Ever had a “gut feeling” about something? Or found yourself pacing while trying to make a tough decision? Surprise: that’s not just anxiety – that’s your body helping you think.
According to psychologist Barbara Tversky, the idea that thinking happens solely in the brain is, well outdated. In her recent piece for IAI News, she argues that your body is just as involved in your thought process as your mind. Yes, that meat suit you’re walking around in? It’s got brains too — kind of.
THINK WITH YOUR HANDS (AND FEET, AND SPINE)
Tversky dives into the growing science of embodied cognition, a fancy term for something you probably do every day without realizing it: using your body to think.
Gesturing while you talk? Helps you form clearer thoughts. Walking to “clear your head”? Not just a mood booster — it’s a legit cognitive tool. Your body isn’t just following instructions from your brain. It’s actively participating in the brainstorming session.
FORGET THE BRAIN-BODY DIVIDE
For centuries, we’ve treated the brain as the control tower and the body as the clunky airplane. Tversky says nope — they’re co-pilots. Thinking doesn’t float above your body in some cerebral cloud. It’s grounded in muscle memory, sensory experience, even posture.
Try slouching and feeling confident at the same time. Go on, try it. Not so easy, is it?
THERAPY’S CATCHING ON
The mental health world is starting to catch the drift. Practices like somatic therapy, mindfulness, and body-based trauma work are gaining ground. Turns out, treating the mind and ignoring the body is like fixing your car’s software but leaving the engine on fire.
Interoception — your awareness of internal bodily signals (think heartbeat, hunger, tight chest) — is becoming a hot topic. Researchers are finding links between tuning into your body and better emotional regulation. Basically, if you listen to your gut, it might stop yelling at you all the time.
TL;DR: YOU’RE NOT JUST A BRAIN TAXI
So next time someone accuses you of thinking with your stomach or leading with your heart — thank them. They might be more right than you (or they) knew.
COGNITION IS NOT JUST IN THE HEAD
Tversky’s bottom line? “Cognition is not just in the head.” It’s sprawled across your limbs, lurking in your habits, whispering from your joints.
And honestly, after knowing this — you might never look at your elbows the same way again.
– Ends
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