FLIGHT & FIGHT
(Sympathetic, evolved with bony fish)
BIOLOGY OF FLIGHT & FIGHT
The body is being mobilized
Heart rate speeds up
blood pressure increases
Cortisol and adrenaline increase
Muscle tension
Limbs used for getting away or being aggressive
Increased metabolism
Pupil dilation
Sweat
SURVIVAL MODE
Pain tolerance increases to help with running or fighting
Better able to scan the environment to find danger
Breathing becomes shorter and faster, to increase heart rate and stay mobilized
Faster rate of speaking since we’re inhaling less
Survival mode isn’t intended to be ongoing
It’s supposed to be acute, sympathetic energy is supposed to be released in a burst of running or fighting
People that come from abusive homes aren’t getting the relief of discharging the sympathetic activation
DOWN THE LADDER
We are no longer in Safe & Social
Creating distance between ourselves and others
Others are now a threat
Facial Cues
No longer identifying or giving facial social cues
Now identifying neutral faces as threat
Hearing
Middle ear muscles turn off to better hear deep sounds or high sounds
Harder to understand the sound or meaning of human voice
DAILY EXPERIENCE
Flight: panic, anxiety, fear, dread, on guard, hypervigilant, foot tapping
Fight: Anger, rage, irritation, aggression, muscles tense, clenched fists
Both: Flat affect, wide eyes, distracted, sitting upright or forward, shallow breathing, breathing into shoulders or chest, not hearing safe people, sensing danger everywhere, speaking faster and louder, increased heart rate
USE-DEPENDENT
The nervous system adapts based on the needs of survival
Being in a State of Flight/Fight can become chronic
We can become dangerous to ourselves or others
COMING OUT OF DANGER
Requires safely discharging the energy
Done in a safe environment with a safe person
Moving from Danger to Safety can feel like danger, keeping someone in the flight/fight state