Psychotherapy, consciousness, and brain plasticity
Frontiers in Psychology May 22, 2014 Daniel eCollerton
Psychological treatments for emotional distress produce lasting changes in cognitive and emotional consciousness and brain function. Pre and post treatment functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging localizes brain changes following psychotherapy to frontal, cingulate, and limbic circuits, which support a wide range of conscious experiences. Multivoxel Pattern Analysis of distributed changes across these brain areas may distinguish between different states of consciousness, illustrating the holistic nature of consciousness and the interplay between brain and consciousness.