Becoming The Author Of Your Life: Narrative Integration

What helps us become the authors of our lives? In this five-minute kind voice practice, explore the capacities supporting narrative integration: mental time travel, mindsight, and integration across three brain regions. The hippocampus organizes memory across time, the corpus callosum connects the hemispheres, and the prefrontal cortex supports meaning making. With insight into our inner world and empathy for others, we develop a coherent life narrative. Adult attachment research suggests that a caregiver’s ability to make sense of their attachment history is a powerful predictor of their child’s attachment security. Narrative integration helps us reflect on where we have been, choose where we are going, and shape the story we tell and share with the world.

IPNB concepts explored: narrative integration; mental time travel; autonoetic consciousness; mindsight; insight; empathy; narrative coherence; attachment; hippocampus; corpus callosum; prefrontal cortex.

Second voice: Megan Bates.

Transcript

My kind voice says, My kind voice says, The definition of story starts simply. The definition of story starts simply. It is the linear telling of a sequence of events. It is the linear telling of a sequence of events that emerges from my relational life. That emerges from my relational life. It begins simply. It begins simply like the definition of consciousness. Like the definition of consciousness. Which is my subjective experience of being aware. Which is my subjective experience of being aware. However, Integrating my life story. However, Integrating my life story, Called narrative integration, Called narrative integration. The fifth domain in IPNB. The fifth domain in IPMB. Requires much more than simply being aware. Requires much more than simply being aware of the story I'm telling now. Of the story I'm telling now. I need to be able to mentally travel through time. I need to be able to mentally travel through time. I need auto-noetic consciousness. I need auto-noetic consciousness. This gift of mental time travel. This gift of mental time travel. I also need strong integrative fibers. I also need strong integrative fibers in three key regulatory circuits. In three key regulatory circuits. In my brain. In my brain. The corpus callosum. The corpus callosum, For hemispheric integration, For hemispheric integration, The prefrontal cortex, The prefrontal cortex, For meaning-making, For meaning-making, And the hippocampus, And the hippocampus, For organizing memory across time, For organizing memory across time. Finally, I need mind sight. Finally, I need Mindsight. The ability to see inside my own mind. The ability to see inside my own mind, Called insight, To understand my inner world, As well as the ability to see inside others' minds. As well as the ability to see inside others' minds, Called empathy. When I have all of these, Mental time travel, Strong integration in those three. Strong integration in those three. Regulatory circuits and mindsight, My narrative becomes more coherent. Coherence means my states line up across time. Coherence means my states line up across time. When my states line up across time, I am not just remembering my story, I am becoming its author. Able to reflect on where I have been, Able to reflect on where I have been, And intentionally choose where I am going. And intentionally choose where I am going. Research shows that the coherence of my narrative Research shows that the coherence of my narrative is one of the greatest predictors of the attachment style my children will develop. Of the attachment style my children will develop. So making sense of my life timeline. So making sense of my life timeline. And choosing my direction on purpose. And choosing my direction on purpose is at the heart of narrative integration. Is at the heart of narrative integration. Shaping both the story I tell myself and the story I share with the world and the story that I share with the world.