Jimmy - Metaphors
Channel: STIGMA App
Date: 16/02/2022

Metaphors can be a powerful tool to help people who are stuck in negative thought patterns reframe the way they think about things that don't serve them. In Jimmy's case, the metaphor was a butterfly.

50% of people who will develop mental illness will have shown their first symptoms by the time they are 14. Jimmy's anxiety symptoms began at age 6. His mother, a therapist, helped him re-frame how he thought about his anxiety by using a metaphor.

Instead of thinking of his anxiety as a terrifying monster that controlled him, she helped him train his brain to think of his anxiety as a majestic butterfly whose wings beat faster when anxiety set in.

Our brain's ability to change its structure and neural pathways throughout our lifetime is a fascinating area of brain science and is referred to as neuroplasticity. For more information about this science see the first link in the comments.

#crowdsourcinghope #mentalhealth #neuroplasticity STIGMA App