20LBS DOWN!! WHEWW! No sugar, no white refined carbs for months! You’ve done great! Now lets celebrate with a cheat day, that’s right! EXTRA whip cream please! No big deal, it’s just one day, you’ll be right back on schedule. This form of thought patterns leads me to my main topic of discussion. Through dated sequences of events, one might deem common acts of “harmless” reward systems rapidly plummeting to our demise. Like most of our post here, these articles are constructed as a space for open dialogue. Look at this as a conversation starter, maybe you too can find a correlation parallel to your everyday life when considering conditioning factors. 

 What’s your favorite food? Pizza? chicken? Baked macaroni & cheese? I can see you now, salivating at the notion of taking a huge bite out of one or more of those. Mmmumm! You might want to consider yourself a product of classical conditioning ; which is just one form of conditioning. Now we don’t think of conditioning in regards to just wanting to indulge in our favorite meals from time to time, thus making our mouths water WE JUST WANT TO GRUB/GREASE! How dare us to may or may not be encouraging you to consider that you and others like yourself are to hold liable for the habitual bleak state that not just people of African decent but many others endured and continue to endure due to and unbeknownst to findings in your day to day life. SHAME ON YOU RCOY! *Slaps wrist* You may be conditioned to destroying your own life which in turn destroys the life of others so let’s talk about it. 

 Conditioning by definition is “ the process of training or accustoming a person or animal to behave in a certain way or to accept certain circumstances”. No wonder why they say “ We accept the love we think we deserve” because psychologically whenever we “like” something our brain releases a couple of chemicals, one commonly known as “dopamine” hence creating a euphoric sensation. That association with any other variable (commonly used is contingent variables) will in turn create an automatic response over a period of time. So we then can conclude that any form even if just associated with this chemical release will in fact be considered “Good” for you by DNA coding. 

In many cases we refer to people we don’t like as “ Idiots” or “idiotic” which can considerably be nothing more than a person who thinks if they continue to do something that’s never really been beneficial to them , somehow, one day it will magically work for them. This is why there are two types of conditioning. This form by which we are discussing can be known as “Classical” conditioning. Classical conditioning is “ a process of behavior modification in which a subject learns to respond in a desired manner such that a neutral stimulus (the conditioned stimulus) is repeatedly presented in association with a stimulus (the unconditioned stimulus) that elicits a natural response (the unconditioned response) until the neutral stimulus alone elicits the same response (now called the conditioned response)”.

 A commonly relatable occurrence can be referred to an instance by which when you were in school and you knew at 11pm you had history class. As soon as the bell rings, class was over and you would have lunch. So every time the bell would ring it indicated its time to throw these books away & go have pizza! That euphoric feeling from released dopamine makes you happy! So now every day (whether in school or else where) whenever you hear a bell ring you start to associate it with something “good”. Extinction(when in regards to conditioning) is “ when a person loses the association with a stimuli which causes a specific reaction”. So this is similar in comparison to dinosaurs going extinct, same concept just with behavioral patterns. In other words there’s hope for a better “you” even when it doesn’t seem possible because how most people like to put it “I’m just the way I am”. Another position to consider in the extinction process is “Extinction burst”  which is a “ temporary increase in frequency, duration, or magnitude of the conditioned behavior during the extinction process”. This is why you may notice in the process of “change or conditioning” (whether it be to prevent a behavior or create one) most people have a emence amount of “urgency” to commit the said conditioned behavior. This is why it is important to continuously repeat extinct behavioral acts in hopes of reviving the unconditioned stimulus, In many words KEEP GOING! It’s literally a part of the process to desire what you no longer want to continue but don’t let it get to you, MAKE THE BETTER DECISION EVEN WHEN IT FEELS UNCOMFORTABLE, It’s totally normal and a part of the process of growth.  

       It is safe to say that you may actually not like the things you “think” you like AT ALL! And in that, maybe there is a silent war on your well being in the name of dopamine! How come the things we don’t like, doesn’t motivate us just as much, if not more than the things we “do” enjoy? Or does it? Oh, Hi there! Didn’t see another form of conditioning standing there, And you probably won’t ever if you never considered otherwise. Operant conditioning is “ a associative learning process where behavior modification in which a subject is encouraged to behave in a desired manner through positive or negative reinforcement, so that the subject comes to associate the pleasure or displeasure of the reinforcement with the behavior.” Heres one way to look at it, driving on the road you are aware that if you run a red light you are at risk of being ticketed a fee for violating traffic rules. This possible threat may prevent less red light traffic violations. One analysis I can account for being In school when you graduate, they separate the students who graduated with straight “A’s” in all white cape and gown from everyone else who receive well known school colors. Possibly compelling others to feel inferior or not good enough, more so if they were aware they could have been in “all white” with their friends if they got that 100% on one test. 

  To sum up this scheme, everything is not what it seems or even what it isn’t. Think of your life and ask yourself if you’re making the best decision for yourself even if it’s not what you want to do. Also consider the things you actually like, maybe that popular designer belt isn’t so “hard” after everyone already have it and you even heard a commercial refer to those without it as “ slow upstairs” so you analyze if you actually want it or if your conditioned state enjoys the approval of others or the feeling of inclusion no matter how or what that is considering that maybe as a child you didn’t get enough attention so it was like a “reward” when you did so you search for it in other areas in life as an adult. Feel attacked? Don’t worry I don’t actually know who’s reading this so if these points I described here made you uncomfortable then GOOD! Most can vow to the idea that extreme detriment takes place in the act of blindly going through life not analyzing your good and bad habits therefore not taking accountability for who you are and the actions you take, hence effecting all individuals whom maybe come in contact with you. It’s a tough pill to swallow but it can seem to be a possible start in the right direction to making the world a better place, starting with you.