Episode summary

What happens when you close your eyes and try to “see” something in your mind? For some people it’s a full-colour mental movie. For others it’s hazy, fleeting or completely blank. In this episode, Dr Sabina Brennan explores the neuroscience of mental imagery, including eigengrau (that grainy ‘intrinsic grey’ most people notice in darkness), the spectrum from aphantasia to hyperphantasia and why visualisation is less about forcing pictures and more about learning how your brain constructs experience.

In this episode, Sabina covers

Why “seeing nothing” when you visualise doesn’t mean you’re bad at imagination

Eigengrau – what that smoky grey tells us about baseline visual activity

Aphantasia and hyperphantasia – two ends of the imagery vividness spectrum

Mental imagery in brain terms: top-down simulation meeting bottom-up perception

Why worry is often a “mental movie” and how imagery can amplify emotion

How imagery is used in sport, performance, rehab and therapy

Tools in Three: how to work with imagery whatever your baseline

Key takeaways

Imagery varies hugely between people and it’s normal.

Visualisation isn’t just visual – sound, touch, movement, emotion and language can carry imagination too.

The goal isn’t perfect pictures, it’s intentional rehearsal that shapes attention, expectation and behaviour.

The most effective visualisation tends to be process-focused, not just outcome-focused.

Tools in Three

1. Know your baseline – stop forcing a cinema screen. Work with your strongest channel (words, sensation, sound, movement).

2. Build a multisensory practice – start with a real object, then recreate it with eyes closed. Add texture, temperature, weight, sound. Pair calming imagery with slow breathing.

3. Apply imagery intentionally and aim for process – rehearse the steps, the likely wobble moments and how you’ll recover, not just the “trophy scene”.

Memorable lines (pull quotes)

“Imagination isn’t about pictures. It’s about possibility.”

“Worry is often imagery too – the brain running mental movies of what might go wrong.”

“Aphantasia is not an imagination failure. It is a different format for thinking.”

References (as cited in the episode)

Zeman A, Dewar M, Della Sala S. Lives without imagery – Congenital aphantasia. Cortex. 2015.

S6E6 - Visualisation beefed up …

Pearson J. The human imagination: the cognitive neuroscience of visual mental imagery. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2019.

Milton F, et al. Aphantasia and hyperphantasia: extreme differences in visual imagery vividness. Cortex. 2021.

Tags

visualisation, mental imagery, aphantasia, hyperphantasia, eigengrau, neuroscience of imagination, memory, anxiety, sport psychology, mental rehearsal, guided imagery, manifesting, brain prediction

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Have you ever walked into a room and thought, “Any minute now they’re going to realise I’ve no idea what I’m doing”?

In this episode of Super Brain, psychologist and neuroscientist Sabina Brennan unpacks what’s often called imposter syndrome – and why the original researchers actually called it the impostor phenomenon instead.

Drawing on brain science and real-world examples, Sabina explores what’s happening in your threat circuits, reward system and perfectionist wiring when you’re constantly bracing for the “fraud police” to knock on the door. You’ll hear how early messages about being “the smart one” – or never quite smart enough – can set up a lifelong gap between how others see you and how you see yourself.

Most importantly, you’ll learn three practical tools to add to your Super Brain kit:

– Name it, don’t shame it – shifting from “I am a fraud” to “I’m having an impostor moment”

– Rewire the self-doubt circuits – using neuroplasticity, self-compassion and “good enough” experiments

– Change the context, not just yourself – noticing when your discomfort is data about an exclusionary system

The impostor phenomenon isn’t proof that you’re a con artist. It’s a protective brain story that you can gently update. You’re allowed to be a work in progress – and you’re allowed to be here while you’re learning.

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Episode summary:

“Brain rot” was named the Oxford Word of the Year 2024 – a tongue-in-cheek term for that fried feeling after too much scrolling or streaming. But what’s really going on in the brain when constant digital stimulation leaves us feeling empty and unfocused?

In this episode, Dr Sabina Brennan unpacks the neuroscience of brain rot – how dopamine loops, cognitive overload and attention fatigue are reshaping our mental landscape – and what you can do to reclaim your focus and creativity.

You’ll learn:

• Why “brain rot” isn’t just slang – it reflects a real neurological tug-of-war
• How dopamine drives endless scrolling and decision fatigue
• Why your attention and memory pay the price for multitasking
• The difference between brain fog (physiological) and brain rot (behavioural)
• Why daydreaming and mental white space are the healthiest “apps” on your mental home screen

Three Tools for Your Super Brain Kit:

1. 🧩 The Friction Rule – add small barriers to scrolling and let your brain catch up.
2. ⚡ Dopamine Reset – replace passive hits with active rewards like learning or movement.
3. 🌿 Stillness Practice – schedule unstructured thinking time to reboot your focus.

Mentioned in this episode:

• Beating Brain Fog by Dr Sabina Brennan – for deeper insights into how clarity and focus are restored in the brain.
• Oxford University Press Word of the Year 2024: “Brain Rot”.
• Research on dopamine, attention fatigue and the Default Mode Network.

Connect:

💬 Share your thoughts and experiences with #SuperBrain

📚 Read more: www.sabinabrennan.ie

🎧 Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

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pisodic-like memory

• How dog ageing helps us understand human dementia

• Why your dog is a genuine co-regulator of your nervous system

Tools in Three

1. Micro-moments matter — a glance, a rub, a kind word
2. Stress buffer — swap doom-scrolling for a dog cuddle
3. Shared routines — walk, play, repeat

Takeaway:

Every pat, cuddle, and walk is brain medicine — for both of you.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Summary (short version):

Why does winter feel heavier for some of us? In this episode, we explore the neuroscience of Seasonal Affective Disorder — from circadian rhythms and serotonin pathways to evolutionary quirks and the strange possibility that humans may still carry traces of ancient hibernation biology. Learn why your brain struggles with short days, how morning light acts as a natural antidepressant, and practical strategies to help your winter self thrive.

I share my own experience with winter mood shifts, what the science says about why they happen, and — most importantly — the tools we can use to reclaim our energy and wellbeing during darker months.

Three Tools for Your Super Brain Kit:

1. Light before screens — Get bright light within 30 minutes of waking (10–20 minutes outdoors or a 10,000-lux lamp).
2. Anchor your day — Keep wake and sleep times consistent to stabilise your circadian rhythm.
3. Reverse-winter habits — Add small dopamine-rich rewards before difficult tasks, not after, to counter low motivation.

Each episode explores what’s really going on inside your brain when you do the things you do — from the everyday to the extraordinary — and gives you three tools for your Super Brain kit.

Sabina's books

The Neuroscience of Manifesting

Still Me

100 Days to a Younger

Brain Beating Brain Fog

Brain Gym in a Box

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why are we so much harsher on ourselves than we are on others? In this episode of Super Brain, I explore the neuroscience of self-compassion — what it is, what it isn’t, and why it’s the antidote to self-criticism.

Drawing on the work of Dr Kristin Neff and Buddhist philosophy, we’ll look at self-compassion as a three-part skill: self-kindness, mindfulness, and social connection. I’ll share research showing how self-compassion reduces stress, quiets the amygdala, and activates brain regions linked to empathy and emotional regulation.

I’ll also explain why self-criticism is a form of self-harm, and why self-compassion is a foundation for flourishing and manifesting happiness, resilience, and contentment.

• As always, I’ll wrap up with my Tools in Three — simple ways you can start turning up your brain’s kindness switch today.

Each episode explores what’s really going on inside your brain when you do the things you do — from the everyday to the extraordinary — and gives you three tools for your Super Brain kit.

Sabina's books

The Neuroscience of Manifesting

Still Me

100 Days to a Younger

Brain Beating Brain Fog

Brain Gym in a Box

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Psilocybin — the psychedelic compound in so-called “magic mushrooms” — has exploded into headlines and social media feeds. Some call it a miracle cure for depression, others dismiss it as hype. In this episode, I take a clear-eyed look at what the science really says.

I’ll start with Sarah’s story — a young scientist whose life was turned upside down by a cycling accident and who found hope again through a psilocybin clinical trial at Johns Hopkins. Her words: “This trial changed my life.”

From there, I explore:

• The history of psilocybin, from ancient rituals to 1960s psychiatry to today’s “psychedelic renaissance.”
• The online buzz, where psilocybin is hyped as everything from a creativity booster to a trauma cure.
• The scientific evidence, from small pilot trials to the largest modern RCTs.
• The neuroscience, showing how psilocybin may “reset” rigid brain networks, boost plasticity, and even dampen inflammation.
• The risks, including panic, paranoia, and psychosis in vulnerable people.

Finally, I’ll share my Tools in Three so you can separate the real promise from the hype.

Featured Research

• Carhart-Harris RL, et al. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(16)30065-
• Carhart-Harris RL, et al. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2032994
• Davis AK, et al. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2020.3285
• Goodwin GM, et al. S 10.1056/NEJMoa2206443
• Additional insights from Nature Medicine (Carhart-Harris, 2021) and New Scientist on brain plasticity and inflammation.

Each episode explores what’s really going on inside your brain when you do the things you do — from the everyday to the extraordinary — and gives you three tools for your Super Brain kit.

Sabina's books

The Neuroscience of Manifesting

Still Me

100 Days to a Younger

Brain Beating Brain Fog

Brain Gym in a Box

Follow Sabina Brennan on Instagram

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why do we put off the very things that matter most? In this episode of Super Brain, I explore procrastination — the irrational gap between what we want to do and what we actually do. From ancient Greek philosophy to modern neuroscience, we’ll unpack why our brains resist long-term goals in favour of short-term mood fixes.

I’ll share two leading theories that explain procrastination, what’s happening in the brain when we delay, and why the closer the deadline, the more motivated we become.

And of course, my Three tools for your Super Brain kit will give you practical strategies to shrink tasks, hack your “future you”, and harness the magic of deadlines.

Procrastination is deeply human — but it doesn’t have to rule your life.

References:

📖 The Neuroscience of Manifesting (Dr Sabina Brennan) – on making your goals personal and vivid so they feel worth acting on today.

1. 📚 Research on procrastination from psychology, philosophy, and neuroscience.

Each episode explores what’s really going on inside your brain when you do the things you do — from the everyday to the extraordinary — and gives you three tools for your Super Brain kit.

Sabina's books

The Neuroscience of Manifesting

Still Me

100 Days to a Younger

Brain Beating Brain Fog

Brain Gym in a Box

Follow Sabina Brennan on Instagram

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you’ve ever wondered why you do the things you do, you’re going to love Season Six of Super Brain. In each episode, psychologist and neuroscientist Dr Sabina Brennan takes you inside your brain to explore what’s really going on when you laugh, cry, procrastinate, or connect. You’ll discover how understanding your brain helps you understand yourself — and unlock your true potential.

This season, Sabina introduces a new format: each episode explores one fascinating aspect of human behaviour, and ends with Three Tools for Your Super Brain Kit — practical, science-based strategies to help you do it better, do it less, or not do it at all.

Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and have each new episode drop straight into your playlist.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr Sabina Brennan has a fascinating conversation with Prof John Cryan stress neurobiologist and co-author of the Psychobiotic Revolution about the gut and the brain and how bacteria and the food we eat contribute to and are influenced by stress, anxiety, depression and more.

The Psychobiotic Revolution

You can follow Prof Cryan on Twitter @JFCryan

You can read more about his research and access his publications

https://www.ucc.ie/en/apc/people/johncryan/

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/superbrain.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.