Pathways

Our original knowledge of self is based on our earliest neural pathways. In other words, what you were taught became reinforced through repetition until it became unquestioned orthodoxy. 

Any divergences from that were outliers to be rejected. 

Of course this is false but we don't know that in infancy and into adolescence and so we suppressed instincts which went elsewhere; all this reinforced through social pressure to conform. 

The more restrictive your family upbringing and social norms were the less likely you were to escape their grip. 

Look at film from the early 20th century for evidence of people being obrdient sheep. From behaviour to manner of dress, everything was hermetically controlled. 

Reprogramming the brain requires building new neural pathways which then allows individuality and instinct to flourish. We analyze our early instruction and build new brain coding which reinforces an authentic and emboldened sense of self. 

The older we become the more imperative it becomes. 

Our bullshit detector is working at peak efficiency.