Hypervigilance–Why Your Life is a Many Triggered Thing
The limbic system controls feelings and emotional reactions in addition to categorizing and storing memories. It releases specific neurochemicals based on its interpretation of your survival needs at the moment. Your safety requirements, according to this internal system, are based on split second deductions it makes based on your past experiences.
Amgydala/e (there are two) – Its job is to process, categorize and store memories associated with emotion and to modulate emotional reactions. It plays a critical role in triggering the fear reaction. The continued necessity of its performing this function in the developmental brain of a child, “. . . can severely alter the functionality of the amygdala, yielding aversion to or irregularity of appropriate emotional responses later in life. “ Sullivan, R.M., Moriceau S., Raineki, C., Roth, T.L. (2009). Ontogeny of infant fear learning and the amygdala. Cognitive Neuroscience IV (Ed. Gazzaniga, M.), MIT Press, pp. 889-904.
Multiple studies have revealed that the size of a person’s amygdala is directly related to the number and richness of their social interactions. Those with larger amygdalae consistently show a greater capacity to read others’ faces and to cue in and respond appropriately to eye gaze, voice modulation and body language. The amygdala is your hair trigger. In the brain of a person with a history of childhood trauma the amygdala has experienced precedence for threat, uncertainty and danger. Thus it remains on high alert a good deal of the time. This severely hampers the development of emotionally healthy relationships. It can play havoc with how you interact with co-workers and thus how you are perceived in the workplace too. For some it is so overwhelming they just opt for being a loner.
But here’s the good news. At the Center for Mindfulness (www.umassmed.edu) the work of Dr. John Kabat-Zinn has proven that in as little time as 12 weeks (!) you can grow your amygdalae. The amygdalae and hippocampi of study participants were measured using an MRI pre and post the 12-week meditation study. Larger amygdalae (you have a matched set) have consistently been associated with increased ability to socialize.
In Dr. Kabat-Zinn’s study they found as little as 12 minutes a day of meditation will yield results. This is something you can start doing TODAY. What are you waiting for?
Next post we will explore the role of your hippocampi and the benefits you can and will reap as you continue your meditation practice.
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