Socrates said, they say, "Know thyself". The French king exclaimed,"C'est moi" although he wasn't announcing self-knowledge. Between the book "Incognito" by Eagleman and "Seven and a Half Lessons About Your Brain", you can get a good idea of how much goes on inside a person with that person's conscious knowledge or decision. A healthy body automatically takes care of breathing and blood pressure and balance and lots of other things too numerous, too subtle to mention.
It can help to sit quietly and either focus for 5 or 10 minutes on something to look at or pay attention to, such as a corner of the rug or your breath. Doing that increases your awareness of what is going on in your mind. The mind, of course, is subject to whims, hormonal impulses and drives, memories and vague associations. It is a real playground, sometimes disorderly and chaotic.
Despite training and admonitions you and others have given your mind, it can surprise you with urges, tendencies and the manipulations of emotion.
