Why Functional Symptoms Arise: The Default System and the Executive Function

When we speak of functional manifestations, we first need to understand how the brain switches between two modes of operation. The doctor introduces this distinction not for theory's sake but to make the origin of symptoms clear — "otherwise you simply can't understand it." At its core lies the idea of a background "default system" and of how and when motor function, short-term memory, and executive function come online.

Two Systems: "Default" and Engaging With Life

There is a background system that runs by default — the same one that processes dreams during sleep. When we dream, motor function is switched off: "when we dream, our motor function switches off" — we run in the dream, but the body does not run. Conversely, when a person is fully awake and "fully engaged in life," motor function comes online a hundred percent: they see, hear, breathe, act.

Between these states there are intermediate phenomena. For example, sleep paralysis on waking: "a person wakes up and cannot move their arms" — consciousness has already switched on, but motor function has not yet. This vividly shows that engaging the body in action is a separate process that can fall out of sync with consciousness.

When Body and Consciousness Are Out of Sync

It is from this mismatch that the method derives the logic of functional manifestations: the background system is still "dictating," while full engagement with life has not occurred. The person is, as it were, "not yet awake" for a particular action — and the body responds differently from what consciousness expects, or fails to engage in time.

Short-Term Memory as the Key to Executive Function

Full engagement with life is tied to short-term memory: "short-term memory switches on when you wake up into life." If this part of the brain does not record, the executive function collapses — the function that underlies cognitive abilities: counting, planning, organization. Organization is when we "see, assemble, sort through"; planning is building a logical chain toward a goal. Without working short-term memory, these operations cannot come together "in the head."

Impulse and Delay: The Role of the Frontal Region

A key idea of the method: there must be a pause between stimulus and response. "The greater the time between stimulus and response, the more intelligent and capable a person is." If someone is locked in the background system, an impulse immediately triggers a reaction, and it cannot be held back — hence behavior where the reaction cannot be "restrained." The capacity for this delay belongs to the frontal region of the brain; when it works fully, the executive function of thinking comes online.

Neurochemistry, Not the Person's "Fault"

The method stresses: this is "pure neurochemistry" and genetically determined features — deficits in the synapses, problems with dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin. That is why remarks, reproaches, and admonitions do not work; they merely "torment the person." Understanding the origin of a symptom changes the attitude: instead of demands, there is recognition that engaging in action takes effort and causes discomfort.

Practice

A checklist for understanding (strictly from the material's logic):

1. Notice which mode the person is in: the background "default system" or full engagement with life.
2. Allow time between stimulus and response — don't rush the reaction, since the pause itself is a sign of an engaged executive function.
3. Account for short-term memory: if a person "doesn't remember five minutes later," don't demand organization and planning — their foundation isn't working.
4. Drop remarks and reproaches: remember this is neurochemistry, not unwillingness.
5. Gently support engagement in action, understanding that the effort of switching causes great discomfort.