🧩 Brain Networks: Why It’s Not Just One Spot

🌱 Big picture 

Mental health conditions are not caused by one broken area of the brain.
They involve networks of brain regions working together.

This matters because networks can change, strengthen, and rebalance over time.

🧠 What a brain network is 

What a brain network is and how it works.

This infographic explains how different parts of the brain connect and communicate to form networks that control thinking, emotions, attention, and memory. Healthy brain networks work together like a team to support everyday mental and emotional function. 

A brain network is a group of brain areas that:

• Communicate with each other
  
  

• Share information
  
  

• Work together to manage thoughts, emotions, and behaviors
  
  

Think of it like a team rather than a single worker.

🔄 Important brain networks in mental health 

😨 The fear & threat network 

Includes:

• Amygdala
  
  

• Brainstem
  
  

• Parts of the limbic system
  
  

Helps with:

• Detecting danger
  
  

• Triggering fight-or-flight
  
  

• Keeping you safe
  
  

When this network is overactive, it can lead to anxiety, panic, or hypervigilance.

🧠 The thinking & control network 

Includes:

• Prefrontal cortex
  
  

• Anterior cingulate cortex
  
  

Helps with:

• Logical thinking
  
  

• Emotional regulation
  
  

• Decision-making
  
  

When underactive, it can feel harder to calm yourself or shift thoughts.

🧠 The memory & context network 

Includes:

• Hippocampus
  
  

• Temporal lobes
  
  

Helps with:

• Remembering past experiences
  
  

• Telling “now” from “then”
  
  

• Learning safety over time
  
  

This network is often involved in PTSD and trauma-related conditions.

🌱 The reward & motivation network 

Includes:

• Dopamine pathways
  
  

• Basal ganglia
  
  

Helps with:

• Motivation
  
  

• Pleasure
  
  

• Habit formation
  
  

Changes here are linked with depression, ADHD, and addiction patterns.

🔁 What happens when networks get stuck 

When brain networks get stuck:

• Fear signals may repeat too often
  
  

• Calming signals may arrive too late
  
  

• Thoughts may loop
  
  

• Body reactions may persist
  
  

This creates symptoms — not because the brain is damaged, but because it’s protecting too hard.

🧠 Why this is good news 

Because networks can change:

• Therapy strengthens new connections
  
  

• Medication can support balance
  
  

• Skills and routines retrain responses
  
  

Brains are adaptive, even under long-term stress.

💡 Reassurance 

Having a mental health condition does not mean:

• You are broken
  
  

• Your brain is permanently damaged
  
  

• You will always feel this way
  
  

It means your brain learned a pattern — and it can learn new ones.

➡️ What to do next 

Now you’re ready to explore specific conditions.

Start with one of these:

• 😟 Anxiety Disorders
  
  

• 😞 Depression
  
  

• ⚡ Panic Disorder
  
  

• 🧠 ADHD
  
  

• 🔁 OCD