Gerry O'Sullivan > Quotes

“From a neurological perspective, the role of a mediator may be described as minimizing perceptions of danger enabling cognitive appreciations of emotions, dampening the amygdala and helping parties to self-regulate. — Jeremy Lack and Francois Bogacz”
― Gerry O'Sullivan, The Mediator's Toolkit: Formulating and Asking Questions for Successful Outcomes

“Amygdala Hijack Our perception of our world occurs via our five senses.19 Information from these senses enters our brain stem from the spinal cord and travels along neural pathways to the limbic system. When our senses perceive a threat, our sympathetic nervous system is stimulated, resulting in a fight or flight response, also known as a stress response. When this happens, we are no longer able to think rationally. Instead, we are in reaction mode. When a threat is perceived, emotional memories stored in the midbrain’s amygdala can be evoked. When the amygdala is stimulated by a perceived threat, it signals to the hypothalamus, and this results in the release of the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline. These hormones are released into the bloodstream and transported to the brain, where they disconnect the frontal lobes and leave us at the mercy of our emotions and caught in amygdala hijack. This is a strong emotional state. The oxygen and glucose necessary for effective frontal brain high-order thinking are then diverted to the amygdala in the limbic system to process these emotions. While this takes place, the frontal brain is deprived of oxygen and glucose and unable to function effectively at a rational level. Emotional self-regulation20 activates the para-sympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the release of hormones into the bloodstream to act as antidotes to the stress hormones. These antidotes gradually slow breathing and reduce the heart rate, enabling oxygen and glucose to return to the frontal brain, which permits rational thinking to take place again.”
― Gerry O'Sullivan, The Mediator's Toolkit: Formulating and Asking Questions for Successful Outcomes

“Party says: She should stop behaving like that! (Old narrative) Mediator’s reframe: How would you like Karen to be from now on? (Moving to a new narrative)”
― Gerry O'Sullivan, The Mediator's Toolkit: Formulating and Asking Questions for Successful Outcomes

“War isn’t fun, gentlemen,’ I said. ‘You should try being in one sometime.”
― Gerry O'Sullivan, Gangsters of Shanghai

“No area of understanding is more relevant and important to mediation competency than a basic understanding of how the human brain functions, perceives events, processes emotional notions, cognitive response and formulates decisions. The awareness of cognitive neuroscience and psychology are at the heart of our work in managing conflict and problem solving. — Robert Benjamin”
― Gerry O'Sullivan, The Mediator's Toolkit: Formulating and Asking Questions for Successful Outcomes