--- title: "Activating the Default Mode Network – What Happens in the Brain | Brain Model" description: "What the Default Mode Network is, why it activates in the rest state, and what functions it performs. mPFC, PCC and hippocampus in concert." canonical: https://www.brainmodel.digital/understand-the-brain/activating-the-default-mode-network/ parent: https://www.brainmodel.digital/understand-the-brain/ author: Johannes Faupel site: brainmodel.digital — Anatomically interactive. Scientifically precise. No therapeutic school. license: Citation welcome with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. type: educational — healthy-brain function, not diagnosis or therapy --- > **Canonical page (cite this):** [Map 48 – Activating the Default Mode Network](https://www.brainmodel.digital/understand-the-brain/activating-the-default-mode-network/) # Map 48 – Activating the Default Mode Network What the Default Mode Network is and what it does – when the brain appears to do nothing, it works most intensively ## Anatomically and biochemically The Default Mode Network (DMN; also: resting state network, default mode network) is the neuroanatomical substrate of what happens when the brain appears to be doing nothing. It is active when no external task demands attention. The core structures are the **medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC; self-reference area)**, the **posterior cingulate cortex (PCC; autobiographical orientation and self-reference core)**, the **hippocampus** as memory supplier, and the **angular gyrus / TPJ** as the area for social cognition and perspective-taking. The DMN handles tasks that require no focused external attention: autobiographical reflection (who am I? what does this mean for my life?), social simulation (what will others think? how am I perceived?), future projection, and – crucially – the creative connection of distantly related memory contents. The hippocampus connects, in DMN mode, information that would not have been brought together in focused task mode. Insights often arise in phases of relaxed attention – the DMN provides associative material that is evaluated in concert with executive control networks. Creativity is an interplay of both networks. Why do ideas often come in the shower or on a walk? Because the dlPFC actively dampens the DMN when working on a task. Once the external task falls away, the DMN activates – and the hippocampus connects what was just worked on with existing knowledge. The shower is not a source of inspiration; it is a context in which the dlPFC lets go. Why does constant occupation harm creativity? Because the DMN gets no time to do its connecting work. The brain needs unstructured rest to access the DMN's associative output. Why is boredom neurobiologically valuable? Because boredom activates the DMN and thereby initiates the processing and connecting process. ## Examples from everyday life - **A walk without music:** The DMN runs. The hippocampus connects. Solutions often come for problems worked on during the day – without actively thinking about them. - **The shower:** Classic DMN context: no external task, rhythmic movement, familiar environment. The dlPFC releases control. - **Daydreaming:** Daydreams are not wasted time – they are DMN activity: social simulation, autobiographical reflection, creative connection. - **Lengthy deliberation on a decision:** The DMN continues connecting in the background. Often the decision comes not through more thinking but through pausing. - **Sleep and integration:** During deep sleep the DMN handles memory consolidation. What was learned during the day is integrated into existing knowledge overnight. ## What this card does not say This card describes normal functions of the Default Mode Network in the healthy human brain. The DMN is not an error mode – it is an active processing system. This card is not a diagnostic tool and not a treatment guide. ## You now understand what happens in the brain when activating the Default Mode Network. Three ways to go further: **① Deepen now – Mind Rooms** The complete e-book on the spatial method for mental clarity. $9.70 [View e-book](https://www.mindrooms.net/e-book/) Or order via email: buch@exponere.de $9.70 via PayPal, the e-book will be sent to your PayPal email **② Community – skool.com/supervision** Daily answers from Johannes Faupel to community questions and discussion of the maps. $37 / month [Join skool.com/supervision](https://www.skool.com/supervision) **③ Personal contact – Phone** Questions about publications or booking options for Johannes Faupel? +49 69 68 60 12 99 Please note that no questions on psychological or related topics can be answered. ## Scientific sources for this map: 1. Menon, V. (2023). 20 years of the default mode network: A review and synthesis. *Neuron*. [doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2023.04.023](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2023.04.023) 2. Bartoli, E., Devara, E., Dang, H., Rabinovich, R., Mathura, R., Anand, A., Pascuzzi, B., Adkinson, J., Kenett, Y., Bijanki, K., Sheth, S., & Shofty, B. (2024). Default mode network electrophysiological dynamics and causal role in creative thinking. *Brain, 147*, 3409–3425. [doi.org/10.1093/brain/awae199](https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awae199) 3. Yeshurun, Y., Nguyen, M., & Hasson, U. (2021). The default mode network: where the idiosyncratic self meets the shared social world. *Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 22*, 181–192. [doi.org/10.1038/s41583-020-00420-w](https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-020-00420-w) --- *These visualisations are scientific educational representations of normal brain functions in the healthy human brain. They are not diagnostic tools, not therapy, and not a substitute for medical or psychotherapeutic treatment. If you suspect a mental health condition, please consult a licensed professional.* --- *Source page: https://www.brainmodel.digital/understand-the-brain/activating-the-default-mode-network/ · Author: Johannes Faupel · educational — healthy-brain function, not diagnosis or therapy.*