Question

What happens to your body when you get scared?

1. Explain the science in your own words as if you are describing it to someone with no scientific knowledge (make sure you use appropriate words).

1. Talk about fight or flight, tell me about NE and Epinephrine, explain it to me as if I don’t know what this is

Answer 1

1. Fear or sacred is a one type of emotional stress of our body. When someone is scared by a incident a stress signal is generated in his/her body. This stress signal is perceived by cerebral cortex and transmitted to the hypothalamus for the secretion of ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone) . This hormone then stimulate adrenal cortex and medulla for the secretion of cortisol and norepinephrine (NE) respectively. This cortisol and NE causes many physiological changes in our body like increased heart rate, shaking of body, dialated pupil of eye, dry mouth, loss of hearing, decreased erection, loss of peripheral vision, increased bladder relaxation etc. This physiological changes of his/her body is the result of the sudden fear. This is the science if our body when someone get scared.

2. Fight and flight response: This physiological changes of our body after get scared are beneficial because it helps to regulate the stress response through physiological adaptation. This physiological adaptation after get scared is also called fight and flight response. The stress signal is perceived by cerebral cortex, limbic system and reticular activating system of the brain. Then the stress signal activates the adrenergic neurons of hypothalamus . These adrenergic neurons activates the sympathetic nerve of spinal cord and stimulate adrenal medulla for the secretion of epinephrine and norepinephrine (NE) from the sympathetic ganglion. Adrenal cortex is stimulated by ACTH hormone from anterior pituitary and produce cortisol hormone. These catecholamines (epinephrine and norepinephrine) and cortisol helps in arousal, behavioural activation, aggressiveness, cardiovascular adjustment of our body during this fear or stress situation. This physiological adaptation of the body during fear is called fight and flight response. Epinephrine and norepinephrine (NE), these catecholamines are mainly responsible for the increased heart rate, increased cardiac output, rise in blood pressure, increased glycogenolysis in muscle and release glucose in blood, dilation of pupil by contracting dilator pupillae muscle and increased rate and force of respiration of the body during this fight and flight response.