‘Helicopter brain’ could be making you feel sick: How to spot it and what to do
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you → make → what
A new analysis of 44 studies has linked “doomscrolling” to higher levels of anxiety and psychological distress — but for some, information overload may also contribute to a phenomenon one neurologist calls “helicopter brain.”
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Board-certified neurologist Dr. Steven Resnick uses the term “helicopter brain” to describe a nervous system that remains constantly on high alert, much like a “helicopter parent” who constantly hovers over a child to protect them from harm.
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who → certify → harm
“Imagine your own helicopter — that is your nervous system,” Resnick, chief of the Division of Neurology and medical director of the Comprehensive Stroke Center at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami Beach, Florida, told Fox News Digital.
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Resnick → imagine → Digital
“Your nervous system’s job is to protect you from harm.”
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job → protect → harm
Information overload, overstimulation and uncertainty can keep the brain on high alert, activating the autonomic nervous system, the neurologist said.
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“The brain is scanning for danger,” Resnick said.
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“When it scans for danger, then you have that autonomic nervous system pushing the accelerator.”
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system → scan → accelerator
The neurologist, who also hosts “The Healthy Mind” podcast, said he often sees patients experiencing symptoms they struggle to explain, including headaches, gastrointestinal issues, fatigue, sleep problems, tingling and dizziness.
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In some cases, patients undergo evaluations by multiple specialists before identifying a potential explanation.
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patients → undergo → explanation
“They end up going to see a neurologist, who sends them to the gastroenterologist, who sends them to the cardiologist, then the rheumatologist,” he said.
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“They don’t understand what they’re feeling is actually authentic; it’s real — it’s the nervous system that is actually activated.”
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Although constant information overload can contribute to this heightened state of alertness, Resnick said the same patterns can emerge in response to everyday stressors and deeply ingrained habits.
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When seeing patients, Resnick said his first step is to listen to them, to ensure that he understands what they’re feeling.
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“I hear patients say, ‘I’m scared, I’m fearful, I’m concerned, I’m worried,’ and then you start to realize what their nervous system is telling you,” he told Fox News Digital.
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he → hear → Digital
“I would never have done that by just fixing the problem right away.”
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The nervous system can begin to calm when patients feel truly heard, safe, secure and connected, the neurologist said.
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“The solution can be done later,” Resnick said.
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“And we have to stop using the word ‘fixing,’ because a lot of things cannot be fixed — but over time, you can start feeling better.”
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“Mindfulness is not just about meditation; it’s about noticing,” he said.
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That could mean recognizing the same conflict happening repeatedly with a co-worker, lying awake each night with racing thoughts, or turning to food or cigarettes during periods of stress, according to Resnick.
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When those behaviors repeat, people can begin operating on “autopilot,” he said.
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”The brain wants to resort to what is familiar, what is safe and what is known,” Resnick said.
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“It keeps going back to that because the brain understands it, retrieves it and does the same thing over and over again.
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Breaking that cycle requires recognizing the pattern and making a conscious effort to respond differently, he added.
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No. 3: Catch the trigger
Next, the neurologist said it’s important to “catch the cue,” or trigger, that kick-starts the pattern.
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“It’s a stimulus,” he said.
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“It’s something that is very sneaky.
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It goes under your level of consciousness.”
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It could be a smell or a feeling.”
That cue can trigger an almost automatic behavior, Resnick said, such as procrastinating, eating, reaching for a drink or lashing out.
If the behavior provides pleasure or helps someone avoid an uncomfortable feeling or situation, the brain can become more likely to repeat it.
Even worrying can become part of that cycle.
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If the feared outcome doesn’t happen, Resnick said, the brain may interpret the worry as protective, reinforcing the habit.
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brain → fear → habit
Breaking the pattern starts with identifying the specific cues that set it in motion, according to the neurologist.
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that → break → neurologist
Rather than viewing anxiety or overthinking as something that happens “all the time,” Resnick encourages patients to pinpoint a specific episode, consider what triggered it and recognize the behavior and potential reward that followed.
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No. 4: Reward the new habit
The next step is replacing the unwanted behavior with a healthier habit that provides a noticeable reward, Resnick said.
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“Give your new habit a reward you can feel,” he advised.
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That reward does not have to be significant.
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After an early-morning workout, for example, it might be a sense of accomplishment or an improved mood.
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it → improve → accomplishment
A healthy shake after the workout could provide another small reward.
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shake → provide → reward
“Give your new habit a reward you can feel.”
“Even checkboxing something on a piece of paper feels good,” Resnick said.
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These immediate, positive reinforcements can help the brain begin associating the healthier behavior with something rewarding.
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brain → help → something
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
