Poverty Brain

The Death of the Frontal Cortex.

One night a week or so ago, I was watching TV and scrolling through FB groups. I’m a member of a bunch of food sharing groups. These groups give free food and supplies to other families who need it. 

“I went to the pantry today and they gave me an extra box, does anyone need anything?”someone might write. 

Then, they post a pic of the items and give their cross streets. From there the comments are about how to meet to pick-up and transfer the food. The sites are popular, have boundaries, the occasional cat fight and every once in awhile, a dramatic breakup and the formation of a new group where everyone has to choose their side, are you with the olds or the newbs?

Despite all this, a lot of people get help directly, without having to access the rules and obligations that come with charity (open certain hours, long line waits, poor and limited food choice etc.) And the sites create mutual aid because people give and people take, there is balance, and some equity. 

I happened to start following Mary. She is white and younger than me. She wears glasses. There are pictures of her hugging a round man with a beard, probably her husband, also white, also younger. She has twin daughters but I never see their faces.

I started checking out Mary’s posts because I noticed them getting bleak and spiteful. She seemed different, like her personality had shifted. She became more desperate and cynical. I had read a lot, in preparation for the book I was writing, The Meth Lunches, about poverty brain, or what happens to people when they are in the heat of poverty, that it changes their brains, how they think, make decisions.

We know that the rich brain and the poor brain are different animals. Economist Anandi Mani of the University of Warwick, along with folks from Harvard, Princeton and the University of British Columbia studied what happens when a brain is stressed from poverty. They specifically looked at the frontal cortex, the part of the brain that helps us have executive function - memory, focus, planning, multi-tasking - and also, the biggie, emotional regulation.

The frontal cortex is really the best of us. It’s our best functional self.

The studies clearly showed the the worry and stress of poverty put brains into cognitive overload, taxing the frontal cortex and making the most functional part of us more difficult to access. This is critical because when we see people taking pay day loans, short cutting when they should be making longterm decisions, losing track of bills and expenses, letting issues drop when they should be sorted out, or just being difficult and uncooperative, mean and hostile, it’s because the part of the brain that makes us delightful and reliable is being smashed to bits.

Rich people do not have to worry about this. Their frontal cortex’ are just fine.

I opened a food pantry in my front yard during the pandemic and it brought lots of people to my doorstep. It became so clear Poverty Brain was a real thing. People came to us a mess. I remember this woman who used to come to my house between 11pm and 1am and she came at least once a week. She would tell me she had three families in the car, always the three families, (can three families fit inside car?) the car was always running and she would prop her foot against the door to open it further and see my stock of food in the foyer.

“You got soup? I see soup?” she would ask and then tell me she doesn’t have a bag or box, could I get her one. “How many of those can I have? Can I have all of those?”

This went on for the better part of a year.

She never hit the pantry when it was officially open, she almost always got me out of bed without any concern that she was pounding on my door late at night, she was forthright and focused on getting the food she needed but never easy to be around, she never smiled, she uttered her thank you hastily, and as the door was closing, she was always on edge, her words clipped, a little desperate and rushed.

Now I wonder, what was she like when she wasn’t desperate? When her brain wasn’t on overload? When she had some frontal cortex to spare?

And then I realize the kicker…..

That poverty creates the overload on the brain, AND the overload can keep you in poverty, making dumb decisions, grabbing for the right-now, not being able to settle the brain.

This is what I was seeing in Mary’s posts, a kind of temporary death of her frontal cortex.

Here’s Mary in 2022

She posts about social causes, autism, mental illness, and then more food - nom nom! - a recipe video on how to make French toast with ham and gruyere.

• May: Hey everyone just so you know I am currently making hand made jewelry for sale if anyone is interested in seeing or buying them please feel free to message me on here and I will gladly show you what I've made

• July: I just watched Jane Eyre on Hulu and it sucks that the BBC has shows that are way more fulfilling and satisfying to watch than American tv

• August: Pastimes. Dreams Hello lovely people pardon my messy table but I have started making jewelry I have earrings pendants bracelets I'm starting to make rings and chokers as well if anyone is interested please message me and let me know I'll post my price sheet in the comments and depending on where you live I can mail them but it will cost a small fee. These are just some sample pictures as I will have more products if you would like to see some items specifically and closer up shoot me a messag…

• September: Another year older tomorrow.... Aging is stupid after 21 nothing feels different....just watching my baby grow from afar while I get my shit together all for him. At least my hubby is here to keep me sane lol miss you my buggy boy

• October: I am so happy for the first time in my life I have been able to make my favorite eggs all by myself I made my dippy eggs without breaking the yolk and without burning them I'm so happy and they taste so good I love it more when Gene Zander makes them but I'm so happy I can have them whenever I want now

• #Filltheboot I just dontated please donate as well

Mary’s life is round and full. She donates money to organizations. She makes jewelery. She cooks. She mothers and loves her family. There is order and balance and calm.

• November: Ok so today we went to the red pot in Las Vegas I swear it's the best hot pot I have ever had if your into asian culture or an anime freak then you need to check this place out you get to go chooses your own food to cook in the pot they have amazing broths so flavorful and delicate the price is not bad for the quality either they are overshadowed by the places around them but too delicious not to try they got spicy not spicy and everyone is so nice

• December: Dang I hate when you have an idea to help the environment but you won't know if it will work because you aren't able to test it out cuz of equipment costs and you have nowhere safe to test it grrrr

Mary is funny. On a “who’s pickier?” quiz, she scores as someone who won’t eat 18 things out of 40 and laughs at herself. She likes Miracle whip. Hates licorice. Likes Vienna sausages, hates pickled okra. She doesn’t eat tongue, loves seafood and sushi. 

Mary in 2023: The first strains that things might not be going right. There is this little bit of negativity that I hadn’t seen before.

• February: Nothing like playing a.game of Monopoly  beetlejuice edition and finding that the prices are all weird and that the dice we got were messed up the numbers on the die are all off center none of the die are normal both have random shaved off corners....wtf monopoly your quality yuck. We paid good money for this.

• February: When trying to figure out why people from your past send you a friend request out of the blue after ignoring you for long periods of time and never say nothing to you so your sitting there like this (she posts an image of someone who is not impressed)

Mary gets hurt, and I never know why, but she lands in the hospital. Sometimes, often for folks in the depths of poverty, a medical issue can shift everything and gut the family. It feels like it does for Mary.

• March: I hate hospitals stuck in one cuz I cant leave in any catch a break stupid back

• April: I want to thank the very few who wished me a happy birthday yesterday it meant so much to me so thank you

Did you catch the dig? She is feeling isolated, alone, without help. Her brain is starting to cave from the cognitive overload. Just general crankiness and low level grump, but her calm is shaken. Then, some time goes by and her posts get desperate and she starts posting on the FB mutual aid site and not her private page.

• May: Rent a center blows they are literally making us choose between having a bed which I need because my back is fucked up or eating so the money my hubby bout to make gets to go to them and they don't care if your disabled or hurt they will throw you off of it and take it freaking bastards.

• June: Hello everyone I'm asking for help again unfortunately we were put in a hard situation by rent a center they are making my family choose between food and our bed and our school computer so I'm trying to get some help with something I can't even go places to pawn stuff please anything will help

Rent-a-Center is not literally forcing them to choose, between eating or paying for their food, but it feels that way. It feels like the world is caving in. Like there isn’t room for anything except this immediate problem, which crowds out everything.

It reminds me of being in my 20’s and having this IRS bill from years ago that terrified me. I convinced myself they would take me off to jail. I hired someone to help who didn’t actually help. I remember my brain just caving in around this problem. I had terrible intrusive thoughts, and panic attacks, and a kind-of-mania where I stalked my studio apartment, back and forth, total caged lion, talking to myself, yelling at this fictional person, predicting my own doom, worrying into the night.

Goodbye frontal cortex.

Mary finds a new job. But this creates new problems:

• July: Hello idk if anyone is able to help but I'm just trying to get by before my new job starts finally in a week I need some essentials if anybody has any to spare stuff like tp shampoo deodorant ECT. And trying to get some quick foods together because sometimes I won't be able to cook before going to work. Even if someone has an extra toaster or something they don't need anymore would be a help so I can grab toast on the go. But like I said anything anyone is able to offer would be appreciated although I can't travel because I need my pass for work coming up it's only 24 hrs pass...so if someone is able to bring it that's fine if not no pressure the thought is what counts cross streets are…

She starts posting more. She is more desperate, needs more things, this has crowded out her real life. It feels like Rent-A-Center has taken much of their household furniture and bedding.

• July: Hello everyone I'm so shy and embarrassed to go ask for help but I can't see my girls struggling cuz of me not been available to cover everything but  it was wondering if someone can donate me food and if someone it's giving away a toddler mattress or a twin my girls and i just move to a new place and we don't have food we are sleeping on the floor just want to get a twin or 2 toddler bed for them to sleep I don't get pay until next Friday we have some soup and rice anything really helps god bless you all

• August: If anyone is able to help me and my hubby need help with food my back limits how I can move and I don't have much free time because of my schooling and my hubby is just trying to to make enough to pay our bills we keep getting sick from donating plasma to keep food on the table. And any food banks Ive tried to go to are closed when I have time or I can't get ahold of anyone, no one is restraining my calls.

She is losing her shit. There is no room for passion, innovative thinking, long term planning, remembering how many times you post in a FB group. It is what can you do right now for me? What can I have? Why isn’t anyone getting the seriousness of this? Why am I all alone and no one cares?

This is not the territory of the rich brain. Her last post.

• August: Hello I know I did a post looking for assistance but I've hit a dead end with my capability if anyone has extra food they can give idc what it is I would just really like some help till I can figure something out eating a can of veg a day isn't cutting it alone lol...please God bless

I've hit a dead end with my capability, she said.

I do not know where Mary is now or if she will post again. I do keep my eye out for her. I know those of us in the group have been working on getting her food and some stability, but I have lost track of her. Her world is small now. She will need someone to give her a boost, enough momentum to push her out of her Poverty Brain.

I hope this happens. Because there are a lot of Mary’s out there and they aren’t okay, and it’s not their fault.

ENDNOTES:

I searched for images for this piece and found that most rich vs poor brain illustrations were about “mindset.” A rich mindset vs a poor mindset, which puts the onus on people in poverty to have a better mindset, and think differently, when they clearly can’t because being poor is negatively actually impacting their brain.

We get this wrong a lot. Check out this bullshit:

I mean, this is so ridiculous. Not to mention insulting.

What I hope, by talking about this, is that people are more patient and less turned off about the decisions poor folks make to get by, like not appearing “grateful” if you do something nice for them, impulsively buying a luxury item when they should be saving or buying necessities, or getting their furniture through Rent-A-Center. This is Poverty Brain.

Let’s keep working on how we think of and treat people in deep poverty.

If you can, please consider pre-ordering my book, The Meth Lunches: Food + Longing in an American City. And if you want to read more about Poverty Brain, I suggest Dr. Robert Sapolsky’s, Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers: The Acclaimed Guide to Stress, Stress-Related Diseases, and Coping, which really goes into how poverty wreaks havoc on thought processes.

Thanks, as always, for reading. xo Kim