What are the negative drivers of brain plasticity that can shrink the brain?
According to neuroscientist Wendy Suzuki, chronic stress and chronic anxiety are the most common negative drivers of brain plasticity. Rather than building and strengthening brain structures, these conditions cause retraction — working in the exact opposite direction from the positive neurochemical effects triggered by physical movement.
Suzuki frames neuroplasticity not as a one-way street toward growth, but as a system that responds to habits and mental states in both directions. The same brain that can be strengthened and expanded through regular exercise can also be diminished by sustained stress and anxiety. This makes the daily management of these states not just a matter of emotional wellbeing, but a direct factor in the physical health of the brain.
Neuroplasticity — as explained in the episode
Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to change and reorganize itself. Suzuki emphasizes that this process works in both directions: positive habits like movement can promote growth, while chronic stress and anxiety can cause the brain to retract. It is not a fixed trait but an ongoing response to your environment and mental state.
The contrast Suzuki draws is stark: a single 10-minute walk is enough to trigger a flood of dopamine, serotonin, noradrenaline, endorphins, and growth factors — all pushing the brain toward growth. Chronic stress and anxiety push in the opposite direction, causing structural retraction over time. You can explore the full episode and Suzuki's science-backed tools on Listenly's The Mel Robbins Podcast page.
"Every single time you move your body, you are releasing literally a flood of neurochemicals in your brain. I'm not talking about run a marathon. I'm talking about even taking a walk, a 10-minute walk gets that flood of neurochemicals going."
— Wendy Suzuki, Neuroscientist, New York University
About Wendy Suzuki
Wendy Suzuki is a world-renowned neuroscientist and Dean of the College of Arts and Science at New York University. Her research has made her one of the leading scientific voices on memory, brain plasticity, and the practical, everyday habits that can improve focus, learning, and overall brain power. What makes Suzuki's perspective particularly compelling on the question of negative neuroplasticity is her work on the bidirectional nature of brain change: she does not study the brain as a fixed organ but as one that responds continuously — for better or worse — to the conditions we create around it. She is also at the forefront of research into the relationship between physical movement and brain health, exploring how even minimal exercise produces measurable neurochemical effects. This dual focus on what builds the brain and what shrinks it gives her a uniquely authoritative standpoint on chronic stress and anxiety as structural threats to brain health, not merely emotional discomforts.
See also
Suzuki attributes the energy boost from exercise most likely to the flood of dopamine and serotonin released in the brain. She also notes that in groups, social energy from exercising together likely amplifies this effect.
Suzuki explains that improved focus is the most commonly reported positive effect from studies of exercise on the brain. A single 10-minute walk triggers a full flood of neurochemicals that directly support attention and concentration.
According to Wendy Suzuki, every time you move your body you release a flood of neurochemicals in your brain, including dopamine, serotonin, noradrenaline, endorphins, and growth factors — all triggered even by a short 10-minute walk.