to an inner conflict between stopping what we ‘don’t’ want and achieving what we want to put in its place. For habits to change permanently we must believe that change is possible and reinforce this frequently.
In the H4H strategy for change we highlight the importance of preparation and readiness to challenge limiting or destructive beliefs. Related to this and of equal importance is feedback, our ability to manage our self-talk creatively and compassionately.
Remember if learning a new habit and/or unlearning an old one is something you don’t really want to do, or the desire is not deep enough in terms of your values and commitment, then you may find yourself doing struggle along the way.
Part 2 deals with Habitual patterns: a spectrum of learned behaviour.
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