Good and bad brain habits, naming your brain, brain envy, and more, with
best-selling author and world-renowned psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Amen.
I am absolutely thrilled to be writing to you all after chatting with the incredible Dr. Daniel
Amen! As someone who has struggled with mental health and has been treated in the past
for BPD, anxiety, depression, etc., I was so excited to share the mic with a specialist and really
dive into all things brain health.
Dr. Daniel Amen is a physician, founder of Amen Clinics and BrainMD, double board-certified
psychiatrist, and twelve-time New York Times bestselling author. He’s done over 200,000 brain
scans on patients from 150+ different countries and is the brain doctor for some of the world’s
most well-known celebrities like Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Bella Hadid, Kendall Jenner, and
more. Dr. Amen shared so much great information with us on his episode about how you can
improve your brain health, so be sure to give it a listen at the link below. But for now, let’s dive
into a few of the many tips and takeaways from the show.
First, let’s talk about brain envy and what it even means
In the same way we have envy for things we consider “better” that drives us to do things like
get work on our bodies done or upgrade our wardrobes, Dr. Amen encourages us to have
brain envy and constantly pursue better brain health.
He plugs a study done in the NFL that proves 80% of NFL players who go through a brain
rehabilitation program see improvements in their brain health and any damage caused to
them by playing the sport, noting how exciting it is that there’s proof you can put your brain in
a healing environment and will see improvement the vast majority of the time.
With that being said, you can always improve your brain health; you just have to have brain
envy and strive to want better for yourself and your brain daily. In other words, you really have
to care about your health, and you should!
Okay, so how do I begin to care about my brain health?
I had the same question for Dr. Amen. We dive deep into his answer on the show, but I’ll share
a snippet of what he had to say here. For starters, there are good and bad brain habits —
habits that improve your brain health and habits that are detrimental to it.
If you’ve been listening along for some time now, I’m sure you might’ve guessed what sits at
the top of the bad habits list. That’s right, alcohol.
The brain scans of heavy drinkers show a significantly reduced amount of overall blood flow
to the brain, which is crazy because your brain uses 20% of the blood in your body, and it’s
critical for healthy brain function. When blood flow levels are low, it can lead to a long list of
problems—brain fog, poor decision-making, trouble concentrating, and more. So, reducing
that alcohol intake will directly impact your brain for the better.
The same goes for other drugs and substances like nicotine and marijuana, and you might’ve
guessed this one, too — sugar and caffeine, but we’ll get into that later.
For now, let’s talk about digital addictions
Dr. Amen tells us that we are lonelier now than ever before, even though we’re more
“connected” because it’s hard to have a relationship with another person when gadgets have
hijacked your brain, not to mention the adverse effects of the blue light from your phone,
tablet, and TV. Especially after dark, blue light turns off melatonin production, so you’re not
getting the well-rested sleep you need.
Get into those good brain habits
This doesn’t have to be as complicated as it might seem. Start simple. With every decision
you make, ask yourself: Is this good or bad for my brain? Every time you say “no,” try to swap
for a more brain-friendly habit. Are you reaching for coffee #3? Let’s think about it. Are you
staying up late and scrolling mindlessly while in bed? Let’s swap it for a book or mediation.
This reframes your mindset and can positively affect your day-to-day life.
Naming your brain
I realize it sounds a bit wild, but I promise Dr. Amen is really going somewhere with this one. He
suggests, “Giving your mind a name to create psychological distance from your thoughts.
Why? Because you are not your mind’s noise.” He even named his own mind after his
“mischievous pet raccoon” as a reminder that while thoughts can be wild and unpredictable,
they don’t define who he is.
Creating that separation allows you to give yourself space for your thoughts and view them
without judgment as if you were speaking to a friend. This makes more room for improvement
on the negative thoughts and creates space for positive ones.
Lastly, let’s chat about good and bad foods for your brain.
Dr. Amen suggests that when it comes to nourishment, it’s clear — what’s good for the body is
good for the brain. Salmon, avocados, nuts, and green leafy veggies top the list of
brain-boosting foods, among other high-fat and protein options. He even shares an
interesting stat from a study at Mayo Clinic, where people who have a healthy fat-based diet
have a 42% less risk of getting Alzheimer’s disease.
And what to avoid? Starchy, processed, sugary foods, red dye, and anything that might cause
inflammation or oxidative stress.
Having Dr. Amen on the show was so eye-opening and shocking at what we put our brains
through regularly and such a great reminder that our choices and habits can impact our
health negatively or positively in the long run, depending on the decisions we make now.
I can’t even begin to get into half of the valuable information Dr. Amen shared with me on our
episode together, so make sure you give it a listen below if you want more brain tips and to
hear about other interesting topics like the impact that fame has on the brain, the effects of
caffeine on sleep even if you drink it in the morning, and so much more!