The Psychology of Fear and Anxiety

At some point of our life, we have all experienced what we call fear and anxiety. Maybe when there was an upcoming test you didn’t prepare for or it was the split second before you fell face first onto the ground, but nonetheless the same primal emotions are elicited from us. Have you ever noticed the change in behaviour that you exhibit during these moments?  Well In this article we will be exploring the psychological and biological response that fear and anxiety activate within our body along with the underlying process that causes these emotions. 

What is fear and anxiety & what is the difference between them? 

Although both emotions are often felt simultaneously, their terms cannot be used interchangeably. While fear is a primal emotion as a direct biological response to a perceived danger or threat, anxiety is a secondary emotion from excessive fear of a threat that may never occur. 

What causes both fear and anxiety? 

Fear and anxiety both utilise most of the same neural circuitry to enact a physical and psychological response in our body. They are both a biochemical reaction which causes us to respond to the perceived threat we sense around us as the sympathetic nervous system activates from the release of hormones we get in response to the sudden surge of stimuli. When activated, the sympathetic nervous system starts stimulating our adrenal glands, which are in charge of producing a variety of hormones to start releasing epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine (noradrenaline). Both hormones lead to increased alertness, attention and energy to the major muscles of the body, activating our “fight or flight” response. 

Bibliography : 

Mcleanhospital.org. (2023). Understanding Fear, Anxiety, and Phobias | McLean Hospital. [online] Available at: https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/fear-phobias#:~:text=Fear%20is%20the%20response%20to,the%20lookout%20and%20remain%20aware. [Accessed 1 Sep. 2024].

Psychology Today. (2024). The Biology of Anxiety. [online] Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/anxiety/the-biology-of-anxiety [Accessed 2 Sep. 2024].

Team, D. (2021). Fear vs Anxiety: Understanding the Difference. [online] Baton Rouge Behavioral Hospital. Available at: https://batonrougebehavioral.com/fear-vs-anxiety-understanding-the-difference/ [Accessed 1 Sep. 2024].