http://richerexperiences.com It's the heat of the moment. You're angry, scared, overwhelmed, feeling attacked... You act out, saying or doing something out of character. Or you freeze. It's so unlike you. You're stressed and react as if your life was being threatened. Some event, an email, a confrontation, public speaking or your boss triggered you leaving you in an emotional overload and fending for your life. The truth is that is is unlike you. It's unlike you because part of your brain is shut off. This would be critical if your life was in danger, like if you were being chased by a tiger. Most likely it is your ego that is being threatened, not your life. The problem is that your brain can't tell the difference. An Amygdala Hijack (term coined by Daniel Goleman in his book Emotional Intelligence) occurs during the fight, flight or freeze stress response. An Amygdala Hijack is an immediate and overwhelming emotional response out of proportion to the stimulus because it has triggered a more significant emotional threat. The amygdala is the part of our brain that handles emotions. During an Amygdala Hijack, the amygdala "hijacks" or shuts down the neo-cortex. Our neo-cortex is responsible for logical, rational thinking, conscious thought and sensory perception. Yep, our emotions ramp up and logic is shut off. Not cute. And so not you. This brain functioning served our ancestors well in the caveman days when their life was actually threatened by saber tooth tigers. They needed a brain that allowed them to suddenly run quickly without thinking about it. So how do we go from cave man survivor to digital age thriver using the same neural equipment? It's the heat of the moment. You're angry, scared, overwhelmed, feeling attacked... You act out, saying or doing something out of character. Or you freeze. It's so unlike you. You're stressed and react as if your life was being threatened. Some event, an email, a confrontation, public speaking or your boss triggered you leaving you in an emotional overload and fending for your life. The truth is that is is unlike you. It's unlike you because part of your brain is shut off. This would be critical if your life was in danger, like if you were being chased by a tiger. Most likely it is your ego that is being threatened, not your life. The problem is that your brain can't tell the difference. An Amygdala Hijack (term coined by Daniel Goleman in his book Emotional Intelligence) occurs during the fight, flight or freeze stress response. An Amygdala Hijack is an immediate and overwhelming emotional response out of proportion to the stimulus because it has triggered a more significant emotional threat. The amygdala is the part of our brain that handles emotions. During an Amygdala Hijack, the amygdala "hijacks" or shuts down the neo-cortex. Our neo-cortex is responsible for logical, rational thinking, conscious thought and sensory perception. Yep, our emotions ramp up and logic is shut off. Not cute. And so not you. This brain functioning served our ancestors well in the caveman days when their life was actually threatened by saber tooth tigers. They needed a brain that allowed them to suddenly run quickly without thinking about it. So how do we go from cave man survivor to digital age thriver using the same neural equipment?

• published: 16 Jan 2014
• views: 203