Fight, Flight & Freeze

The FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE response is how our bodies respond to any changes in the environment that we perceive as threatening or dangerous.

For most of evolution, when people perceived danger, their bodies automatically produced a surge of energy, putting them in fight or flight mode, and allowing them to do whatever they needed to do to survive. So, today, if we feel threatened, our FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE system gets activated.

When the FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE response gets activated, a hormone (ACTH) is released from the brain into the bloodstream. It sends signals to the adrenal glands to circulate cortisol and other hormones. One of these hormones, adrenaline, makes the heart beat faster, increases blood pressure, expands lung capacity and improves muscle strength.

Every other part of the body – now under the control of the sympathetic nervous system – responds by directing energy to the vital organs and preparing you for exertion. That means that your entire body is “switched on.” It’s in a high state of arousal and ready to do whatever it needs to do to survive.

But…
Unfortunately for us, the stress response hasn’t changed much in the past 200,000 years. While we rarely need to fight or run to keep ourselves and our families alive, we still have the same primitive response to danger that our ancestors had.

The stress response works very well when we’re faced with short, intense, life-or-death situations. It also works well when we escape the situation and reach “safety,” when stress hormone levels can quickly return to return to normal levels.

It’s good that we have a FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE response and, once in a while, it comes in handy in modern life.

Unlike COVID-19 most of the stressors that we face in normal daily life are not “life or death” – even though our bodies may still react as if we’re in that kind of danger.

For example… avoid bears.
For example, while some of us may still be unlucky enough to meet a grizzly bear or a tiger in the forest, it’s a little more likely that a threat will come in the form of an intruder in our house or a car not stopping for a red light. If either of those ever did happen, you would definitely want that stress response to kick in.

But, in other situations, the FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE response doesn’t help at all. For example, if you’re practicing physical distancing, working from home, looking after children or elderly parents and stressed about finances and the future, it doesn’t help if your body is reacting as if it’s “life or death.”

A little fear is motivating but too much is disabling.

In modern life, the stressors we face are more chronic and complex. We now face the stress of COVID-19 on an ongoing basis: Too much change too fast, too much feeling out of control, too many demands and not enough time to meet them, unrealistic expectations that we place on ourselves and others, and difficulties balancing our work, family and personal lives.

The stress response – which is so adaptive and helpful under some conditions – may become maladaptive if we experience an ongoing, chronic stress like COVID-19. In other words, it can start to work against us.

Too much of a good thing…
The human body just wasn’t designed to withstand the physiological effects of being in a constant state of FIGHT, FLIGHT & FREEZE.

After a while, the hormones that are so helpful in the short-term begin to have negative effects. Our body aren’t meant to stay “switched on” in a high state of arousal for any length of time. In fact, if the body stays too revved-up for too long, systems can begin to break down.

This breakdown starts with low-level symptoms, such as the occasional headache or sleepless night, tension and aches, or an increased frequency of colds and flues. But, if stress continues, it may lead to chronic physical and/or psychological illness.