We usually don't notice that we are not one but two separate people. A right and a left that communicate at a couple of crossover points. The full extent of their independence is only obvious when we look closely. These exercises open a window into our duality and expand awareness of the body.
The two hemispheres of the brain (really two separate brains operating in tandem) talk to each other through the corpus callosum and anterior commissure. They can cooperate, compete for control or take it in turns. If they become separated by injury or illness they no longer know what each other are doing.
Handedness (the division of tasks between the right and left sides of the brain) enables two quite different kinds of tasks to be performed at the same time in coordination with each other.
Each side is a specialist. The dominant or preferred side (the left side of the brain in right-handed people) handles detail and routines. The non-dominant (non-preferred) side detects overall patterns. The non dominant hand responds quicker than the dominant.
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| Ideas – stories - idea of self | Rhythm, music, visual learning, hearing, decoding vocal intonation. |
| diagnosis –explanations - philosophy | Noticing threats and patterns - context - perspective |
| Sensory motor cortex | |
| maintains images of the RHS of the body | Maintains images of the RHS and LHS of the body |
| Memories stored in detail – single items- words |
Memory stored as over all patterns |
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Medium and long term memory - auditory learning. |
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| cingulate gyrus | |
| Over active – rage | Over active – depression |
| prefrontal cortex | |
| Positive emotions – happiness | Negative emotions - anxiety disgust |
| parietal lobe | |
| Verbal and symbolic memory | Non-verbal memory |
| hippocampus | |
| Positive expectations | Negative expectations |
| Processing and attending to verbal information | Learning, memory and recollection of non-verbal, visual-spatial, environmental, emotional, motivational, tactile, olfactory, and facial information |
| Complex routes – spatial locations | Deja vue and dream-like hallucinations |
A dog wags their tail on the side opposite to the hemisphere of the brain that is currently active. So you can tell if they are responding to friends or threats.
The activity of the human face is asymmetric each side reflecting what is happening within the other side of the brain. Likewise the inclination of the head.
gender differences
- Female brain hemispheres are more connected through a larger corpus callosum so men tend use a small area of the brain, on just one side, for a particular task while women typically use both hemispheres and more of the brain.
- Women use the right and left hemispheres to process language. Men mostly use the left.
- The anterior commissure (nerves connecting the right and left amygdala and inferior temporal lobes) is 38% larger in females than males on average. This contributes to sex differences in language, emotion, and maternal vs paternal behavior. Thus the female emotional system is usually more hardwired to talk and be aware.
integrating
Binaural meditation (explained on the mind pages) is used to integrate right and left hemispheres by working together to resolve the pitch of a sound.
The predominance of right and left hemispheres of dancers alternates many times a minute as they shift between planning and moving. Much more rapidly than those who do not perform complex planned movements.
Yoga, Tai Chi, posture, bodywork, massage and Feldenkrais exercises help bring the right and left sides into balance.
examples of exploring handedness
I you hold a mirror on the vertical mid-line of a picture of a face (or your own face in a mirror) you see just one side and its reflection. This shows the the emotional expression of the opposite side of the brain. Or look at each side of someones face separately – perhaps using a sheet of paper to hide the other side.
Notice the differences between hearing with the right and left ear. And breathing through the right and left nostril.
Experiment with using the right and left hand for tasks.
Block out the left fields of a pair of glasses and look straight ahead so that only the right side of the brain is receiving a visual input.. And then the right fields. There is a difference in state of consciousness
Experimenting with touch and sensation.
- Imagine a line drawn along the surface of the body dividing it into halves. Or visualise an invisible and imaginary plane (a bit like a plate of glass but not actually existing) dividing the body into a right half and a left half.
- Notice the difference between the right and left sides.
Sit comfortably in a chair with legs uncrossed.
- take it in turns to move each side separately
- notice the difference in control
notice the difference in sensations between the right and left sides.
then
- the left hand touches the right knee
- the left hand touches the left knee
then
- the right hand touches the left knee
- the right hand touches the right knee
and notice the differences
now try them at the same time
- the right hand touches the left knee
- the left hand touches the right knee
and
- the left hand touches the left knee
- the right hand touches the right knee
For each of these actions notice the differences throughout the body and sense where the actions are being planned and where the sensations are being processed.
Notice the difference between the feelings in the hands, feelings in the face and the feelings in the knee and hand and the difference between touching the same side and the opposite sides. Differences in the temperature and sharpness or dullness of the touch
Now notice the difference in balance and posture of the whole body after it has just had a little feedback from interaction between its right and left. Is there any change in the difference between the right and left sides.
And try some different combinations. And notice a growing awareness of the difference between the left and right and how they work together.
Each side is associated with particular kinds of thoughts, sensations and feelings.