Another long busy week of physical and mental stress has come to an end.  I grab a beer and head to the front porch to just sit and relax before dinner.  The bagel I had for lunch is the only thing I’ve had time to eat since breakfast so I soon start feeling the effects of the alcohol.   Feeling quite relaxed, I grab another beer from the fridge and it begins.

As I become more and more relaxed the view from the porch turns to a sort of visual “white noise” and I end up deep in thought.  I start thinking about things in a whole new way, a more creative way.  I can figure out new innovative solutions to problems I had at work and in life that I have never thought of before.  Don’t get me wrong, I seem to have no end of creative thoughts all the time but this is different, it seems to allow the brain to have more abstract thoughts and not use conventional neuron paths.

Time after time I have been  able to duplicate this state of mind as long as the following conditions are present:

• a long period (at least 5 days) of mental and physical stress that has suddenly ended and has been fully resolved
• an empty stomach, if I have a full stomach I don’t feel the alcohol and it doesn’t work if I drink more.
• by myself
• some sort of visual “white noise”
• 1-3 alcoholic drinks, any more and it doesn’t work

I’m not sure why this happens.  Could the long period of physical and mental stress “rev up” the brain and body?  There is already strong evidence that using your mind improves it.  Elderly people that do activities that involve using there mind keep and improve there memory and ability to think longer then those that don’t.   With the brain  “revved up” from all the problems over the last week, and the source of the stress suddenly gone, does a small amount of alcohol impair traditional embedded thought processes just enough to allow new innovated and creative ones?  I’m not sure why the visual “white noise” helps,  but it seems to distract a subconscious part of the brain that interferes with abstract thought processes.

Am I the only one this combination of conditions works for, or does it work for other people?  Are there other conditions that can enhance the creative thought process even more?

Dave Lister

listerlogic.com