Fear: Part 2 - The Bodybrain | Feelingawareness

Fear: Part 2 - The Bodybrain

Fear and the Brain

Fear is a very powerful and confusing issue. Taking the time to grasp how fear functions in the brain can make the whole process easier to understand and resolve.

The brain is not one organ. It is a number of systems that accomplish different things, but it can be useful to see the brain in three main parts—upper, mid, and lower. The upper part is called the Neocortex, where neurologic patterns (perceptions, images and thoughts) are formulated and used as a reference library (past) and action predictor (future). The mid part is called the Limbic System, where events are translated into neurologic patterns we experience as feelings and emotions. The lower part is called the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) and consists of the brain stem and the spinal cord. The ANS controls all aspects of survival— heartbeat, breathing, digestion, sleep, reproduction, fear, as well as the fight, flight, and freeze responses. This “Bodybrain” may be physically lower, but as the driver and protector of life itself, it deserves our highest respect.

An astonishing fact is that the ANS is fully functional at birth—a baby breathes, digests, sleeps, fusses, cries, smiles, looks around, and her heart continues to beat. Our baby is fully human, and yet—the Limbic system and the Neocortex are barely operational and will take over 20 years to fully develop. Our baby is alive with full animal physicality—but she doesn't think—because the neocortex isn't really working.

As a fully living being, however, our baby does experience fear.

The Brain, Trust, and Safety

The neurons of the bodybrain carry out the activities of life in an efficient, intelligent manner without thinking. It does not do thinking. It does living.

Thinking—neurologic patterns that we experience as imagery, language, and ideas— is the product of the neocortex. It does thinking.

Because the bodybrain does not do thinking—cannot think—it does not function within concepts of the past and future. It exists wholly in the moment—the here and now of real life as it is.

Fear exists in the bodybrain. Words and thinking exist in the neocortex.

Therefore, words have no meaning to the bodybrain.

Which is why talking does not reach fear.

What does reach fear? What can communicate with the bodybrain?

Consider this: the bodybrain is very much like a wild animal, like a young wolf.

If a wolf cub was caught and abused—but then rescued in your care—it would be cautious and uneasy. It may even flinch if you try to pat its head. What would you do to reach it, build trust and alleviate its fear? I imagine you would move slowly and behave in routine, predictable ways that would avoid any shocks or surprises.

A repeating pattern is a trusted pattern.

When we trust something it means we know what it will do next.

It means we know what is safe and what is dangerous.

Trust is safety.

Safety dissolves fear.

The Child and the Adult

Another way of looking at our adult bodybrain is that it behaves like a very young child—because that is the operating system of every young child. So, like a wolf cub, a frightened child in our care (the bodybrain) does not respond to rational arguments, she responds to protection, steadiness, and calmness—just as a wolf cub would.

In some modalities of psychology, this overseeing, protective part of us is referred to as “the adult.” It is the part of us that perceives the world practically and realistically, organizes, makes decisions and carries them out. The frightened side of us can be called “the child,” while some refer to it as our “animal self,” like the young wolf mentioned above.

If we use the wolf metaphor, this “adult” part is like the “leader of the pack.” A young wolf will respond to and follow the steady, calm, and decisive leadership of the leader. The same dynamic and results will occur for “the adult,” and “the child” aspects of us.

Strengthening the Adult

There are many different metaphors for understanding how human psychology works, and the “adult/child” framework is one of them. Within this frame, psychotherapy can be seen as the process of:

• our adult becoming aware of the child in us
• strengthening our adult part
• the adult caring for the child until it integrates (“grows up”).

When we come to therapy for fear issues, the part that recognizes we are behaving in overreactive ways is the adult recognizing the fear of the child. Therefore, one of the first steps in dealing with fear is to strengthen the adult by developing a calm and rational understanding of how fear triggers and reactions work.

Objective Understanding

The first step in managing fear is to observe our behaviours and objectively understand what is reasonable and what is not. This strengthens our adult self.

We may recognize excess fear, but we often need feedback from others we trust— including our therapist. Some behaviours, like superstitions, may be easy to recognize, while others, like the fear of flying, may be less so.

Many aspects of life have potential dangers, so we navigate them with rational, risk- benefit assessment. Some potential dangers we may fear are: heights, flying, driving, elevators, rollercoasters, bacteria, surgery, dentists, needles, swimming, walking in nature, thunderstorms, insects, spiders, snakes, bees, crowded spaces, hugs, men, women, children, confrontations, the unknown, choice, failure, rejection, and abandonment.

Every one of these things could be dangerous. The question is how dangerous and how much we're willing to limit our lives to avoid them. People do die in car accidents and it's possible to live without travelling in vehicles—but is it worth it? Bacteria do make people sick, but is wiping door handles hundreds of times worth it? Rejection does feel bad, but is avoiding all interactions and living alone worth it? Is the fear worth it? These decisions are personal, but once we decide it would be better to have less fear, our therapy process can begin.

Ideas vs Survival

When we recognize certain fears to be unrealistic, it can be frustrating and discouraging when our fears continue in spite of our understanding. This is because our adult understanding (“it's excess fear”) exists in the neocortex, and the child reactivity (“it's survival”) exists in the bodybrain.

When the bodybrain receives information of danger it reacts with lightning speed to jolt stress hormones into the bloodstream and make the body jump, run, scream— whatever. If you've ever flinched at something actually harmless you have experienced that lightning reaction. You also have experienced that jolt—elevated heart rate, breathing, sweating, tension, nausea—and how long it lingers in your system.

It is essential when working with fear to accept that the bodybrain/wolf/child is not convinced by words and new ideas because it does not operate in words and ideas. The child part will only become calm through reality-based proof over time. It has little respect for adult ideas because it is dealing with survival—life and death.

We will understand that it's okay to get in an elevator—but our heart will race.

We will understand that our partner is not going to leave us—but we nervously keep checking the time.

We will understand that its a harmless spider—but we jump when we see it.

Compassion for “The Child”

Our bodybrain (child) only wants to protect us. If we want our adult and our child to be in harmony we need to have respect and compassion for the child. Being angry and hating that part only makes it more reactive because that hate is proof to the child that the world is still not safe.

The only path forward is to accept that the fear and reactivity exist, and to gradually, predictably, and dependably create the conditions that prove the fear is unnecessary. It takes time and experience for a young wolf, a rescue dog, or a frightened child to realize deep in their cells that things are safe. It takes time for fear issues to resolve in the bodybrain, so we need to have compassion for ourselves and be patient and persistent.

(continued in "Fear: Part 3 - Solutions")