The ACG (Anterior Cingulate Gyrus) is the brain’s gear shift. It shifts between our thoughts and feelings and transitions us from task to task. The Basal Ganglia (BG) is the brain’s pleasure awareness. But more than that, it determines how much energy and focus we give to each task. So, the Basal Ganglia is the idle/thrust companion to the ACG’s gear shift. When we’re looking forward to a task we’re more likely to give it our all (high energy and better focus). And when we’re dreading a task, it tends to be the reverse (low energy and easily distracted). These two parts of the brain act as our brain’s control panel, specifically for executive functioning. When the control panel is humming, we stay motivated and focused.
Both parts of the brain affect each other. So, a “well-oiled” gear shift (ACG) ensures we have an “open valve” (Basal Ganglia), and vice versa. However, when our gear shift is stuck, we tend to have a blocked valve, and the spiral into executive dysfunction (Trauma Glossary 2) begins. The Control Panel (ACG and Basal Ganglia) acts as the “messenger” between four other parts of the brain listed and defined in Trauma Glossary 3 (Brain and Body on Trauma). So, how these two are working together at any given time has a major impact on what sort of messages the other parts of the brain are receiving and how they will respond.
The Brain’s Gear Shift: ACG (Anterior Cingulate Gyrus)
When the ACG is humming, we can transition from task to task without feeling overwhelmed or confused. Thoughts and feelings aren’t stuck on the last task, and we are better able to move forward into the next. This also ensures we’re open to “plan B’s” when faced with setbacks or inconveniences in our routine. Can we adapt when plans change, or will we feel powerless because of an overreliance of one method for doing things?
A stuck ACG has been linked with OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) and addictions. This does not mean that only those with OCD or addictions have a stuck ACG. A stuck gear shift simply means that we have no stop signal. Our brains won’t register that we have had enough. Ulysses S. Grant is a great example of a stuck ACG. He’s notorious for his struggles with alcohol. Though he was not a daily drinker, he just couldn’t stop drinking once he started.
Ruminating or looping (Trauma Glossary 2) is another sign of a stuck ACG. We know where we are now, but our thoughts and feelings are stuck in a past event, either recent or long ago. Focusing on the next task is next to impossible, and that’s how we lose our motivation.
The Brain’s Pleasure Awareness: Basal Ganglia
GABA is a hormone that calms the nervous system. The Basal Ganglia is its storage house and it’s responsible for releasing GABA into the system. If you’ve ever heard of the importance of gratitude lists, the Basal Ganglia is the biological science behind its therapeutic effect. After all, it’s our pleasure awareness. So, any awareness of what’s good in our lives is enough to trigger the release of GABA. This boosts our morale, which improves our energy and focus.
When it’s humming along with the ACG, we can tolerate the less pleasant tasks because we understand it’s temporary. We can also transition out of an activity that is pleasurable with the same understanding. It’s knowing that all things, including the pleasurable ones, must come to an end and being okay with that.
A blocked Basal Ganglia can’t release GABA. No wonder one of the main symptoms of a blocked Basal Ganglia is pessimism, since symptoms of a GABA deficiency are anxiety, depression, and a poor attention span. But that’s just the beginning.
A blocked Basal Ganglia and a stuck ACG means a faulty Control Panel. Having no stop signal (stuck ACG) and a blocked pleasure awareness (Basal Ganglia)? We tend to rely on one thing that works or brings us some semblance of pleasure and then go “all in” with it. But too much of a good thing ceases to be good for us. The Basal Ganglia is the one that supplies the ACG with energy per tasks. So, drain the pleasure, we simultaneously drain the energy and end up numbing our emotions. And if that isn’t a habit that prevents our biological science from improving, we also have the spirals into executive dysfunction to worry about. That’s because of the other parts of the brain they are messaging.
A Mindfulness Tool: If You Can Catch Yourself in the Act, You Can Stop Your Spiral
Check out the top portion of the visual aid below. Notice the number of arrows going to and from the Control Panel (the ACG and Basal Ganglia working together). Those are all pathways or “messages” the Control Panel is sending and receiving. Add to it the relevance of what parts of the brain are sending and receiving information from the Control Panel. Did you know that there are three parts of the brain that must be online (grounded and present) before we start healing from our trauma? Those three parts are: Timekeeper, Watchtower, and Thalamus.
Taking a break or finding a distracting activity when we catch ourselves in the act of a spiral into executive dysfunction is the fastest and most effective way to get our Control Panel humming again. Because as humans, we aren’t meant for flitting from one task to another without some sort of “buffer period” in between.
One more tool and some additional resources
First, all parts of the brain can be found in Trauma Glossary 3 (here).
Second, if you want more information on the Thalamus, Timekeeper, and Watchtower, and why they are the most important parts of the brain for healing trauma, that article is here.
Finally, I hope this article helps broaden your perspective on not just the importance of taking breaks, but also opening yourself up to new experiences. Allow the space for two or more hobbies, for example. That may not seem like much, but you’re giving yourself tools for managing your executive levels. Since the solution is taking a break or finding a distracting activity, your hobbies have the power to help your pleasure awareness (basal ganglia). And you will have “multiple choice” options (ACG), so that if one hobby isn’t working, you can fall back on the other.