New Health Plan
Terri Reinhart
It's been 6 months since I decided to change the way I eat. At the time, my body was in total agreement with me. About a month ago, that changed.
The Left Brain started questioning the expense of going to all natural foods. The Hypothalamus complained it wasn't getting the rewards it expected from the new diet. The Occipital Lobe had seen the large chocolate bar in the refrigerator. The Broca's Area said, “what the hell” and convinced the Amygdala and the Motor Cortex into picking up the chocolate.
This was just the beginning. The Hypothalamus wasn't content with just one chocolate bar. It insisted on chocolate chips and the occasional chocolate ice cream. The Nucleus Accumbens kept quietly insisting they deserved these treats. After all, they had worked hard for them. Soon my brain was ignoring the needs of the rest of my body and demanding more for itself.
Fortunately, there was still the Frontal Lobe to bring some intelligence into the discussion. It reminded them of the decision which had been made for the good of the whole body. Spending now would save money in the long run. It was okay for the brain to have to sacrifice some pleasures for the sake of health. After all, the brain cannot survive without the body.
The Corpus Callosum announced there were serious issues in communication.
Systems began to break down. The Autonomic Nervous System began relaying messages to all parts of the body, spreading fear that the Frontal Lobe was trying to push a health plan which was too expensive and would take away all the good things in life. The rest of the body was confused. They were supposed to believe and trust in their Frontal Lobe, weren't they?
The Left Leg sided with the Nucleus Accumbens. The surge in dopamine after a sugar binge helped to make sure it could walk straight. The Right Leg accused the left of giving in to addiction. Arguments started between various groups of Organs and Muscles. There were debates about whether or not the plan was actually healthy and worth the cost. After all, each part should be able to pull themselves up by their own synapses – or tendons or blood vessels or other thingies, right?
I'm not sure what would have happened if I hadn't finally had a Gut Reaction and decided enough was enough. Worst case scenario, parts of the brain may have insisted on a governing body shutdown.
Thankfully, it didn't happen. I took charge and let the rest of the factions know who's boss.