Dr. Taylor’s brother’s schizophrenia diagnosis inspired her to research the mental illness to fully understand what parts of the brain are different in her brothers, compared to someone with no schizophrenia or related illness. To conduct research they had to map out the microcircuitry of the brain, where the cells transport and communicate with each other. It’s fascinating to hear the speaker reference a computer when describing the functions of each half of the brain, and how the left sides of our brains have a completely different purpose than the right side, similar to the right and left click on a computer mouse. The right side tells us where we are in the moment, what is happening around us and to us. On a different note, the left hemisphere is in the past while in the future simultaneously, and I learned that the left half is constantly calculating and reminding. It feels as if the speaker had a bitter-sweet experience with her brain hemorrhage, because as she describes the intense gripping on and off her brain she is being transported into a state of mind with no loud brain chatter or connection to the outside world. it’s interesting to hear that those moments were blissful and peaceful, and it makes me think about, wow, how often we rely on our left hemisphere between talking to ourselves all throughout the day, keeping ourselves alert with tasks, and everything in between! She spreads a powerful message that when needed, it’s important to step into your right hemisphere specifically and to live in the present moment, while giving yourself grace. I think the more we learn about what happens inside our brains when we get mad, happy, sad, anxious, etc, we can also choose which hemisphere we need to dial into to better decide how we handle and interpret a situation.