Learning, Rhythm and Feelings

This is an excerpt of a paper entitled 'Learning, Rhythm and Feelings' that I wrote for a research seminar in the Dublin Institute of Technology. One of the themes in the paper was that more efficient learning takes place when the learner is in a positive frame of mind and feels good. For example, when we recall a memory (usually triggered by the emotion that was encoded along with the memory in the brain) we also remember how we felt at the time of the memory (or event). This poses no problem for us when the emotion was a happy one. What EFT can do is help with the unhappy or uncomfortable emotions stored along with the memory of a particular event(s). We never forget the events but the emotional charge is dissolved. This is the beauty of EFT. This is also the reason why EFT is more effective when we are "tuned into" the emotion.

'Contrary to commonly held myths such as we only use ten percent of our brain, we now know that the brain functions (w)holistically, albeit in a more complex way than what was originally imagined and known. Imaging research has identified and nominated various regions in the brain where the processing, creation and storage of long-term memories occurs. The processing and subsequent storage of these memories is directly related to, and depends to a large extent, on the emotions and feelings present at the time of learning, both positive and negative. During PET scans, electrical activity in the amygdalae, and the presence of certain hormones, suggest that an emotional message is encoded when a memory is being processed for long-term storage. Memories are reconstructed during recall, so it stands to reason that the brain will later (re)construct and (re)call these memories with greater ease, if the memories have been presented for storage as an assortment of multi-modal material embedded with emotional messages.' - Noreen Barron.