Unhealthy daily habits may be complicating your life more than you realize, according to a neuroscientist who recently shed light on this issue.
Dr. Dominic Ng, a UK-based expert in the field, took to X—formerly known as Twitter—to elaborate on certain routines that might be inadvertently harming us. His insights have sparked a conversation about the small changes we can make for a healthier lifestyle.
One of the habits Dr. Ng highlighted is a common one: reaching for your phone as soon as you wake up. This simple act can flood your mind with anxiety-inducing and anger-provoking news, setting a negative tone for the day ahead.
Another routine that Dr. Ng suggested revisiting is inconsistent sleep patterns. He pointed out that varying your bedtime throughout the week—say, sleeping at 10 p.m. on Monday, 2 a.m. on Friday, and 11 p.m. on Sunday—can mimic the effects of jet lag, even if you haven’t traveled anywhere.
The next was failing to get to sleep at the same time every day.
‘For example, Monday: sleep at 10pm. Friday: sleep at 2am, Sunday: sleep at 11pm,’ he said, can cause ‘jet lag without leaving the bedroom.’
The neuroscientist then advised people to use boredom to their advantage and do something useful – rather than just scrolling.
‘Take a walk, call a friend, start a project,’ he suggested.
Dr Dominic Ng, a UK-based doctor, shared a thread to X, formerly known as Twitter, detailing routines that could be doing more harm than good (stock image)
He warned that constantly being on a screen can prevent people from using their brains to think creatively.
Dr Ng then advised not comparing yourself relentlessly to others.
‘Your salary to your richest friend, your body to the fittest person at the gym, your home to the nicest one on your feed,’ he listed as common examples.
The neuroscientist said everyone should learn to ‘look back at how far you’ve come’ rather than ‘how far behind you are.’
His fifth piece of advice was to exercise – even when you don’t feel like it – and reminded everyone that it doesn’t have to feel overtly strenuous to count.
He assured people that going for a ‘pleasant walk’ – which some may not deem as ‘real exercise’ – is still sufficient.
The doctor berated people who set unrealistic movement goals for ‘turning something humans did naturally for millennia into another metric to fail at.’
The expert also said it’s dangerous to ignore all physical sensations your body is giving you.
Dr Ng also spoke of the importance of keeping up friendships, even when you are not feeling like being social (stock image)
‘Exhausted? More caffeine. Back aches? Sit through it. Heart racing? Just anxiety,’ he listed as examples of signs people often ignore that indicate they are in distress.
Dr Ng also spoke of the importance of keeping up friendships, even when you are not feeling like being social.
His last piece of advice was not to wait until the conditions feel ‘right’ to start something.
‘[People wait to] start until conditions are perfect,’ he pointed out. ‘The right mood. The right time. The right energy.’
He advised not spending your life waiting for a feeling before taking action.
Earlier this week, another neurologist shared some simple tricks that can help break the cycles that quietly take over our lives.
Dr Arif Khan, a pediatric neurologist, outlined some ways to stop negative patterns.
In a YouTube video, he broke down how the brain forms new behaviors, explaining that the brain is conditioned to take the path of least resistance.
To change this and make new habits, the expert suggested shrinking the task if it feels overwhelming.
‘Not to make it easier, but to make it neurologically doable. Just one step, like reading one page,’ he explained.
‘To break the habit, you don’t remove the reward. You tend to replace it, and after the new behavior, give your brain something meaningful,’ said Khan.
‘A deep breath, a moment of pride, “I did it!” A physical gesture, like placing your hand on your chest. Here’s the truth: Your old habits were built by accident. Your new ones will be built by awareness.’
