If our brain is able to build new circuits and repair itself, why aren’t we all geniuses, highly successful, and living an effortless life?
Neuroscience’s answer to this question is that our brain’s greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. Because our brain is self-building, if chemicals, drugs, or trauma cause damage before or after birth, or our childhood was especially challenging physically or emotionally, our brain will likely begin to create performance circuits that are weak, inefficient, or even inappropriate for what we want or need to do in later life. From a “real world” perspective, this means that what was a rather minor or insignificant physical injury or emotional incident early in life can produce a serious attention, learning, or emotional problem in later life. Everything can seem to be going along quite well for the child who fell off a slide at age two – until she or he starts school and has to sit quietly, or later, needs to learn to read or do math problems. Then, it is discovered that the minor incident or accident was not so minor after all. The brain problem, like compound interest, has mul
