“Bad habits die hard, I know. But am I the only one who
can’t keep them dead and buried?” It
has been only 35 days since I completed 24 years of living, but I can honestly
say that for the first time in a long time, I feel like my psychological and
biological selves have finally converged. Happy happy, joy joy!! (yes, a Ren and Stimpy reference; I do these
things) Yet, I do have a serious
dilemma: I am also 330 days away from being 25, the official age of “being
grown.” Albeit there are perks to this milestone (e.g. lowered rates of
insurance and car rentals, admission into certain governmental programs and
jobs), other aspects outright turn me newborn chick yellow (e.g. end of legal
dependent status, BILLS-BILLS-BILLS).
An even larger concern is the self-expectation to “have it all together” by
showing impervious and fluid consistency in good behaviors and acutely
lessening the bad ones—which may sound hypocritical as I’m living “#ThePerfectlyImperfectLife.”
If I am to be a full-fledged adult, this is what’s necessary…right? (And
honestly, is it really possible?)
Many neurologists and developmental
psychologists have observed significant patterns occurring in the brain during
the time of adolescence, specifically in the area of the forebrain known as the
PREFRONTAL
CORTEX (or PFC; click
here for visual). It is said that the prefrontal cortex form around the age
of three years old, the same time the ability of memory is reported to start.
The PFC is also closely related to a person’s decision-making skills. In his book,
The Prefrontal Cortex—Executive and
Cognitive Functions (Oxford, 1999),
Dr. Simon Gerhand discusses the cognitive skills affected people by injuries in
the PFC—some of those skills being problem solving, planning, and reasoning—as
people with such insults still retain their intellect and sensory skills. More
so than the other sections of the brain, the PFC undergoes crucial development
during the adolescent stage of life. Even more important to note, the PFC
completes its growth at the end of a person’s adolescence, usually at 25 years of age.
Here is something to consider:
The brain, no matter your age, is still capable of receiving new information well.
That said, the way the “middle-aged you” will perceive and utilize information,
dependent upon the situation, will vary very little from how you did in earlier
years. I try not to stress myself on this; lo
que será será. But you have to admit, being “stuck on stupid” just got a
little bit more real, right? #LetsFixThat
- Brandon Avery
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