Lynda Shaw on the Brain Benefits of Common Decency

Last year I had a meeting in Fulham, London.  I parked my car and walked through a small park to get to the street I needed.

As I hurried along in my high heels concentrating that I didn’t slip on the falling leaves, I noticed a rather dirty looking man lying on a bench asleep.  On the ground next to him were three carrier bags that looked as if they contained some old rags.

I kept walking.

I went out of the gate, had my meeting and went back through the park.

The man was still there, he hadn’t moved.

I kept walking.

I was just about to leave the park the other side when I stopped.  I turned round and walked back past the sleeping man, back out of the park and found a small supermarket.  I bought a sandwich and an orange juice.

Yet again I entered the park.  I very quietly approached the sleeping man.  The last thing I wanted was for him to awake startled, especially if he was sleeping off the effects of alcohol.  I gently put the food and drink by his head and carried on back to my car.

For sometime I said nothing about this.  But some months later I was giving a talk on altruism and kindness and decided this story would help illustrate a point.  This is why I’m typing these words now – to illustrate a point.

The point is, after this encounter, I felt good for several days.  I did what we teach our children to do, to care for one another.

I know a bit about brains.  So I know that one of the reasons I felt good after this was because all those wonderful, free neurotransmitters were working their magic in my head.  Because doing something for someone else without expecting anything in return is the best way to put our brain in the finest possible state.

It’s funny how science now ‘gives us permission’ to practice common decency.

Lynda Shaw is a cognitive neuroscientist specialising in consciousness and emotion. She will be leading an event around understanding depression at The School of Life in January.  For more details click here.  www.drlyndashaw.com

Comments

[Algernon P. Hornswaggle]

Don't feed the monkeys! (they like soul-food best.)