The sympathetic nervous system can respond to stressful situations such as fear, cold, exercise, trauma, and hypoglycemia. The sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system works by increasing the heart rate and blood pressure by activating the energy that is otherwise stored in the body. The sympathetic division is also known by another popular name which is the fight or flight mode (sympathy-adrenal response) and the reason why they named it this is because when the body experiences stressful situation it triggers sympathetic activation in the adrenal medulla which causes it to release epinephrine and lesser amounts of norepinephrine. These hormones that are released make their way directly into the bloodstream and promote the response that affects the target organ. The sympathetic nervous system acts as an entire unit meaning that it will discharge as a whole
The body has a Sympathetic and a Para sympathetic nervous system with its own neurones and networks. The Sympathetic nervous system triggers Fight or Flight response whenever it senses a danger! Sexual arousal and appetite are taken care of by the Parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nerves act as a brake system in the fight or flight response. If you are threatened, the “brake” is removed in order for the survival system to facilitate fight or flight behaviours.
If one is going to look at both amygdalae, it would be clear that they only differ in function and mirror each others' location. They are identical in structure and appearance and are considered to be part of the limbic system – a system responsible for a person's mood, arousal and emotions as well as intuition related particularly to ensure one's survival. One of t prominent emotions in a human being wanting to survive is fear. The amygdalae both have their own distinct functions. However, they also function separately to induce a common emotion: fear.
TAQ 1: a) b) The mammalian nervous system is split into two. The central nervous system consists of the brain and the spinal cord, which coordinates and controls the movement and activities of the body and the peripheral nervous system, made up of the somatic and autonomic system, which forms the connections between the organs and the central nervous system. The brain and the spinal cord work together to aid the coordination of the body. The brain can be divided into three main regions: the forebrain, midbrain and hindbrain. The forebrain interprets sensory information, thought processes and memory and it also monitors the composition of the blood and temperature on the body.
While explaining the ‘emotional hijacking’ in human brains, Le Doux (1986) has mentioned that amygdala, in the limbic system of the human brain, acts as an alarm system which, through specific emotional response, copes up with the emergency situation and alerts the major parts of brain. 'It triggers the secretion of the body's fight-or-flight hormones, mobilizes the centres for movement, and activates the cardio-vascular system, the muscles, and the gut' (Goleman, 1995; pp 16-17), Sensory signal from sensory organs first goes to brain's thalamus and across a synapse it reaches the amygdala. From thalamus, another signal is rooted to the brain's rational part of
The Nervous System is the control center and one of the most important systems in the human body. The Nervous System is comprised of two parts: The Central and the Peripheral Nervous Systems, which divide into smaller sections. (“Nervous System, sciencedaily.com”) Each part of the Nervous System has jobs that keep humans alive and well. Every single movement that bodies make, millions of neurons fire off signals up to 268 miles per hour to indicate to the brain that something happened! (“15 Fascinating Facts You Didn’t Know About Your Brain, safelaunch.org”) It is so vital to human life that almost nothing can survive without it.
These glands are part of the body’s endocrine system, a system of glands that produce substances that are distributed by blood stream. Epinephrine is continuously produced by the adrenal glands in small amounts, but when the animal is threatened, in times of excitement, emotional stress or danger, the brain sends a message to the adrenal glands to increase the production of adrenaline (Sapolsky, 2000). The springbok will experience an increase in epinephrine which will in turn stimulate the heart to beat faster in order to deliver enough oxygen to the muscles. The blood pressure will be raised by increasing the force of contraction. Vasoconstriction (constrict of small blood vessels to the digestive tract).
Let us talk about the functions of basic emotions. Fear can help us get out of danger. The amygdala inside our brain stem helps us control fear and the power of fear. When a person is fear, the brain activates sympathetic system and the person is ready for fight and flight. Heart rate increases, breathe more and focus on what will happen next.
The peripheral nervous system: The network of nerves that branch out from the spinal cord and brain and spread out throughout the body form the peripheral nervous system (PNS). The PNS carries messages to and from the CNS, which is responsible for the functioning of the limbs and organs of the body. Figure 1.1. – The Nervous System Structure of the Brain Protected within the skull, the brain is made up of three sections: the cerebrum, cerebellum and brain stem. The brain stem forms a link between the cerebrum and cerebellum and the spinal cord.
The system is so important because it regulates the body’s metabolism, growth and sexual development, digestion, heart rate, and many of the other body functions regulated by hormones. The first three glands are all located in the brain. The hypothalamus gland connects the endocrine system to the nervous system and also regulates when