By Mike Leahy with Bundy Mackintosh

At some point, we all get scared. But why, and how?

Does the feeling of fear reside in the body or the brain? That is, do we first react to something with our bodies, notice our reaction and accordingly feel fear, or do we consciously acknowledge that something is threatening and then react accordingly with our bodies?

Logically, fear is registered by the brain before the body reacts - how else can the body process the information to decide that a fearful event is happening? The question, then, is: 'What gives rise to the feeling of fear - does the initial, essentially pre-conscious, perception cause a conscious feeling (brain then body), or does the body react first and then the perception of that response give us the feeling (body then brain)?'

...scary stuff!

During the programme, Zeron tries to overcome his phobia of snakes. Surely his fear is due to his brain recognising the visual image of a snake and then 'telling him' to become scared - with all the physical manifestations that take place when you become fearful? But why can't he just tell himself that the snake isn't dangerous? He finds it almost impossible to 'turn off' his fear, even when it is irrational. It seems that some 'emotional centre' in his brain doesn't readily listen to his 'reasoning' brain.

In the programme, I look at my fear of heights, where my body's reaction to the experience leads to feelings of fearfulness and panic. Is it my gut feeling, and the sense of hair standing on end at the back of my neck that makes me feel afraid? I'm not sure that we will work this out, but by having a go, we may begin to understand more about our own fears and phobias.

    next > Page 1 of 5

Comments