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 I think I'm still a bit skeptical about the idea that the brain can function as a series of outputs only, without the necessity of a certain input. Perhaps I've just had the idea that 'cause equals effect' engrained in my mind for so long that it's just difficult to sway me, but I still feel that there must be some input to trigger reactions in our body. 
In class we used the example of breathing as an output generated without an input. But wouldn't there have had to have been some type of input at some point? When a baby is first born and independent from its mother for the first time, wouldn't the lack of oxygen in its system be an input to cause the lungs to start working on their own for the first time? Isn't there some sort of reflux that causes these lungs to start breathing? I don't really know  a lot about biochemical pathways, but as far as menstruation, would there not be some sort of chemical trigger to the brain that causes this process to begin?                            From what little I've learned about the human body, I just find it impossible to think that anything can operate spontaneously, outside of the incredibly finely tuned machine that makes up our inner body mechanics. Does this just mean I"m not thinking about the brain in the correct way? Should I be more open to new possibilities?