A Research Fear, Its Causes, Factors, and Ways to Overcome

Fear is one of the most important emotions that help humans survive when faced with danger. The feeling starts from the brain and eventually spreads throughout the body to prepare for any sort of threat. This essay will speak on why fear occurs and why it exists. As well as how it may be possible to not experience fear at all through brain surgery and the potential drawbacks of that idea are explained. It will also discuss why people love feeling the rush of fear even though it most likely can be seen as a negative emotion.

Fear is one of our strongest emotions. Although it is a very unpleasant feeling fear gives the ability to identify things that are harmful, which is very important for human survival. Fear is like an alarm system that goes off when there is potential danger.

In every alarm system there is some sort of trigger, like how a fire alarm goes off when smoke is detected. Inside the brain there are two almond shaped structures called the amygdala that are always on the lookout for potential danger. These structures are like an early warning detection system that act as the trigger for the entire alarm system inside the brain. When one of the five senses observes something that one may fear like a spider, a loud noise, etc. the amygdala is triggered. Almost immediately after, these structures release hormones into the bloodstream, which activate areas involved in the fight or flight response.

This leads to changes that prepare the body for any sort of threat or danger and increases the urgency to stay safe. Changes such as quicker breathing, a rapid heartbeat, an increase in blood pressure, and the tensing of muscles all occur when these hormones are released.

When there is a situation involving fear, the prefrontal cortex, “...a reasoning part of the brain located behind the forehead…” doesn’t have time to register what’s going on so the amygdala takes over. That’s why when in times of fear the brain resorts to fight or flight. However, if the reasoning part of the brain can recognize that the situation is a false alarm then it will tell the body to calm down.

Despite the fact that most feel negatively towards fear, it is very important for survival. By having a positive outlook, fear can be seen as proactive rather than a negative emotion. This will lead to the body, learning from its mistakes when it feels fear so it won’t make the wrong decision in the future. It also helps the brain recognize what is a threat and what is not. The reason fear exists is not to cause sadness. Rather, it is meant to help us grow, adapt, and learn through our mistakes.

Fear is an inevitable emotion we all experience many times throughout our lives, including me. Yet, it is not the reason I decided to write about this topic for my essay.  The incident that led me to write about this occurred not too long ago at the beginning of August. My friend and I decided to watch a horror movie. As we were watching, jumpscares were surprising us left and right. After every jumpscare I was immediately filled with fear, which brought my attention to the pounding of my heart. Soon I began to calm down and my heartbeat was back to normal. After this event occurred, I began to wonder why I was feeling that sensation. I was aware that it had to do with something within my body and I was compelled to research about it.

After researching this topic I was sparked with the question, is it possible to know when one in a dangerous situation without feeling fear? This most definitely would help humans think more intelligently when there is a threat. Having composure when one is in fear is something that many practice. Due to the mind being open to more than just fight or flight, smarter decisions can be made. However, is it possible to completely remove fear instead of having to cope with it?

It’s not hard to believe that many dislike the feeling of fear and wish it didn’t exist at all. But is it possible to get rid of fear completely? As I discussed in the personal connection people tend to panic in times of fear, which makes it hard to keep composure and think. This made me wonder, if there was no fear would it really improve one’s intelligence in those types of situations and if it does what are the potential roadblocks? After researching this topic for a while I found that the most realistic way of removing the fear emotion is through brain surgery.

Brain surgery isn’t something most people would actively seek out. However, the idea of removing the amygdala is something many people may be interested in. Removing the amygdala is actually a well-known procedure but it isn’t typically done to reduce fear or anxiety. This procedure (also known as Amydalectomy) is usually only done to “...treat certain types of epilepsy and to control aggression, mostly in patients with mental illness and intellectual disability”. Although there was one patient that received the surgery due to a rare genetic mutation called Urbach-Wiethe disease. “Urbach-Wiethe disease is a rare autosomal recessive genodermatosis due to mutations in the extracellular matrix protein 1 (ECM1) gene.” Patient SM or “the woman without fear” got this procedure and came out of the surgery healthy and amygdalaless. After the surgery it was reported that she showed no fear whatsoever. She said that she didn’t even know what fear feels like.

Hypothetically removing the amygdala is possible, but there are many difficulties that one may face without an amygdala. Without it one can still realize what can and can’t hurt them. But, “...they will lack the quick, subconscious, visceral response that the rest of us feel when we're exposed to danger.” So, one may be composed when put into a dangerous situation but their response will not be immediate or urgent, which could put one in harm's way. Furthermore, the amygdala plays a role in memory, decision making and emotions. Therefore, it might cause issues with registering emotion.

After researching the topic of fear most of my questions were answered. Although I still didn’t understand why people enjoy the feeling of fear. Ever since I was little I’ve gotten scared easily and I’ve come to realize that I love it. The thrill of roller coasters, haunted houses, horror movies, etc. is so appealing to me. So, if fear is typically seen as a negative thing then why would anyone want to intentionally scare themselves?

When one is watching a horror movie or going through a haunted house and is faced with something that the brain registers as dangerous dopamine can be released. Dopamine is a chemical inside the brain that controls the pleasure part of the brain. The release of this chemical is caused because “Fear responses produce endorphins, which can cause a sort of natural high.” 

Furthermore, as discussed in the topic section the hormones that are released are triggering the fight or flight response, at the same time one’s attention is moving away from abstract thoughts and instead is focusing on survival. Because the brain is only focusing on fight or flight the feeling of escapism can occur. “Our thoughts can just take a break and we can enjoy being fully in our bodies, feeling primal and animal. When you’re on a rollercoaster or in a haunted house, you're not thinking about your bills, your classes, your relationships or your future” (Manning-Schaffel, 2017). Eventually the rush of fear wears off as soon as the brain realizes that the situation isn’t actually dangerous. That's when fear can be enjoyable for some people. Often, after something scary happens one will feel like they overcame a challenge which boosts the individual’s confidence.

There are many methods used to overcome fear. One method that logically works the best is facing one’s fears. This works because of something called Habituation. “Habituation, defined formally, refers to the fact that nervous system arousal decreases on repeated exposure to the same stimulus” (Sphancer 2010). In short this means that familiar things get boring.

When one is in a state of fear their nervous system is aroused. This understandably is why most make an effort to avoid situations or objects that provoke fear. However, because of this, the nervous system cannot habituate. Therefore, every time one shows the emotion of fear whether that be because of a spider, a presentation in class, etc. and decides to avert it then they will continue to be afraid of it. So, to get rid of fear it is much more effective to use the principle of habituation through exposure. Exposure is one of the most effective methods used in psychology, especially when treating anxiety. Exposure forces one to face their fears which will feel uncomfortable at first but if one wants to achieve a long term goal they must go through short term discomfort. Think of facing fear like studying for an exam. The long tedious studying may not be fun but the outcome will be worth it.

Exposure scares people, but scary things aren’t always necessarily dangerous. Exposure is scary primarily because many people do not know what the principle of habituation is and how it works to help get rid of fear. So, they believe that their fear will escalate when put in the presence of a feared object or situation. Anxiety is like a maze in a sense that the only way out is through. Therefore, if one is afraid of spiders they must expose themselves to spiders. If they are afraid of roller coasters they must go on the ride. If one continuously faces their fear then it will begin to subside.

Facing one’s fears is not easy, which is why most seek out other ways to overcome fear. One other method used to overcome fear is tricking the brain. This method is less effective than habituation however it does work. To do this, there are several mental and physical things that can be done in order to minimize fear.

To begin one must “Fake it till they become it”. In order to do this an individual can tell their brain positive things such as “you got this!” or “it’s going to be okay!”. This will trick the brain into thinking that the situation is more positive rather than negative which will release hormones associated more with excitement or confidence instead of fear emotions. This is why being an optimist gives one more confidence than being a pessimist (Gottsman, 2016).

Another way to trick the brain is by adjusting one’s body language. In a study conducted by Cuddy, Caroline A. Wilmuth and Dana R. Carney, the idea that one will perform better in a stressful situation by changing their non-verbal behavior. “The participants in this experiment took on high power poses (expansive positions), or low power poses (contractive positions) and then prepared and delivered a speech to an evaluator as part of a mock job interview”. The participants that took high power poses such as the Wonder Woman Pose (stand up, hands on hips, feet apart, shoulders back and chin up) or the Victory V Pose (chest open, chin up, feet firmly planted on the ground, arms making a V in the air) did better on the interview than the ones that took low power poses such as slouching. This is because when one is carrying themselves in a powerful way their feelings, thoughts, behavior, and body feel more powerful and present during scary or stressful situations. With this confidence is much easier for an individual to be in a situation involving anxiety.

There are many ways in which the brain can cope and overcome fear, whether that be through habituation or positive verbal or non-verbal behaviors. Overcoming fear is not easy, however, living in a prison of avoidance isn't easy either. Most would love to live a life where they are not held back by fear. Therefore, being proactive about getting rid of fear in one's life will most definitely be more beneficial than not.