The Secret to A Good Life
Why neurodiversity, brain health, and adaptability matter.
What is a ‘good’ life?
When I tasked myself to share my own opinions on the topic, I thought I had a straightforward answer. But as soon as I started writing, I realised there is so much to say about what truly makes a good life.
Out of all the considerations though, one fundamental question emerged: I started to think— what is core to human life?
The brain is core to human life.
If we agree that the only reality we can experience is some product of interpretation concocted by each individual brain—which produces the subjective experience—then it must be true that what is first needed for a good life is a functional brain. As without one, our experience of reality becomes obsolete and what happens to our sense of reality and the ‘self’ without a functioning brain?
According to experts, our understanding of the brain is still very limited. Even the world’s leading scientists are still uncovering new truths around the brain today. When it comes to the brain, we are barely scratching the surface of what we can know about its true capacity. The most widely debated topic remains the matter on consciousness and its origins.
Although for the purposes of this discussion on what a ‘good’ life is, let’s agree that the brain is the source of consciousness, our mind, and thus our ability to experience and interpret reality.
The brain is the source.
From this point, we must then consider: what is a healthy brain?
As a merely functioning brain cannot be what leads to a good life. What happens if that functioning brain is faulty? With a malfunctioning brain, wouldn’t our experience of the world be faulty too? What is necessary for a good life then, above and before everything else, is a healthy functioning brain.
If we consider the brain as the source of how we experience reality—how we interpret life, the world, the universe—and acknowledge it as the commander of our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours—then the brain is a non-negotiable essential. Before we can think, feel, behave, operate, react, relate, experience, consider morality, delight in our senses—and just about every other human function we can be thankful for—a healthy functioning brain is necessary.
But before we can consider the best practices around how to nurture a healthy brain, we must first also acknowledge the diversity of each brain.
As diverse as each identity is to a face, each brain is unique to every individual.
From genetics to childhood experiences, to nutrition, and personal metal activity—a brain is highly malleable, not only in childhood and adolescence but throughout life. Neuroplasticity is what neuroscientists have identified as the brain’s innate and infinite ability to rewire and change, no matter its age.
Even when we observe the brains of identical twins, although they share identical genetics, each brain will develop on its own and mirror the individuality of each person’s exposures—internally and externally.
If no two brains are ever the same—neither structurally but also in terms of cognitive capacities and of the subjective experience—then every brain is necessarily distinct, and therefore its needs will also be unique.
Neurodivergence explains the variations in the human brain regarding sociability, learning, attention, mood, and other mental functions.
Although first introduced by sociologist Judy Singer in 1997 to describe conditions like autism, Asperger’s syndrome, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, amongst others, I use it here to capture a broader truth: every brain is inherently divergent.
As what defines a ‘normal’ brain is merely an assumption. While science identifies common structures—like the cerebrum, thalamus, hypothalamus, basal ganglia—these anatomical models are as generic as a skeleton diagram, failing to mirror each brain’s true complexity.
Our definition of a ‘normal’ brain is speculative, based on the assumption that all brains reflect those studied. While its generally accepted that eight billion human brains likely share structural similarities, examining their inherent complexity—like their neural networks and synaptic connections—reveals a diversity too immense to fully map and measure.
Like anatomical diagrams that fail to accurately capture individual variations—my right limbs being longer than my left, for example—these standardised understanding of human physiology often oversimplify the profound uniqueness of each human brain.
Moreover, the brain’s neuroplasticity means it continuously evolves throughout life, shaped by experiences and exposures.
Since as we’ve established, a healthy functioning brain is fundamental to a good life, and that each brain develops uniquely, the path to brain health must then be equally individualistic—tailored to each brain’s needs at every particular stage of development.
Thus, the second critical criterion for a good life is adaptability—both in recognising the brain’s neuroplasticity of constant rewiring over a lifetime and in our subjective awareness of our brain’s evolving needs.
The third critical consideration is agility in responding to these changing needs. While science can offer general guidelines for brain health, these simplify the brain’s complexity. Each brain’s requirements are uniquely positioned and is constantly shifting. The responsibility therefore falls on us to understand and nurture our brain’s specific needs at each stage of life—what nurtures it today may be different from what it needs tomorrow.
Acknowledging this divergence reveals that brain health is as dynamic, ever-changing, and varied as life itself. While I’ll explore some universal principles around brain care in the next edition, the patterns I am noticing when reading emerging research is showing that our biology and physiology are fundamentally unique.
So, what constitutes a good life—anchored in the health of our distinctly individual brains—must be equally unique to each person.
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