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Do you get mad when the
umpire calls you out on a close throw to first
base? Do you get angry when someone
cuts in front of you in line? Do you tremble all over after
a near-miss accident? What makes your body shake
and your face turn red when you are angry or in
danger? Some of your organs--heart,
stomach, intestines, and some of your glands--are
controlled by the part of our nervous system that
works automatically. It is called the autonomic
nervous system (ANS). The ANS has two parts, the
sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the
parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). The SNS
speeds things up. The PNS slows things
down. Most of the time we do not
notice the ANS. It does routine things like
controlling your heart and breathing rates, turning
on and off your digestion, and keeping your
temperature constant.  Human Adrenal Glands Courtesy National Institutes of Health These chemicals prepare your body to fight or to run away. They make your breathing deeper and faster. They turn off the blood flow to your stomach and send it to the muscles in your arms and legs. They make the pupils of your eyes grow larger (dilate). When you are in danger your sight sharpens and you become more aware of everything around you. Your sense of pain goes down. Your immune system gets ready for action. You scan the area, "looking for the enemy." You are getting ready for fight or flight--to stand your ground or to run away. Sometimes when you get angry you would be better off if you could calm down and let it pass. Some people are prone to anxiety and panic attacks. Their PNS does not seem to work properly. It fails to return the body to its normal state. The sufferer stays keyed up simply because there are high levels of free-floating SNS chemicals in the body that have not burned off yet. For some people these effects last for hours, for other people it can last for days.
*SNS chemicals include adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol. |
