Science of Fear: Help Your Modern Brain Handle A Threat

Reading time: 11 minutes

Fear is our biological response to perceived threats.

But it’s not one thing. Rather, fear is a chain reaction.

It starts with a sense that something or someone is a threat, which triggers our brain and body. The actions that result are the fastest way to eliminate the threat.

Evolution of Fear

• Primal Origins: Fear originated as a crucial survival instinct in our ancestral environment, helping humans quickly identify and react to life-threatening dangers.
• Evolutionary Advantage: Fear guided evolution. Those with effective fear responses were more likely to survive and reproduce, passing on this trait to future generations.
• Modern Mismatch: In today’s world, where immediate survival threats are rare, our bodies still react to perceived threats as if they were life-or-death situations.
• Overreaction in Today’s World: Common fears, like public speaking (called glossophobia), can trigger intense physiological responses (sweating, rapid heartbeat, trembling) disproportionate to the actual threat level.
• Maladaptive Responses: Many modern fear reactions are uncomfortable and excessive, reflecting a disconnect between our evolved responses and current environmental demands.

Our prehistoric forefathers ran first and checked later if the rustling sound was a wind in the leaves or a saber-tooth.

Key Takeaways

1. Humans couldn’t have survived or evolved without fear.
2. Each bodily effect of the fear response system has a purpose.
3. Understanding and confronting fears are key to overcoming them.

Fear In The Brain

• The Amygdala Triggers the Fight-or-Flight Response: When you perceive a threat, your amygdala, a part of the brain that connects memory and emotion, sends an alarm signal. This triggers a chain reaction within your body, leading to the release of hormones that prepare you to either confront or flee the danger.
• The Hypothalamus Acts as a Switchboard: The amygdala activates the hypothalamus, which serves as your body’s central control hub. The hypothalamus sends signals to the rest of your endocrine system, ultimately reaching the adrenal glands.
• The Adrenal Glands Release Stress Hormones: Located atop your kidneys, the adrenal glands release hormones—epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline). They start a cascade of physiological changes (fight-or-flight response) to help cope with the threat.
• The HPA Axis and Cortisol Release: If the perceived threat persists, the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and adrenal glands engage in a longer-term stress response. The hypothalamus releases corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), which signals the pituitary to release adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). ACTH, in turn, signals the adrenal glands to release cortisol.
• Cortisol’s Role in Sustaining Alertness: Often referred to as “the stress hormone,” cortisol helps the body maintain heightened awareness for a lengthy time. It signals various organs to adjust blood glucose levels, to provide the energy necessary to stay vigilant. Once the threat has passed, cortisol levels gradually decrease, and the body returns to its normal state.

Key Takeaways

1. The amygdala, the brain’s epicenter to start the fear response, switches on when it perceives threats, real or imagined.
2. It keeps track of previous responses to similar threats and coordinates the other brain regions to send out fear signals.
3. The activated brain sets off the fight-or-flight response, an alarm system for survival. It mobilizes you to either face your fears head-on or flee. Strangely, some people don’t flee or fight; they freeze.

Body Reactions In Fear

• Rapid Breathing (Hyperventilation): This increases oxygen intake and makes more oxygen available for the muscles. When we are well-oxygenated, we can either tackle the threat or run away from it.
• Increased Heart Rate: More beats per minute allow the heart to pump blood faster, which ensures that the vital organs and muscles receive more oxygen and nutrients. This readies the body for quick and vigorous action to confront the danger (fight) or to flee from it (flight).
• Sweating: Sweating helps to regulate the body’s temperature during the stress response. When your body prepares for action, it generates heat. Sweating cools the body down, preventing overheating. Moreover, sweating can also make the skin more slippery, potentially helping escape a predator’s grasp in a survival scenario.
• Pupil Dilation: Fear can cause the pupils to dilate (widen), allowing more light into the eyes. This improves vision, especially in low-light conditions, enhancing the ability to detect and respond to threats quickly.
• Hair Standing on End (Piloerection): Often experienced as ‘goosebumps,’ it has historically helped animals appear bigger and more intimidating to predators. In humans, it’s more of a vestigial reflex, but it can enhance sensory perception by making the skin more sensitive.
• Slowing Down of Non-Essential Bodily Functions: Digestion and immune responses may slow down or temporarily halt, allowing the body to conserve energy and redirect it towards a swift response to the immediate threat.

Key Takeaways

1. The adrenals release epinephrine (adrenaline) to trigger fear response.
2. The body’s fear response mainly involves fight, or flight, or freeze.
3. Each physiological response of fear has a useful purpose.

Psychology of Fear

• Fear Sensitivity: Our response to fear is vastly influenced by our temperament, traits, and life experiences. Some people have high betrayal sensitivity, making them extra cautious and over-reactive to threats of being cheated on. Personality traits, such as neuroticism, can make some people more anxious and fearful. Past traumatic experiences can also shape and heighten one’s fear response.
• Types of Fear: Fears can be categorized into two main types: innate fears and acquired fears. Innate fears are present from birth and shared universally, like the fear of snakes. Acquired fears develop through learning and experience. These fears might lack a biological basis and are often marked as phobias.
• Emotional Contagion: Emotions can spread from one person to others, due to an innate human tendency to mimic and copy the social behavior and reactions of others. Called emotional contagion, it is a well-documented fact in psychology. One example is the Salem Witch Trials of the 17th century. Fear and paranoia took hold as accusations of witchcraft spread, leading to the execution of 20 alleged witches. Another is the Tanganyika Laughter Epidemic of 1962, in which uncontrollable fits of laughter spread through schools, eventually affecting over 1,000 people, lasting several months, and causing the temporary closure of 14 schools.
• Fear and Autism: Research suggests those on the autism spectrum may experience fear and other emotions differently, as compared to any neurotypical. Many people with autism have high sensory sensitivity, which can cause a high fear and anxiety response to loud noises or bright lights. Some research suggests the amygdala may function differently in them, causing altered fear responses. They tend to be less likely to copy the fear responses of others.

Key Takeaways

1. The experience of fear is different for everyone. The same object, threat, or situation can evoke different fear responses in different people.
2. Your beliefs, experiences, cultural factors, social mores, expectations, and interpretations can reduce or intensify your fear response.
3. Your ability to regulate your fear-based emotions is a crucial psychological skill to handle daily stresses and past trauma.

Fear’s Negative Role

Fear can be limiting when it is excessive or when we cannot manage it well.

• Excessive fear can lead to anxiety disorders, intense phobias, and a constant feeling of distress.
• Intense fear responses can limit your range of activities, make you avoid certain situations (avoidance behaviors), and obstruct personal and professional growth.
• Irrational fears, such as phobias, can make life dull and tiresome by preventing you from trying unfamiliar and challenging activities.
• A fear of failure can stop you from going after your goals, lead to missed opportunities, obstruct your coping skills and growth, and make you have unnecessary regrets later on.
• When faced with public speaking, your fight-or-flight response can be activated due to social and evolutionary factors. Socially, there is a fear of negative judgment or rejection from the audience, which can trigger feelings of embarrassment or shame. Evolutionarily, humans are wired to be alert to the scrutiny of others, as historically, survival often depended on social standing within a group.

Key Takeaways

1. Excessive fear can negatively affect your mental and physical health, overall well-being, relationships, ability to take calculated risks, and success.
2. Fear of public speaking is a common example of how fear can limit one’s activities and personal growth.
3. Fear of change (metathesiophobia) can make you stay stuck in life and career.

Fear’s Positive Role

Fear is a first instinct. It is our natural “guardian angel” that points out the dangers in our environment.

Positive roles of fear include:

• Survival and Safety Enhancement: Fear sharpens our awareness of potential dangers, promoting cautious behavior in risky situations, from hazardous driving conditions to unfamiliar environments during travel.
• Performance Optimization: A fear of failure or underperformance can drive meticulous preparation, whether for public speaking, competitive events, or important professional meetings, leading to commendable results.
• Professional and Personal Development: Fear of stagnation or obsolescence can motivate continuous learning, skill enhancement, and adaptability in one’s career and personal life.
• Attention to Detail and Quality Assurance: The fear of making mistakes can encourage thorough double-checking and refinement of work, enhancing overall quality and accuracy.
• Proactive Problem-Solving: Fear can stimulate anticipatory planning and risk assessment, leading to more thoughtful decision-making and contingency preparation.
• Psychological Resilience Building: The process of facing and overcoming fears contributes to personal growth, increased self-confidence, and improved stress management skills.

Key Takeaways

1. Fear is not always negative; it can be a valuable tool for personal and professional growth.
2. Healthy fear responses can improve performance, safety, and preparation across various life aspects.
3. Fear can motivate us to take positive actions that ultimately benefit our careers, health, and personal development.

Fear’s Dual Nature

Sometimes, fear can be both a driving factor and a hindrance. Two examples are:

• Public Speaking: Fear of being judged by a crowd can drive you to prepare well, and deliver a more engaging and convincing talk. But if your fear becomes a phobia, you could start avoiding public speaking opportunities, hindering your growth.
• Parenting: Parents are natural guardians of their children. But some parents may take to helicopter parenting. Their overprotectiveness can stifle the child’s ability to explore and become independent.

How To Help Your Modern Brain Handle A Threat

• Recognize the Mismatch: Understand that your brain’s fear response often overreacts in modern contexts. Acknowledge that most contemporary “threats” aren’t survival-level dangers.
• Mindful Awareness: Use mindfulness techniques to observe your fear response without judgment. This can help create a gap between the trigger and your reaction, allowing for more rational responses.
• Cognitive restructuring: Challenge and reframe negative thoughts associated with the perceived threat. Ask yourself, “Is this fear realistic? What’s the actual likelihood of danger?”
• Graded Exposure: Consistently expose yourself to fear-inducing situations in a controlled way, from one causing the least fear to ones giving you more fear. This helps your brain recalibrate threat level over time.
• Relaxation Techniques: Methods like deep breathing, meditation, and progressive muscle relaxation can help counteract the physical symptoms of fear.
• Leverage Social Support: Share your fears with trusted friends or family. Social connection can provide perspective and emotional regulation.
• A Preparedness Mindset: Instead of avoiding potential threats, focus on practical preparedness. This shifts your brain from a panic response to a problem-solving mode.
• Seek Education: Learn about the specific threat you’re facing. Often, increased knowledge can reduce uncertainty and, consequently, fear.

Key Takeaways:

1. Modern threats rarely warrant the intense fear responses we’ve inherited from our ancestors.
2. A combination of cognitive, behavioral, and mindfulness strategies can help recalibrate our fear responses.
3. Building resilience through education, preparation, and social support enhances our ability to handle perceived threats rationally.

Is Fear Response The Same As Fight-or-Flight Response?

Yes, the fear response is closely related to the fight-or-flight-or-freeze response. This response is an automatic physiological reaction to a perceived harmful event, attack, or threat to survival.

Originally termed the “fight-or-flight” response by Walter Cannon, it describes how an animal or human mobilizes for defensive action — either to fight the threat or flee from it. The term has since been expanded to include “freeze,” recognizing that sometimes humans and animals get immobilized or unresponsive in the face of fear or trauma.

Further Reading

1. The Gift of Fear by Gavin de Becker
2. Studies on Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Anxiety
3. Trypophobia — The Mysterious Holes-In-Hand Phobia

Final Words

Our lives are often blocked by fear. Yet, we can find our greatest strength within this challenge. We can make fear a guide to a fulfilling and balanced life rather than a barrier.

Start by asking: How can I transform my fears into stepping stones for growth and resilience?

√ Also Read:  How To Make A Narcissist Fear You – 35 Ways To Outsmart Them

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