2025 was a big year for the female brain — and on this episode of Wellness Big Sis the Pod, Dr. Kelsy Vick breaks down the most impactful neuroscience-backed lessons we covered this year.

From the truth behind Lucky Girl Syndrome to how motivation and discipline fluctuate across the menstrual cycle, this episode connects the dots between hormones, dopamine, goal-setting, gratitude, friendships, and pain. We revisit why consistency is easier when goals are tied to identity, how gratitude reshapes the brain, why female friendships affect health differently than male friendships, and why pain is better understood as a brain output rather than a body input.

If you’re heading into the New Year wanting to understand your brain, your cycle, and your goals on a deeper level — this episode brings it all together.

All referenced episodes are linked below.

87:: The neuroscience of pain https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/copy-of-pod-83-pain/

85:: The science of gratitude https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/85-the-science-of-gratitude-using-gratitude-to-rewire-your-brain/

84:: The neuroscience behind Lucky Girl Syndrome https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/copy-of-img-3569/

82:: Female Friendships https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/pod-82/ 

80:: Consistency & Goal-Setting  https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/80-/ 

79:: Motivation & Discipline https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/copy-of-pod-79-motivation-and-discipline/ 

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00:00- 00:17 Intro

00:18- 00:34 Introduction and Overview of 2025

00:35- 01:14 Exploring Lucky Girl Syndrome

01:15- 02:25 The Reticular Activating System: Your Brain's Filter

02:26- 04:00 Neuroscience Behind Affirmations and Action

04:01- 05:00 Female Brain and Motivation Across Cycles

05:01- 09:29 Discipline and the Prefrontal Cortex

09:30- 12:18 Maximizing Motivation and Discipline

12:19- 18:56 Consistency and Goal Setting

18:57- 22:50 The Science of Gratitude

22:51- 25:15 Female Friendships and Health

25:16- 31:56 Understanding Pain as an Output

31:57- 32:41 Conclusion and Wrap-Up

2025 has been quite the year.

2

We've covered so many cool things.

3

It was hard for me to choose some

of our top moments, but let's take

4

a look back on 2025 and the episodes

where we covered the female brain.

5

Welcome back to Wellness Big Sis the Pod.

6

I'm your host, Dr.

7

Kelsey Vic, a board

certified orthopedic Dr.

8

Physical Therapy, and a pelvic

floor physical therapist.

9

And one of my top favorite moments,

and one that has really actually

10

changed how I am going to approach

different goals and really manifestation

11

tactics in the new year was our

episode on Lucky Girl Syndrome and the

12

neuroscience behind Lucky Girl Syndrome.

13

What's fact?

14

What's fiction?

15

We took a deep dive into the research

and learned all there is to know about.

16

The truth behind Lucky Girl Syndrome

and how to apply the neuroscience behind

17

Lucky Girl syndrome into our own lives.

18

Speaking of the brain, let's talk

about a very key component in

19

Lucky Girl syndrome and in just

filtering out certain information

20

that we're presented with every day.

21

Let's talk about the reticular activating

system, which is like your brain's filter.

22

So it's a network of nerve pathways

in the brainstem, and it acts As your

23

brain's gatekeeper for information.

24

So we are presented with so much

information throughout the day and moment

25

by moment, even the temperature, even

little particles of air that pass over us.

26

We are presented with all of that

information and the reticular activating

27

system helps us decide what to focus on.

28

So when you affirm that I'm lucky or good

things happen to me, or opportunities

29

come my way, the RAS actually activates

your brain starts scanning for

30

evidence that confirms this belief.

31

You notice opportunities, connections,

and positive moments that you might have.

32

Previously filtered out.

33

So there's a power in this.

34

You do actually notice more

opportunities and more good things

35

that come your way when your RAS is

queued for this lucky girl syndrome.

36

However, there's also a little bit

of a pitfall in that it can also

37

selectively filter out opposing

views to that Lucky Girl syndrome.

38

So it's this selective attention.

39

Where you notice more

opportunities and are ignoring

40

any threats that go against that.

41

I am lucky.

42

Good opportunities come my way.

43

Affirmations.

44

So the bottom line, here's

what we know from neuroscience

45

about Lucky Girl syndrome.

46

Your thoughts literally

change your brain structure.

47

Positive affirmations activate reward

centers and can shift attention.

48

So I'm a lucky girl can work if

you understand it as I'm going to

49

intentionally notice the opportunities

that can help me create my own luck

50

through the actions that I'm going

to perform, but it won't work.

51

If it means I'll sit back and

good things will come to me.

52

It has to have action.

53

The most powerful version of Lucky Girl

Syndrome combines positive affirmations,

54

positive mindset with action.

55

So you can train your brain to be more

resilient, motivated, and opportunity

56

conscious through activating certain brain

regions that make you more goal-driven,

57

more pursuit driven, more reward driven,

and also alerting certain parts of your

58

brain, the filter of your brain to see

different opportunities, but also realize

59

that with some of that optimism comes a

little bit of a dampening of some of the.

60

Bad news or contradictory evidence

that we might get presented with.

61

And always remember that mindset

needs to be followed by action.

62

It's not mindset alone.

63

Speaker 3: If you missed that episode,

it was episode 84, but some of the key

64

components we covered and the truth behind

Lucky Girl syndrome that we covered was

65

the fact that you can actually shift

your brain and shift your focus to

66

notice more goals and more opportunities.

67

That's true.

68

However, you always have to

follow that shift in focus with.

69

It is not just magical.

70

It can't just be wishful thinking

and good things come your way,

71

or lucky things come your way.

72

You have to actually follow

that shift in focus, that shift

73

in opportunity with action.

74

Another popular episode this year,

and one of my favorites was episode

75

79, where we covered how the female

brain uses motivation and discipline

76

throughout different parts of our cycles.

77

So let's start with motivation.

78

Estrogen starts low and rises

throughout our follicular phase.

79

So if estrogen amplifies dopamine,

we expect dopamine, and therefore our

80

motivation levels to also increase

steadily throughout that follicular

81

phase, which is that days one through

14 ish during the ovulation phase.

82

That is our peak reward system

activities, imaging studies have also

83

shown that our brains light up more and.

84

To rewards during this phase.

85

And then lastly, our luteal phase

as estrogen drops in our luteal

86

phase, so do our levels of dopamine.

87

We expect decreased motivation,

requiring more effort to feel

88

rewarded during this phase.

89

So overall, in this luteal phase,

we expect to be a little bit less

90

driven and less enthusiastic overall

about pursuit of any sort of goals.

91

So that's the motivation

side of the equation.

92

Let's look a little bit into the

discipline side of the equation.

93

Discipline is a top down approach, and

anytime we talk about top down or bottom

94

up, when we're talking about neuroscience,

we really are talking about the central

95

nervous system, primarily the brain's

executive control over all of the

96

different processes that happen below.

97

So when our dopamine's low, our prefrontal

cortex can actually override it and

98

say, oh, I know you probably have

low motivation right now given your

99

dopamine levels are a little bit lower,

but we have to complete this task.

100

That's where that top-down

approach comes in.

101

That's where the command center, the

CEO really has to step in and say,

102

I know you might not feel motivated,

but you have to be disciplined

103

in order to accomplish this task.

104

So the prefrontal cortex sends brain

signals down the pathway to help regulate

105

other brain regions to produce the action

that we want, or really that it wants.

106

Since what we want might differ from

what our prefrontal cortex wants or

107

knows that we want long term, but

we might not want in the short term.

108

So we can actually override

our brain's impulses and

109

signals when motivation is low.

110

The discipline headquarters in the

dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex, which.

111

It's just fancy terms for the

location in the prefrontal cortex.

112

So you can think of the prefrontal

cortex as just that command center,

113

that CEO, and there's a lot of different

regions within that prefrontal cortex

114

that are involved in discipline.

115

All of these fancy terms make

it sound more complex, but just

116

think of it as the command center.

117

So the discipline headquarters are in

the dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex,

118

and that's a specific area within

that command center, that CEO, that

119

structure that can help us override

some other signals that we're getting.

120

So the discipline headquarters have.

121

A few jobs, one of 'em

involving working memory.

122

So it allows us to hold our goals in mind.

123

When motivation is low, it

allows us to switch strategies.

124

So executive planning, if plan

A is not working, it allows us

125

to switch strategies to plan B.

126

It offers inhibitory control, so

stopping yourself from doing something

127

you know you shouldn't be doing,

and it creates structure so it's

128

involved in planning and organizing.

129

So it helps to create that structure,

especially when you don't feel like it.

130

Okay, so another part of the

prefrontal cortex, the ventral medial

131

part evaluates short-term pleasure

versus long-term consequences.

132

So this is where we might be a little

bit more tired or just low motivation

133

working on a certain project.

134

This is the area that sort of evaluates

is this short-term want or desire going

135

to help me reach my long term goals.

136

So it's cues us to say, Hey.

137

That rest or that nap might not actually

help you reach the goal that you have in

138

mind of finishing this project and getting

it back to school or your boss or whatever

139

deadline you have set for yourself.

140

So it's evaluates that short-term

pleasure versus that long-term

141

goal you have for yourself.

142

And lastly, when it comes to discipline,

the brain has an alarm system, the

143

anterior cingulate cortex, if you care

about location or names of things, but

144

it's basically the alarm system, and it

sends an alarm when what you are driven

145

or not driven to do, as determined by

dopamine, is in conflict with what you

146

should do as determined by your goals.

147

So after that evaluation process,

if there is this disconnect, this

148

alarm system kicks in to say, Hey.

149

This is not going to help

you reach those goals.

150

Let's reevaluate the situation.

151

So the alarm system sounds, send

signals back to the command center

152

to say, we need you to step in here

with a little bit of discipline.

153

So let's talk about it in practice

a little bit just to get a more

154

well-rounded picture of how

discipline works within our cycle.

155

So let's say you're in your

luteal phase, dopamine is low,

156

you're feeling low motivation,

but you have a big project due.

157

The anterior cingulate cortex

senses this disconnect.

158

So it's the alarm system.

159

It alerts the CEO or the command center.

160

The prefrontal cortex.

161

The prefrontal cortex sends inhibitory

signals to stop avoidance behaviors.

162

So you're trying to avoid that project.

163

This prefrontal cortex, the CEO,

the command center overrides that to

164

inhibit some of those lazier things

that we might wanna do when we have

165

lower dopamine and lower motivation.

166

The prefrontal cortex also continues

to keep the long-term goal recognition

167

part of the brain online to remind

you like, Hey, remember this goal

168

you have for yourself or this

goal that you wanna accomplish.

169

Remember that this current momentary want

or desire that you have is short-term,

170

where that is your long term goal.

171

And then lastly, the brain overrides

low motivation and relies on

172

discipline to accomplish the task.

173

So how can we maximize both motivation

and discipline throughout our menstrual

174

cycles as women in the high estrogen

phase, the late follicular to ovulation,

175

to a little bit of early luteal?

176

We can approach opportunities.

177

We can create a structure

to rely on later when.

178

Motivation's low.

179

Sometimes creating that good solid

structure to be more disciplined

180

with later on can really help.

181

We can take on new creative and

challenging projects, and when dopamine

182

is high, let motivation lead, but also

use discipline to narrow our focus.

183

Build habits and prevent impulsive

decisions in those lower estrogen

184

phases of our cycle, we can

rely more heavily on discipline.

185

Understand it might take

more of that top-down effort.

186

So if you're having trouble

overcoming that barrier to start

187

that task or to finish that task,

just give yourself a little bit of

188

grace knowing that your brain is

actually trying to work through that.

189

We're trying to.

190

Get that command center on board to

override some of those impulses that

191

we have to maybe be a little bit

more lazy or lean into some of those

192

desires that we want, that might not

help us reach those long-term goals.

193

So it's a way to just give yourself

a little bit of grace too by knowing

194

how your brain's working and how your

hormonal physiology is working as a woman.

195

In those lower estrogen phases, you

can also let discipline lead and use

196

small strategies to increase motivation.

197

So breaking up large goals

into small attainable goals.

198

That way when you accomplish a

goal, you accomplish a task that

199

dopamine's gonna elevate anyways.

200

So that's that bottom up approach.

201

You're doing a behavior that is naturally

going to elevate dopamine no matter if

202

you're in that lower estrogen phase.

203

You can also exercise and you might

have to lean more on extrinsic rewards

204

or external rewards in order to

feel more motivated during a certain

205

task in this lower estrogen phases.

206

So again, that early follicular

phase, that late luteal phase, you can

207

focus on current routines rather than

trying to build and maintain new ones.

208

That's a follicular

phase Kelsey thing to do.

209

Build new routines, set goals, set

reminders, really structure her day

210

in the most efficient way possible.

211

And then luteal phase, Kelsey is like.

212

Oh my gosh, what was I thinking?

213

There is no way I can complete all

these tasks in the day, and that's okay.

214

If you struggle with this, maybe try

and stick to your current routines

215

rather than creating new routines.

216

On top of that, you can use external

rewards and structure more and be

217

patient with yourself because your

brain's working a little bit differently.

218

Speaker 3: Some of the key components,

motivation is high early on in our

219

cycles, partially due to the increase

in estrogen, which amplifies dopamine.

220

Discipline kicks in during the

latter part of our cycles, and we

221

should give ourselves grace if we

notice ourselves having to climb over

222

more mental barriers to accomplish

certain goals or tasks during that.

223

Phase knowing our brains are trying

to work through their processes

224

in order to override our current

pleasures for those long-term

225

goals that we have for ourselves.

226

Speaking of the female brain and goals,

we also covered the neuroscience of

227

consistency and goal setting in podcast

episode 80 and why we find it easier to

228

stick to certain goals compared to others.

229

Picturing our lives without

that goal or failure of that

230

goal really helps us to promote

consistency in pursuit of that goal.

231

The stronger that pull is to live

with that goal, the more consistent

232

you'll be with accomplishing that goal.

233

So taking it back to last week when we

learned that we have an alarm system

234

within our brains, that when it senses

a disconnect between our long-term

235

goals and what we currently wanna do.

236

So it may be short-term

pleasure, so let's say exercise.

237

Long-term goals.

238

You wanna exercise, you wanna

be someone who exercises.

239

You wanna be someone who's able to

move in the best way they can for the

240

longest they can, but right now you

really wanna just sit on the couch

241

and veg and watch your favorite show.

242

That alarm system will sound letting

your brain know that, hey, currently

243

she wants to do something that is not

in alignment with her long-term goals.

244

Can you use discipline to override?

245

Can you use.

246

That CEO, that command center, the

prefrontal cortex, to override what

247

she really wants to do to remind

her that she does have these longer

248

term goals, that what she wants to

do short term is not going to help

249

her reach those long-term goals.

250

So for me, with movement, there is a

greater pool, there's a greater disconnect

251

because for me, movement is not just short

term goals of weight loss, but it's this

252

longer term goal, this longer term value.

253

This.

254

Identity of who I am.

255

I am a mover.

256

I am someone who values movement

for my whole lifespan, for not only

257

myself, but also my family and those

that I love to be able to interact

258

with them in the way that I want to

be able to do the things that I want.

259

So movement is a part of me.

260

Movement is part of my identity, and

because of that, anytime my short

261

term wants or desires go against my

long-term goals of being a mover or

262

being someone who values movement,

that alarm system will sound.

263

And I'll feel a greater

pull to get my butt up.

264

Knowing that I view movement and exercise

as sacred and part of my identity.

265

So I view movement in

that long-term framework.

266

Because of that, my alarm

system will sound super loudly

267

to let me know right now.

268

Hey, Kelsey, your short-term

desires and pleasures are not lining

269

up with those long-term goals.

270

So my command center will be queued to

override my desire for those short-term

271

pleasures to be able to put into action

things that will help me reach my

272

long-term goal of being a mover for life.

273

So think about whatever

you're consistent in.

274

Is there a deeper emotional pull that

you feel if you picture your life

275

without accomplishing that certain task?

276

If it is something like, I'm

so good at cleaning the house

277

or making my bed something that

seems pretty mundane and ordinary.

278

But if you feel better about yourself,

you're someone who values a clean

279

house, values a clean home, or.

280

You grew up in a home that possibly

wasn't that clean, and because of that,

281

you wanna reverse that, where you have

this draw to where you picture your

282

home growing up as super cluttered

and you have a deterrent towards that

283

home and wanna create a clean home.

284

Whatever it is, think about what you're

consistent in and see if one of the

285

reasons that you're consistent in it is

because if you picture your life without

286

it, you feel this greater emotional

pull towards that long-term goal.

287

So let's dive into the fun female

brain sciencey part of it all.

288

So we mentioned the anterior cingulate

cortex, which is the part of our

289

brain that's that alarm system.

290

It weighs our current want tos,

our pleasures with the long-term

291

goals that we have for ourselves.

292

And if there's a disconnect between those.

293

An alarm will sound to help us

override what we wanna do for what

294

we have to do or should be doing.

295

But what we didn't mention last week

was that alarm signal and that alarm

296

sound can have varying ranges of

intensity based on the emotional and

297

motivational significance of that goal.

298

So how much does this matter to the

person's core motivation and values, their

299

self-identity, their long-term goals?

300

It starts to integrate all of those things

to decide the intensity of that alarm.

301

Then it signals our top-down discipline

pathways that helps to override what

302

we want to do and replace it with

actions that we should be doing to

303

help us reach those long-term goals.

304

The alarm system in the anterior

cingulate cortex is extra activated.

305

When your goals involve

protecting, maintaining, or

306

improving certain relationships.

307

Sense of self or identity.

308

I am a mover.

309

That is who I am, so that is a sense

of myself, significant loss or failure.

310

So disappointing or failing

people you care about.

311

A loss of love, status, or security.

312

So picturing your life without the goal

that you wanna accomplish is a way to help

313

improve consistency towards that goal.

314

It basically helps us evaluate

high stakes versus low stakes

315

conflicts and our emotional and

motivational attachment towards them.

316

So for different actions and goals

people might have different alarm.

317

Sounds

318

. Now think back again to what you're

consistent at and reflect on why

319

is it solidified in your brain?

320

Because accomplishing that goal

or task has high significance

321

and motivation to you.

322

Can you picture your life not

accomplishing that goal or task?

323

Do you have a high emotional

response towards that imagery?

324

Now, think of something you wanna

become more consistent with, or

325

goal that you have for yourself.

326

How can you utilize how your brain works

to maximize that alarm system that will

327

sound when you veer from the course?

328

Can you tie it to your identity?

329

I am someone who, versus I am someone

who is trying to, not the same.

330

You wanna tie it back to your identity.

331

Is there an emotion you'd

like to tie to that goal?

332

To create that greater pull, that

greater intensity of that alarm system,

333

and finally looking at how it might

disappoint future you or someone

334

you love, if you fail to accomplish

that goal or fail to do that task.

335

So using neuroscience and our brains in

order to realize why we are consistent

336

with certain things and why we aren't

consistent with certain things can help

337

us understand who we are as people,

but also help us to navigate different

338

goals that we have trouble sticking to.

339

Speaker 3: This one was one of my

absolute favorite episodes and will be

340

hugely important as we start to look

at goal setting into the new year.

341

So some of the key components we

found during that episode in order to

342

be consistent with certain goals, it

helps to have a large emotional pull to

343

that goal or to failure of that goal.

344

It helps if we can tie that goal to

a piece of our identity and who we

345

are and the intensity of the alarm.

346

That sounds, when we perform actions

that are against or contradictory to

347

that goal depends on how significant.

348

That goal is to us that emotional

pull or how tied it is to

349

our identity and who we are

350

Every year around Thanksgiving,

I do an episode on gratitude.

351

So I love chatting about gratitude

and the neuroscience behind

352

gratitude and a gratitude practice.

353

We always cover some of the

landmark studies of gratitude,

354

but this year we also added some

additional new research on gratitude.

355

So when we talk about the science

of gratitude and how our bodies

356

benefit from gratitude, let's

start with the brain changes that

357

actually occur with gratitude.

358

So with a normal gratitude practice,

we have increased dopamine release

359

within our brains, which leads to

an increased activation of that

360

motivation and reward system.

361

We have increased serotonin levels,

so an improved emotional stability

362

and wellbeing, oxytocin activation,

so stronger social connections

363

and reduced social stress.

364

FMRI.

365

Studies have also shown activation

in brain areas involved in judgment,

366

empathy, decision making, emotional

processing, and stress regulation.

367

So these changes last for a long time,

even after a gratitude intervention.

368

So there are a lot of brain changes

that happen with gratitude that are

369

all really positive and positively

affect us personally, but also

370

socially with others as well.

371

How can gratitude affect

our inflammation and stress?

372

With gratitude, we have

cortisol reduction.

373

So irregular gratitude practice can

reduce cortisol levels by up to 23%.

374

Our cardiovascular system and

primarily disease associated with a

375

cardiovascular system can be positively

affected by gratitude, so other

376

cardiovascular effects and benefits

that we get from a gratitude practice.

377

We have improved heart rate variability

with a gratitude practice, which

378

heart rate variability sounds

like a cardiovascular measure, but

379

it really is that measure of how

resilient our nervous system is, how

380

easily it is able to flip between.

381

Sympathetic fight or flight response and

that parasympathetic rest digest response.

382

So improving our heart rate

variability with gratitude is obviously

383

amazing, and it also indicates some

nervous system benefits as well.

384

We have improved blood pressure and

health of the actual lining of our

385

vasculature with a gratitude practice.

386

And irregular gratitude practice also

leads to better autonomic nervous

387

system balance through activation

of that parasympathetic, that rest

388

digest part of our nervous system.

389

So when we look at gratitude and

its effects on sleep, specifically,

390

grateful individuals fall asleep

faster and stay asleep longer.

391

They have improved perception of sleep

quality, improved energy, and they're

392

thinking that gratitude can actually

help in the treatment of insomnia.

393

When it comes to biological and sex

differences between how men and women

394

both respond to gratitude, women have

a higher baseline level of gratitude,

395

so a 2024 study analyzed almost 50,000

female nurses and found those with the

396

highest gratitude scores, had 9% lower

all cause mortality over four years.

397

A 15% decreased risk of

cardiovascular disease deaths.

398

So it's super cool that, of course,

gratitude seems to be a mental activity,

399

but it is very clear that gratitude

practices also affect the rest of our

400

bodies, the physical side of our health

and wellness, whether that's through

401

the brain and and having different

processes mediated through the brain,

402

or whether it has direct effects

on things like our cardiovascular

403

system and our immune system.

404

Lastly, a 2023 systematic

review and meta-analysis.

405

Found that people who performed

various gratitude interventions had

406

significantly reduced anxiety and

depression, enhanced positive emotions

407

and life satisfaction, greater optimism

and appreciation, increased pro-social

408

behaviors, which those are the behaviors

where we are intentionally going

409

out of our way to benefit others.

410

They had less psychological pain

and worry, improved therapeutic

411

outcomes and those being treated

for anxiety and depression.

412

So I feel like that one wraps it

all up, that gratitude practices are

413

wonderful for us no matter if it's

gratitude, experiencing gratitude,

414

awareness, or gratitude giving,

all of them are beneficial to us.

415

Speaker 3: This year around

that Thanksgiving timeframe.

416

I also wanted to look into how female

friendships are different than male

417

friendships or relationships, and

how females benefit from friendship

418

differently than men in regards to

overall health and brain changes.

419

Speaker: So for female specific, a

woman's health generally benefits more

420

from quality relationships compared

to a man's health, but it is also more

421

negatively impacted by social isolation.

422

So on either sides of the extreme,

we benefit more from quality

423

relationships, but we're also more

negatively impacted by social isolation.

424

Women are better at providing

social support, relying on social

425

support, and disclosing important

parts of their stories, which helps

426

to build that social connection.

427

So all of these are of course,

associated with friendship.

428

High quality female friendships

specifically lead to lower blood pressure,

429

reduced cardiovascular disease, and a 60%

lower chance of premature death quality.

430

Female friendships can also help lower

cortisol levels in women who regularly

431

engage with their close friends.

432

Dr.

433

Taylor out of UCLA, who's one of the

primary researchers in this field, found

434

that when faced with external stress,

women gravitate towards each other to

435

help cope while also taking care of

others to help cope with that stress.

436

So she called this way of handling stress,

the 10 and befriend theory, or the 10 and

437

befriend way of handling stress versus

the fight or flight response that we're

438

all very familiar with, where women

naturally want to take care of others,

439

and we also want to befriend others

when faced with that external stress.

440

Which I thought was interesting because

I do feel like women in general are

441

more open with each other, more willing

to ask for guidance or help or sort

442

of bond over challenges, which can be

that befriend part of the equation.

443

But I hadn't really ever thought about

the tend part of the equation where

444

we, when faced with stress of any

kind, we want to start to take care of

445

others, which I feel like is a real.

446

Special thing about being a woman, I guess

that when faced with stress our, one of

447

our immediate reactions is not to fight

or flight, but possibly to take care of

448

others, which I think is really beautiful.

449

So Dr.

450

Taylor says this whole process

of tendon befriend is mediated by

451

oxytocin release, which in turn

can help lower our cortisol levels.

452

Speaker 3: It was fascinating to see

the science of how we benefit from

453

friendships differently than men and

understand a new theory of how we

454

approach stressful and challenging

circumstances due to the differences in

455

how we as females experience friendship.

456

Lastly, one of our most recent episodes,

episode 87, we chat the neuroscience

457

behind pain and how we should think of

pain as an output rather than an input.

458

Speaker 2: People associate the pain

they feel in a certain region with

459

physical damage of the structures

in that region or the structures

460

that actually supply that region.

461

And this can definitely be the case.

462

If you sprain your ankle or there is some

sort of physical damage to your ankle

463

or a broken bone, you are going to feel

pain because structures in that area.

464

Are sending danger signals to the

brain, and the brain is integrating

465

a lot of different signals to

create that output of pain.

466

So there is some correlation,

but it's not always the case.

467

There are more complex networks

involved in how our brain eventually

468

tells us that we're in danger.

469

If the brain has to integrate a whole

lot of inputs, not only the physical

470

damage from the structures, if that's

the case, but also our cultural beliefs,

471

our past experiences, our visual inputs,

it's constantly integrating a lot of

472

different inputs in order to create that

output that tells us that we are in pain.

473

So one of my favorite examples to

talk about this phenomenon is actually

474

a researcher out of Australia, Dr.

475

Laura Moseley, and he is one of the

top researchers in this field of pain

476

science, and he has such a wonderful

way of explaining pain to where people

477

can really understand what their body

is going through, what their brain

478

is going through, and how the two mix

together to create this responsive pain.

479

One of the stories he utilizes that I

feel like is a perfect example, and I

480

might paraphrase it a little bit, but

there's one day where he's walking to

481

the river, maybe with his friends, and

he's out of Australia, so you can only

482

imagine the terrain that he's going

through, but his leg ends up touching a

483

blade of grass or a shrub of some sort.

484

Ends up rubbing against his

leg and he kicks it off and

485

continues walking to the river.

486

He gets to the river,

gets in, starts swimming.

487

He gets bitten by a snake.

488

Then he gets sent to the ER to

take care of this poisonous snake

489

bite that he just got in the river.

490

He's all fine.

491

He survives the snake bite.

492

He survives the ER visit, but the next

time he's walking to the river, his

493

leg again feels that blade of grass,

that shrub, and he is in agonizing

494

pain, just the most intense pain

he's experienced from that same.

495

Sensation, that same brush against

the leg of that shrub or the blade

496

of grass, I can't say it's the

same one, but you get the picture.

497

It's the same intensity of signal,

but a completely different output

498

because of his past experiences.

499

How can that same blade of grass

trigger a completely different response?

500

His brain used past experiences as

a way to protect him in the present.

501

His brain had a previous experience

of brushing against a blade of

502

grass and then a subsequent ER

visit after getting bit by a snake.

503

So his brain takes that information and

says, okay, next time that happens, I'm

504

going to remember that experience and

that ER visit, and the poison and the

505

trauma that was from that experience.

506

I'm going to create a response that

is going to elicit pain and let

507

the body know that I'm in danger

so that it doesn't happen again.

508

It wasn't just the input that created

that sensation of pain, but it was

509

also the brain integrating a lot

of different components, especially

510

his past experience of having that

blade of grass brush against his

511

leg and then ending up in the er.

512

So when we talk about the basics of

pain in our nervous system, pain is not

513

actually a sensation that we can sense.

514

Our brains do not actually sense pain.

515

There is nothing that happens in our

body that says, oh, that was painful.

516

What we have within our bodies are

receptors and sensors that sense

517

potential threat, and these are

called nociceptors, and they sense

518

a variety of potential threats.

519

So we have receptors that sense

mechanical threats like pressure

520

or cutting, like slicing the skin.

521

We have chemical threats, so acid

or an inflammatory substance.

522

We have thermal threats,

too hot, too cold.

523

And then we also have of course, potential

tissue damage like a broken bone.

524

So if you experience low back pain,

your low back alone cannot sense pain.

525

It can only sense possible threat signals.

526

That are sent to the brain where the

brain can integrate a lot of different

527

inputs in order to create a certain

output, and sometimes that output is pain.

528

So if you experience low back pain,

your back alone cannot sense pain.

529

It can only sense possible threads to

be sent to the brain for the brain to

530

decide what that response is going to be.

531

Rather than thinking of pain as an

input, oh, I have low back pain.

532

That pain signal is sent to the brain.

533

Think of it as an output where,

okay, I've injured my low back.

534

The nociceptors, the receptors

that sense potential threat in my

535

low back are sending signals and

inputs to the brain, and the brain

536

has to decide what to do with it.

537

So after the signal is received, your

brain actually integrates the signal

538

with a variety of other brain areas and

past experiences to create a response.

539

The response doesn't have to be pain.

540

It can be pain, but sometimes

that signal's ignored.

541

Imagine if you sat on your wallet, right?

542

Your wallet is pressure.

543

We have sensors within our skin

that helps to sense that pressure.

544

If we sat on our wallet and it was painful

every single time, that would be an issue.

545

I know that's more of a guy thing

to have wallets in their pockets,

546

but girls, you have those little

metal things in your jeans.

547

That's pressure that our body

senses, and if our brains sense that

548

as pain, every time we would be.

549

Not able to sit down in genes.

550

So instead, some of those signals

are ignored, which is a good thing.

551

Sometimes the brain also

creates another response, like

552

a muscle spasm, inflammation.

553

It creates an altered movement pattern,

like a limp or a compensatory pattern.

554

If you roll your ankle, maybe you.

555

Also walk a little funny

to protect that area.

556

Same with heightened

awareness of that area.

557

I'm sure if you sprain your ankle,

moving that ankle in and out of bed,

558

you're a little bit more aware of those

movements to not move the ankle in a

559

certain way that might cause you pain.

560

So we can think of pain as one of

the possible responses that our

561

brain can help carry out based on

the signals it is receiving from all

562

of the receptors within our body.

563

This should actually feel super

empowering because it actually means

564

that we can help to change those outputs.

565

Our brain is sensing potential threats

and danger, and its job is to protect us.

566

Speaker 3: This is a conversation I have

a lot with patients because a lot of the

567

time, as the clip shows, we associate

structural pain with our body, sending

568

us pain signals when in reality our

brain's job is to integrate a lot of

569

different signals throughout the body.

570

And one of the responses, one of

the outputs that the brain can

571

create is the response of pain.

572

So pain really isn't sensed within the

body, but it's a response to a variety

573

of inputs that the brain is receiving.

574

We covered so much of the female brain

this year, and I'd say in general these

575

were some of our top episodes out of

576

wrap up the year with the best of 2025

episode when it comes to the female brain.

577

We'll also cover the female body and

just top moments and top cool things that

578

we've learned from throughout the year.

579

We can look at these episodes as.

580

A book review or a podcast review over

the entire year to sort of summarize

581

all of the cool things we've learned

about the female brain, the female

582

body, and different fun facts we've

learned from all of the guests we've

583

had on the podcast throughout the year.

584

So thank you guys for joining me for our

585

Brain, and I'll see you guys again on the

next episode of Wellness Picks the Pod.