Play
" We don’t stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw
We play because we just want to. It's fun, it poses a challenge both cognitively and physically irrespective of what we are playing. We play because it is freeing and relieving, because for a brief period of time, it takes our mind to a different place where the worries, sorrows and hardships of real life don’t exist.?
Play is about reminding ourselves of how we were as children. Exploring new terrains, new rules and new contingencies to learn more about ourselves and those we played with. ‘Play’ as a kid was our primary source of information from which we knew what our limits were and how to test it.?
When we were restricted from playing as much as we wanted to, we tended to play a bit more the next time. Similar to how having a light lunch is compensated for by a heavy dinner. It becomes a necessity, and is termed as homeostasis, or balance. Play becomes a part of our circadian rhythm, and when an imbalance has been caused resulting in a lack of play, we feel the need to make up for it, and play at any chance we get.?
There is no set definition for what play comprises. There are many kinds of play, role play, social play, imaginary play, individual & group play, and of course, sports too. From a game of overnight football to an indoor game of chess, everything counts. There is only one condition that needs to be fulfilled in order for an activity to qualify as play, the activity must be low-stakes. We’ll get to the science behind this process in time, let’s first understand the difference between low-stakes play and high-stakes play. If you take the game too seriously and the outcome of the game has all your attention, that’s a way of saying that the game you’re playing is high-stakes. If the game itself has more of your attention, the movement and the social interactions it would have, the excitement of playing the game first before you think of the result, is an example of a low-stakes game. Cricket in street lights while breaking your neighbour’s window is low-stakes, cricket in a stadium full of people cheering your name to win your country a trophy, is high-stakes.?
Both of these examples perfectly count as play, but there’s a difference, and here’s where the science will help.?
THE SCIENCE:
The part of the brain responsible to carry out this function resides in the brain stem, which is commonly associated with the concept of ‘play’. The PAG, or Periaqueductal Gray, is a part of the brain stem that is rich with nerve cells or neurons. The PAG is responsible for the release of opioids that are endogenous in nature. In simple words, these are small quantities of opioids that are made within our system for a biological purpose, so it's safe and legal. When we play, the PAG releases these opioids like Enkephalin. Enkephalin affects the prefrontal cortex of our brain, the part responsible for executive function and decision-making. It is because of these opioids that we are able to take on new & different roles, test out different contingencies through the duration of our ‘play’. The release of these opioids are triggered only when we play, and not when we are doing something goal-directed or linear. These chemicals are responsible for giving us the experience of seeing, exploring new possibilities of our body & how we interact with others, the environment and ourselves too.?(To get a better sense of the process, zoom in on the title photo to the top left region)
The neurobiological explanation as to why it's healthier to keep the act of ‘play’ low-stakes rather than high-stakes (as much as possible in an informal scenario), is to do with the epinephrine secreted. Adrenaline or epinephrine is the hormone of excitement, anger, tenseness, anxiety etc. It is healthy to not have a high amount of adrenaline released while engaging in play, which is very likely to happen during a high-stakes game. The issue isn't simply about the adrenaline being released, it is paired with the release of another hormone by the name of cortisol, which is responsible for giving us the sense of stress and tenseness. Too much adrenaline can potentially inhibit the engagement of play by increasing stress. So, the best way to interpret this information, is to always find a way to enjoy the game more than the outcome during a high-stakes game, which will trigger the release of dopamine (hormone of joy) rather than cortisol, which is healthier.?
Visualising only about the outcome leads to very linear thinking, and it doesn’t enable you to think flexibly. Linear thinking and thought process has been the most relied upon strategy to win games on the big stage, which is good fun to witness but flexible thinking is what equips us to engage with the future and the challenges it holds for us.?
Finally, let’s look at some more rationale as to why it is better to play, than to not.?
领英推荐
The less you play, the less you learn about everything else in life, the less plastic your brain becomes to new experiences and contingencies, the less it develops, more likely to contract long-term stress and the more likely you/your child is to develop ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
On the other hand, the more you play, the more plastic your brain becomes and opens up to new experiences, strengthens neural network connections, encourages cerebral development and flexible thinking, prepares you for contingency testing and social interaction, helps explore the different lenses and perspectives through which life is travelled.?
But most of all, it's super fun.?
Hence, don’t stop playing and keep it cool as a cucumber.?
- Parijath Parimal
Additional Research & References: