Fear Response in Brain: Your Fears are Inflated
The fear response is not the prettiest of the emotional responses. Think of what you look like when you experience fear. Think of what causes you to experience fear in the first place!
Our reaction to fear has helped us throughout evolution. Think of when we had to quickly run when we’d sense something dangerous in the jungle (me talking as if we experienced this ourselves). This is where the term “fight or flight” comes from. This includes changes in heart rate, respiration, contraction of the digestive tract, and tense muscles.
Your Brain and Fear
The hypothalamus executes the emotion. The amygdala orchestrates emotion. The striatum plays into habits. The prefrontal cortex then evaluates whether a particular emotion is appropriate. It is the prefrontal cortex where we get our “logic.” It includes higher-order functions, whereas the hypothalamus and amygdala are associated more with the primitive animal brain. Once the amygdala catches the sensory input (hearing, seeing, touching), it then sends it to the parts of the brain that control our automatic functions (such as heart rate, temperature, and digestion).
“Without the body, there would be no fear.” - The Disordered Mind. Our primitive animal brain is activated first in this process. This indicates that our bodily response to fear comes before our awareness of this fear.
Do you ever start crying and don’t know the reason or trigger? This is part of the reason at times. The prefrontal cortex then helps us decide the way that the emotion is being carried out.
Learned Responses
Classical conditioning takes place when (Think of Pavlov’s dogs associating a bell with food. They began salivating BEFORE they even saw the food). To associate certain stimuli with fear, the fear and emotion have to both be processed by the amygdala. Within the amygdala., there are two parts to note here: the lateral nucleus and the central nucleus.
In some people, our lateral nucleus has learned to be extra sensitive to the world around us, responding to things that others don’t even notice. In other people, their central nucleus may respond disproportionally to the world around them. In individuals with anxiety and PTSD, the amygdala in its entirety may be enlarged or more sensitive. This means that your responses to stimuli may be more strongly tied than they would otherwise. (Don’t feel bad about this, because neurobiology varies for everyone!)
Bodily Sensations
Note back to when I asked you about the physical sensations that may come up. Are there changes in your breathing? Do you have a faster heart rate? Are you like me and feel pain from clenching your jaw? These adaptive responses help us move if need be. That being said… these changes within our bodies can be unsettling. It may cause a heightened response once we recognize the changes in our body and we associate those changes WITH fear or WITH a panic attack.
When I was in my tilt table test, my doctor told me that my response was psychogenic. I started noticing an increase in my blood pressure, and then I began getting hot and sweaty and felt faint. Although some of this may be attributed to dysautonomia. I question how much of this was physical versus mental.
Another time this happened to me was in physical education in high school. I noticed that I had an asthma attack, which then turned into a panic attack because I was afraid of not being able to catch my breath.
One noted study
While reading The Disordered Mind, the author noted Alain Brunet, who studied individuals who experienced PTSD. They were administered propranolol (a beta blocker, which I was also prescribed) that blocks the action of noradrenaline. Noradrenaline is a neurotransmitter released in response to stress that triggers our fight or flight response.
The participants reported similar scenarios when they reported the details of the event, but the drug suppressed the physical response of the fear, thereby containing their negative emotions. This indicates that the physical response can minimize our conscious awareness of the emotion. Additionally, the fear wasn’t gone, but it was no longer crippling.
Ongoing Steps
Whenever I feel a shift in my emotions, I try to journal it out to get it to process through my frontal lobe. Talking it out with an emotional person, especially a trained professional, is helpful. Working with a clinical psychologist may also help you to desensitize yourself in these situations. I also use somatic therapy techniques, including deep breathing, humming, and grounding, to help stimulate my parasympathetic system to regulate my fight-or-flight system.
All in all, fear is a natural human response. It helps us survive. At times it may be crippling, but recognition can help! I am sending so much love your way. I hope you enjoy this! Stay tuned to the YouTube video on this as well!
