How negative past experiences shape your current perception of the world and how can you challenge self limiting beliefs that are keeping you stuck

How does our perceptual system work?

The perceptual system is a system designed to make inferences about the external world based on our senses. It’s the process of recognizing, organizing, and interpreting information from our senses based on our past experiences and expectations. It is not an exact copy of the world. Most people believe that the perceptual world is evolved to give us an exact copy of the external world, which can’t be true or accurate when it comes to reality. The goal of our perceptual system is not to form an accurate internal representation of the external world but to help us guide our behavior.

To create a perception, our brain uses two main processes. The first one is bottom-up processing. The theory of bottom-up processing was introduced by psychologist E. J. Gibson. Bottom-up processing is the first step in processing. It takes sensory data collected by our senses and sends it upward, to the brain. The brain then tries to make sense of it. Bottom-up processing focuses on incoming sensations and data and takes place in real time. Unlike top-down processing, bottom-up processing is purely data-driven and requires no previous knowledge or learning.

Top-down processing, on the other hand, is the interpretation of incoming information based on prior knowledge, experiences, and expectations. The brain uses prior knowledge in order to make sense of the world and events that are happening in the present. The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information enables us to make sense of the world around us. With this information, we can see how easy it is for our brain to create “fake information” about the world. We all have different past experiences, beliefs and expectations which means that we all interpret the world differently. This is important because it shows us that perception is in part subjective and that it can’t be completely accurate. In reality, our visual system is poorly designed to create an accurate representation of the world.

Trauma shifts your perceptual system.

With the information we just talked about, we can see how traumatizing past experiences can lead our perceptual system to malfunction. Immediately after trauma, our perceptual system is affected and from then on, traumatized people often perceive the world as unsafe and threatening. This change in perception was once adaptive. Originally, it was created by your brain as a way to insure your safety and make sure that this traumatic event doesn’t happen again or that it at least, doesn’t surprise you the next time. This can be very helpful. For example, if a horse bits you, you will probably be more careful next time you approach a horse. The problem is when that change in perception that was once adaptive, becomes unhealthy and/ or problematic. For example, a child that is being abused will oftentimes develop intense feelings of guilt and shame. At its origin, these feelings are trying to help. A child is a powerless little human being and believing that he or she is defective and that the abuse is his fault, also means in an indirect way that he has power over it. If he can change, then the abuse will stop. As a child, this is a way safer belief than believing the truth, which is that his parents are incapable of loving him. Problem arises when this child grows up and his beliefs doesn’t change. This individual will then walk around this earth carrying the untrue and sad belief that he is defective and responsible for it. We can see how this leads to a lot of suffering…

What exactly are beliefs?

Beliefs are assumptions we carry about the world that we believe to be true. Beliefs affect all areas of your life, which is why cultivating a good belief system is crucial to your well-being!

The nasty side of beliefs…

The thing about beliefs is that they reinforce themselves. This process is called confirmation bias. Confirmation bias is the tendency we have to perceive and process information by looking for, or interpreting information that is consistent with one’s existing beliefs. Beliefs lead you to interpret everything in such a way that it fits in that existing belief. This means that your perceptual system has evolved in such a way that it supports your previous beliefs. This is why changing your beliefs is so hard; because you see reinforcers of them everywhere!! If you have the belief that the world is a beautiful and safe place, you will experience the world in that way and you will see reinforcers of those beliefs continuously. If you believe the world is a scary place to be in, that belief will be reinforced. This is why beliefs can become self-limiting.

What are self-limiting beliefs?

As we saw, beliefs are assumptions we have about ourselves and the world. Self-limiting beliefs are beliefs that hold us back and no longer serve us.

How to challenge your self-limiting beliefs?

Here are five tips to help you challenge these nasty self limiting beliefs:

1. Identify your self limiting beliefs: Recognize these nasty beliefs that are no longer serving you. For exemple, if you find yourself engaging in the same pattern over and over again, it’s probably time to stop and reflect on that. If you wonder why you “Always end up with the same boyfriends” that’s maybe because you have beliefs about yourself and about what a relationship should look like that are driving you to attract certain kinds of people. Some beliefs might be so deeply ingrained that recognizing them requires a lot of effort and sometimes seeking external help is necessary. Good questions to start pondering on include: Is this belief helping me grow or is it keeping me stuck? Is it helpful? Is it true? Does it serve me?
2. Bring compassion to these beliefs and acknowledge the ways in which they tried to help keep you safe in the past, but don’t let them have power over you. Something I’ve learned in therapy is that you don’t have to believe everything you think. Thoughts are here to help guide your behavior but oftentimes, they don’t even do that good of a job. Thoughts aren’t always true. In fact, they aren’t true more often than not, and they can even be harmful! Learn how to observe your thoughts and beliefs from a curious but detached point of view.
3. Understand the impact your self-limiting beliefs have on you, on those you love and how it affects your everyday life. Thoughts and beliefs lead to feelings, which lead to behavior. We behave the way we think. If we have self limiting beliefs we’re likely to act on them, which can often negatively affect your relationships, well being, career etc. See all the ways in which your life could improve or change if you didn’t have these beliefs. In other words, start challenging your beliefs!
4. Identify the source of your beliefs! Often, beliefs are implanted in you, not created by you. For exemple, being told you’re stupid or bad by a teacher or parent when your little affects the way you think about yourself. Identifying the sources of your limiting beliefs can help you see the inaccuracy they hold and therefore, help you remove them. You can ask yourself: Why am I believing this? Who told me this? Why should i believe this person? What if they were wrong?
5. Create an alternate positive belief! Changing your beliefs can be a hard and long process because they oftentimes have been ingrained in you when you were little and grew stronger as you grew older. Instead of trying to suppress or remove your self limiting beliefs, try to create a new one to replace it with! If you’re having a hard time doing that, you can always replace a negative belief with a mantra or affirmation! For example, you can replace the belief that bad things will always happen to you with something like: “I trust the universe to keep me safe” or “ I know that there is a part deep inside of me, that can never be diminished or destroyed, no matter what happens.”

Although trauma has long lasting consequences and alters the way you perceive yourself and the world around you, you are stronger than your self limiting beliefs! Easier said than done, I know. Some of them are so close to your heart that it feels like you’ll never be able to change them… That’s okay!! If you can’t change them, explore them! Your courage in exploring them, will change them in time!