Podcasts · The Human Upgrade: Biohacking for Longevity & Performance

How to Trigger Flow States From The 5 Brain Chemicals You Need : 1559

· 56 min · Episode 1559

Episode How to Trigger Flow States From The 5 Brain Chemicals You Need : 1559

0:00 56:01

The Neuroscience of Flow, Peak Performance, Psychedelics, Trauma, Intuition & Consciousness with Steven Kotler

Host Dave Asprey sits down with Steven Kotler, New York Times bestselling author and leading researcher in the neuroscience of flow, to explore how altered states of consciousness influence peak performance, mental health, creativity, intuition, and our perception of reality.

Steven Kotler is a bestselling author of 17 books, including The Art of Impossible and We Are as Gods, and the founder of the Flow Research Collective. For decades, he has studied the neurobiology of peak performance, working with elite athletes, military personnel, and high-performing professionals to understand how people can reliably access flow states.

Dave and Steven begin by exploring the neuroscience of flow and why it may be one of the most powerful altered states available without drugs. Steven explains how dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, anandamide, and endorphins contribute to the flow experience, why his research suggests caffeine can increase flow susceptibility, and how chasing the neurochemical high of peak performance can become dangerous.

They discuss the darker side of flow training, including its potential risks for people prone to mania, the importance of recovery, and why attempting to remain in a flow state indefinitely can undermine performance. Steven shares how his training programs approach sleep, attention, and behavioral changes to help people access flow more consistently.

The conversation then moves into psychedelics, ketamine-assisted therapy, and the neuroscience of trauma. Steven introduces emerging research suggesting that unresolved emotional patterns may involve the brain's predictive processing systems. Dave shares a personal experience involving Joe Rogan and how revisiting an early childhood memory changed his emotional response to public criticism.

Dave and Steven also explore how the brain constructs reality, including the neuroscience of perception, sensory processing, and the flexible boundary between ourselves and our environment. They discuss how flow alters our sense of self, why the brain predicts what we experience before we consciously perceive it, and how these mechanisms may help explain certain spiritual and out-of-body experiences.

Finally, Steven reveals new research investigating the neurological connections between flow, intuition, synchronicity, and purpose. He discusses emerging theories of consciousness, the role of information processing in subjective experience, and how artificial intelligence may change the future of human performance.

You'll Learn:

• How flow states influence dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, anandamide, and endorphins, and why Steven's research suggests caffeine may help make the brain more susceptible to flow. • Why chasing the neurochemical high of flow can become dangerous, how flow training may affect people prone to mania, and why sleep and recovery are essential for sustained peak performance. • How ketamine-assisted therapy may help uncover forgotten emotional experiences and why Steven believes the brain's predictive processing systems play an important role in trauma. • How the brain constructs our perception of reality, why sensory information reaches consciousness at different speeds, and what happens to our sense of self during altered states. • Why flow may enhance intuition and how emerging neuroscience research is investigating connections between synchronicity, purpose, and the brain's information-processing systems. • How Steven is using neuroscience, artificial intelligence, and years of flow training data to develop more accessible methods for improving focus, learning, and performance.

Dave Asprey is a four-time New York Times bestselling author, founder of Bulletproof Coffee, and the father of biohacking. With over 1,000 interviews and 1 million monthly listeners, The Human Upgrade brings you the knowledge to take control of…

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