Chapter 3

...Physiological Signs...

Many physiological changes in the body are associated with fear, summarized as the fight-or-flight response. An innate response for coping with danger, it works by accelerating the breathing rate (hyperventilation), heart rate, vasoconstriction of the peripheral blood vessels leading to blushing and sanskadania of the central vessels (pooling), increasing muscle tension including the muscles attached to each hair follicle to contract and causing "goosebumps", or more clinically, piloerection (making a cold person warmer or a frightened animal look more impressive), sweating, increased blood glucose (hyperglycemia), increased serum calcium, increase in white blood cells called neutrophilic leukocytes, alertness leading to sleep disturbance and "butterflies in the stomach" (dyspepsia). This primitive mechanism may help an organism survive by either running away or fighting the danger.With the series of physiological changes, the consciousness realizes an emotion of fear.

Physiological Responses to Pain

Physiological responses to pain are mainly aspects of the body's integrated defence response including Fight or Flight.  The two main systems are (1) the Sympatho-Adrenal (SA) system and (2) the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) system.

ΔPhysiological signs of pain may include:

•dilatation of the pupils and/or wide opening of the eyelids

•changes in blood pressure and heart rate

•increased respiration rate and/or depth

•pilo-erection

•changes in skin and body temperature

•increased muscle tone

•sweating

When Does Fear Become a Disorder?

A phobia is a distinct fear or anxiety about a specific object or situation, according to the DSM-5. It consistently provokes fear or causes distress, and the sufferer endures it with discomfort or avoids it entirely, such as taking the stairs to avoid an elevator. The fear is also disproportionate to the true danger the object or event poses.

ΔPhobias fall into five broad categories:

•Animals, such as a fear of spiders, dogs, or bugs

•The natural environment, such as a fear of heights or storms

•Blood, injury, and injection, such as a fear of needles or medical procedures

•Situational, such as a fear of flying or riding in elevators

•Others, such as a fear of vomiting or choking

Seven to 9 percent of Americans experience a specific phobia in a given year, according to the DSM-5, and women experience phobias twice as often as men do. It’s also common to have multiple fears: three-quarters of those diagnosed with specific phobia have more than one.

Some people can pin the origin of a phobia to a specific event, like news of a terrible plane crash or being attacked by a dog as a child. But many cannot identify a particular incident that prompted their fear.

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Next Chapter In This Novel We Are Gone Published By Concept of Phobias

Few Facts About Fear For You

*Fears are not caused by one, big, scary event. ...

*Certain fears are universal across cultures. ...

*Individuals with anxiety disorders experience normal fear responses to scary situations. ...

*Anxiety in childhood is normal. ...

*Fearless individuals do not have normal fear responses to scary situations. ...

*Fears can become extinct. ...

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