Post on 07-Jul-2020
Fight Or Flight Response
Thoughts racing
Breathing becomesquicker and
shallower
Heart beats faster
Adrenal glandsrelease adrenaline
Bladder urgency
Palms becomesweaty
Muscles tense
Dizzy or lightheaded
When faced with a life-threatening danger it often makes sense to run away or, if that is not possible, to fight.The fight or flight response is an automatic survival mechanism which prepares the body to take these actions.All of the body sensations produced are happening for good reasons – to prepare your body to run away orfight – but may be experienced as uncomfortable when you do not know why they are happening.
Quicker thinking helps us toevaluate danger and make rapiddecisions. It can be very difficult to concentrateon anything apart from the danger (or escaperoutes) when the fight or flight response is active
Quicker breathing takes in moreoxygen to power the muscles.
This makes the body moreable to fight or run away
The adrenaline quickly signalsother parts of the body to get
ready to respond to dangerA faster heart beat feedsmore blood to the musclesand enhances your abilityto run away or fight
When in danger the body sweatsto keep cool. A cool machine is an
efficient machine, so sweating makesthe body more likely to survive a
dangerous event
Changes to visionVision can become acute sothat more attention can be paid todanger. You might notice ‘tunnelvision’, or vision becoming‘sharper’
Dry mouth
Muscles in the bladdersometimes relax in response
to extreme stress
Muscles all over the body tensein order to get you ready to run awayor fight. Muscles may also shakeor tremble, particularly if you staystill, as a way of staying ‘ready for action’
Hands get coldBlood vessels in the skincontract to force bloodtowards major musclegroups
PSYCHOLOGYT LS http://psychology.tools
The mouth is part of thedigestive system. Digestionshuts down during dangeroussituations as energy is divertedtowards the muscles
Nausea and ‘butterflies’in the stomachBlood is diverted away fromthe digestive system whichcan lead to feelings of nauseaor ‘butterflies’
If we don’t exercise (e.g. run away or fight)to use up the extra oxygen then we can
quickly start to feel dizzy or lightheaded
Source: The Illustrated Happiness Trap: How to Stop Struggling and Start Living (2014) by Russ Harris (Author), Bev Aisbett. http://www.thehappinesstrap.com