Bri Vargas
From the beginning of time, our brain developed a survival system that attempts to naturally keep us safe and can be helpful in detecting perceived threats by sending alerts to our body that danger might be approaching. (1). This internal survival system is what we call anxiety.
Around 33% of people are affected by anxiety in their lifetime (3). Although our brain is only trying to keep us safe, it sometimes sets off our internal alarms when there actually isn't any danger (2).
At the center of this response is the amygdala. This is where our anxiety is produced and acts as an alarm system (2). The amygdala is designed to alarm us of any danger and when a threat is detected it activates our hypothalamus. The hypothalamus is the trigger of our body’s fight-or-flight response. Our hypothalamus releases our adrenaline and produces symptoms such as increased heart rate, tunnel vision, sweaty palms, etc (4). Essentially, our body sometimes can not tell the difference if we are being chased by a bear or if it is just our anxiety.
The stress signal is not only sent out to the hypothalamus, a signal is also sent to our prefrontal cortex. Our prefrontal cortex is responsible for rational thinking and decision-making. It can also be referred to as our “Wise Mind”. This part of our brain helps determine if there is actual threat or if it is okay to stand down (1).
Finally, neurotransmitters such as serotonin and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) also play a role in managing anxiety. When these chemicals are out of balance, individuals may experience heightened or persistent anxiety (5).
Since the existence of the cavemen, we have biologically been programmed to survive. Our internal survival system can aid in detecting danger but also can become overreactive in responding to situations as if it was life or death. By understanding the science of anxiety and how it is triggered and dealt with in our brain, it is not to be seen as personal weakness, but rather a survival mechanism that sometimes misfires in today’s world.
References
1. Gorman, C. (2002). The science of anxiety. Time Magazine, 159, 3.
2. Kim, J., & Gorman, J. (2005). The psychobiology of anxiety. Clinical Neuroscience Research, 4(5-6), 335-347.
3. Mack, N. R., Deng, S., Yang, S. S., Shu, Y., & Gao, W. J. (2023). Prefrontal Cortical Control of Anxiety: Recent Advances. The Neuroscientist : a review journal bringing neurobiology, neurology and psychiatry, 29(4), 488–505.
4. Smith, S. M., & Vale, W. W. (2006). The role of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in neuroendocrine responses to stress. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience, 8(4), 383–395. https://doi.org/10.31887/DCNS.2006.8.4/ssmith
5. Nuss P. (2015). Anxiety disorders and GABA neurotransmission: a disturbance of modulation. Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment, 11, 165–175. https://doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S58841