Brain Priming and Neural Associations: How Your Environment Shapes Behavior
Neurodivergent Notes: New Year Reflections Series, Part Two. Neurodivergent Notes is a Sunday Newsletter / Essay I send out to readers each Sunday. These essays tend to be more reflective, personal as I chew on current events, psychology and neurodivergence. To sign up for Neurodivergent Notes you can subscribe here.
Throughout this month, I’ve been sharing how I’m approaching the New Year with fewer rigid goals (which my brain tends to wrap in all-or-nothing thinking) and focusing instead on reflection, intention-setting, clarifying my values, and moving toward what matters.
Last Sunday, I wanted to write to you about neural associations and brain priming, but I just couldn’t get the words to cooperate. Interestingly, that struggle ties directly into today’s topic.
Last week, I got the opportunity to be in Belize at a retreat hosted by Patrick Casale (my co-host on Divergent Conversations … who I finally got to meet in person). This was a big shift from my usual environment — I rarely leave my house, let alone travel to another country. At home, my brain knows what to expect. Right now, I’m sitting on my couch in my usual Sunday morning spot, with the fire on, writing this newsletter. My brain is “primed” for this. But last week, while sitting by a pool in a jungle in Belize? My brain wasn’t … and the words felt forced! I decided it was better to not send a newsletter than to send something that felt inauthentic and forced.
On the flip side though, I slept better than I have in years. Why? Because my brain wasn’t primed for the wake ups, anxieties, or bad sleep habits I’ve built at home. It was working with a blank slate.
What Is Brain Priming?
Our brains are incredible at creating shortcuts to save energy and make decisions more efficiently. This is where associations and “brain priming” come in. Brain priming refers to how our environment signals our brain to prepare for certain activities. It’s like setting the stage for what’s to come.
For example:
Sitting at a designated work spot primes your brain for work tasks.
Watching TV in bed primes your brain for wakefulness instead of rest (which is why experts discourage it).
Hearing a certain song might transport you back to a vivid memory because your brain linked the two together (Side note: this is why I intentionally pick unique "stim songs" for trips I want to remember later.)
Every day, our surroundings quietly influence us. They create shortcuts that make actions feel easier — or harder — depending on how they’re set up.
The Power of Associations
One of the most fascinating studies on neural associations comes from the Vietnam War. Many U.S. soldiers stationed in Vietnam became addicted to heroin. But when they returned home, something surprising happened: 90% of them quit, and most didn’t relapse.
Why? Their environment completely changed. In Vietnam, stress, easy access to heroin, and social cues created a perfect storm for addiction. Back home, those triggers, cues and associations disappeared, and with them, the habit.
While that’s a pretty dramatic example (and likely oversimplifies some things), it highlights how much our environment — and the associations it creates — can shape our actions. It’s not always about willpower. It’s about the cues and the network of associations that surround us.
Designing Spaces with Intention
At home, I think a lot about the “blank slate” effect. When I move into a new home or visit a new place, I’m aware of the neural canvas I’m working with. What associations do I want to create here?
For example:
I’ve made a conscious effort to keep my bedroom a work-free zone to prime it for sleep, not work (I only started doing this after waking up thinking about work for several months!)
When I lead workshops, even if I’m feeling anxious or unwell, I push myself to show up because I don’t want to build a neural pathway that says, “When I’m scared, I cancel.”
I’m working to incorporate more of this for this upcoming year. I’ve shared that I'm working on improving health, so I’m working to create more associations, cues and signals (and reduce friction), to incorporate more movement into my life.
Collapsed Boundaries and Marked Spaces
When it comes to habits, I’ve shifted my focus from relying on willpower to designing environments that work with my brain instead of against it. I think less about what I “should” be doing and more about the neural pathways I’m creating:
What spaces in my home are primed for work, relaxation, or connection?
What small tweaks can I make to reduce resistance and make the actions I want to take easier to do?
We live in a time where so many of our boundaries have blurred and collapsed — work, rest, play, and connection often overlap in the same physical spaces. For those of us navigating life from home, this overlap can make it harder for our brains to shift gears. By carving out intentional "nooks and crannies" for specific activities — spaces primed for work, relaxation, or connection — we can help our brains know what to expect. This can help reduce the low-level hum of stress — that constant, background buzz of feeling torn, as if we’re supposed to be doing everything, everywhere, all at once.
So whether it’s protecting a space in your home for rest and relaxation, creating a “worry corner” to contain stress, or setting up a workstation where your brain knows it’s time to focus, thinking about space through the lens of brain priming and associations can help support us in doing the things we want to be doing. By intentionally claiming spaces, we create a sort of force field around them, buffering them from unwelcome associations and aligning them with the actions we want to nurture.
So, this week's invitation to ponder: what space do you want to claim or reclaim for yourself this week?
Robins, L. N., Helzer, J. E., Hesselbrock, M., & Wish, E. (2010). Vietnam veterans three years after Vietnam: how our study changed our view of heroin. The American journal on addictions, 19(3), 203–211. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1521-0391.2010.00046.x
