Causes and Effects of Fear

In the movie After Earth, Will Smith’s character quoted, “Fear is not real. It is a product of thoughts you create. Do not misunderstand me. Danger is very real. But fear is a choice.” Scientists commonly describe fear as a negative emotional state prompted by the presence of a stimulus that has the potential to cause harm. Due to the fact that fear is an undesired emotion in all living things, fear can be easily overcome and can be synonymous with the words perception and imagination.

Fear is a powerful emotion/response and it originates from specific parts of the body and involves specific hormones.

The amygdala is a structure in the limbic system that is responsible for governing emotion, memory and motivation. Once the amygdala receives information from sensory-processing regions, it is then able to determine whether danger is present. Thus if the amygdala does sense danger, it can activate certain arousal networks, influence sensory processing and is involved with the triggering of certain hormones. The hypothalamus located in the brain and is responsible for hormone production. It’s main function is to receive information from other regions of the brain and responds with circulating hormones. Hormones such as epinephrine, norepinephrine and others cause changes in the body. The sensory cortex interprets sensory data.

Fear can be triggered due to a variety of reasons. In the book Courage and Fear by Col. Wesley L. Fox, he states that “Fear can be fed by a variety of things: negative personal thoughts about the situation at hand; the negatively expressed opinions of others involved; too much time to dwell on the situation; poor performance by oneself and/or others; a lack of support by oneself and or others; a lack ...

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...sponse, refers to a physiological reaction that occurs in the presence of something that is terrifying, either mentally or physically. Epinephrine and norepinephrine are two amino acid-based hormones that cause changes in the body such as a quick heart rate, dilated pupils, increased blood pressure and blood glucose levels. They are known as adrenaline and noradrenaline and they orchestrate the nervous system’s fight-or-flight. When placed in this situation, these hormones and secreted into the bloodstream. After the threat is gone, the body returns back into it’s pre-arousal levels in approximately 20-60 minutes.

Ultimately, although the symptoms of fear is real, fear does not have to be. With fear, you have the option to fight or flight due to the fact it is a perception. Fear can easily be manipulated to a strength. The things you “fear” now make you who you are.