Anxiety and How Our Brains Work

Anxiety can feel confusing and overwhelming, but it starts to make more sense (and feel less scary) when you understand how your brain works.

The key players in your brain

Two parts of the brain are essential to understand:

Amygdala (Alarm Brain): The Alarm Brain is the part of the brain responsible for the fight-or-flight response. Its main job is to keep you safe.

When the alarm brain is triggered, you know it. It’s instant, automatic, and intense. It takes over instantly, before your logical side can weigh in.
The major limitation of the Alarm Brain is that it isn’t good at deciphering between hazardous situations and situations that first appear dangerous. For example:

• You’re driving; a little kid runs out in front of you. Without thinking, you slam on your brakes. Your heart is racing, your breathing is quick and shallow, and your hands are tense and shaking.
• You walk into your bedroom, and a family member hiding in the closet jumps out and scares you. You instantly flinch and yell, and your heart races.
• You’re hiking on a trail, and in the corner of your eye, you catch a stick that resembles a snake. You instantly jump and take a few quick steps back.

In all of the situations, the alarm brain tells you you’re in danger, but only in one is there actual danger.

In short, the Alarm Brain works on the rule of “safety first, even if it means being wrong.” It values speed and safety over accuracy. It’s constantly sending us false alarms.

Cortex (Thinking Brain): The Thinking Brain is the part of the brain we are most aware of. It helps us reason, plan, and put things in perspective.

While the Alarm Brain is fast and inaccurate, the Thinking Brain is slower and more accurate. It works on the premise, “We have time, let’s get the details right.”

Why anxiety is challenging

People often say, “I know that I’m not in danger, so why is my brain sending me all of these scary signals?”

This can lead to a lot of frustration and confusion. It can also lead to a tug-of-war between the Thinking Brain and Alarm Brain.

We use logic and reason (Thinking Brain) to convince the Alarm Brain to stop the alarm bells. Though this makes sense, the Alarm Brain doesn’t understand language and reasoning very well.
No matter how much evidence we present, all the effort we put into convincing the Alarm Brain goes right over its head.

A quick example: the haunted house

Imagine visiting a Halloween carnival and waiting in line at the haunted house attraction. Before walking in, a worker gives you an hour-long PowerPoint presentation on how safe the attraction is.

“All the zombies are actors, and there has not been one injury in the 25 years we’ve been in operation.”

No matter how convincing the presentation is, the Alarm Brain understood very little of it. So, you walk into the attraction, and your Alarm Brain fires. You jump, your heart races, and you scream.

How does the alarm brain learn?

If the Alarm Brain doesn’t take in logic and reason, what does it take in?

Experience.

The most effective way to teach the Alarm Brain new lessons is through experience. Experience teaches the Alarm Brain what to expect, whether we face or avoid the fear.

For example, if you avoid the haunted house, the Alarm Brain takes that as confirmation: “Yep, danger confirmed. Glad we stayed out!” That experience reinforces the fear. So the next time you’re in that situation, the Alarm Brain is more likely to sound the alarm. Not because something bad happened, but because it learned that escape or avoidance was necessary.

What happens if we go back in?

If we go back inside the haunted house, the Alarm Brain will still send danger signals, maybe even louder: “I told you this was dangerous already. You’re not listening to me!”

As we go back inside, the Alarm Brain builds a new safety lesson alongside the fear memory. It notices that you walk out unharmed. Over time, this safety lesson becomes stronger and competes with the fear memory.

What’s the goal?

Is it to eliminate anxiety? Unfortunately, that’s not something we have control over, and it would be hazardous if achieved, as there would be no danger signals when you’re in actual harm’s way.

Is it to eliminate false alarms? We also don’t have control over this. If we want the Alarm Brain present for real danger, we must accept its imperfect strategy of “better to be safe than sorry.”

Instead, consider the goal of changing your relationship with anxiety and the Alarm Brain: To see it as an uncomfortable experience, but not a sign of danger. And to focus on the only thing you control, which is your response and reaction to the Alarm Brain when it’s firing.

As you start to slowly face your fears, staying present with the discomfort, and nothing dangerous happens, you start to accept the anxiety and learn that it’s something you’re capable of handling.

The goal isn’t to feel less anxious. The goal is to respond differently to the anxiety and allow your brain to learn something new.

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References

Greenberg, M. (2021, April 23). Exposure is about learning, not habituation. Dr. Michael J Greenberg. Retrieved October 3, 2021, from https://drmichaeljgreenberg.com/exposure-is-about-learning-not-habituation/.

McMahon, E. J. (2019). Overcoming Anxiety and Panic interactive guide. Hands-on-Guide.

Pittman, C. M., & Karle, E. M. (2019). Rewire your anxious brain: How to use the neuroscience of fear to end anxiety, panic, & worry. Echo Point Books & Media.

Winston, S., & Seif, M. N. (2019). Overcoming unwanted intrusive thoughts: A Cbt-based guide to getting over frightening, obsessive, or disturbing thoughts. Echo Point Books & Media, LLC.