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When I was younger, I used to enjoy intellectual discussions on topics such as, “What is love?” One of my more intelligent friends asserted once that love was an illusion. I didn’t agree with him, of course, and I certainly don’t now. But I don’t think the Romantic poets had much of a handle on it either. What I wanted to know was, “What are emotions, really?” We feel them. Love may be different for each person, but the experience of emotions is a physical reality. In short, I was—and still am—curious about how emotions happen in the brain and body. I know not everyone shares this curiosity. It’s fair to ask whether such knowledge is useful to folks who just want to have a rich, healthy emotional life. Might there be a downside to too much knowledge? Maybe the more we know about our emotions, the more self-conscious and artificial our emotions become? Well, I’ve been down that road, and I can report that I haven’t had that problem. For me, awareness enriches the experience. I became intrigued about the neurobiology of emotions during my research for MindFrames over a decade ago. As I’ve said in other posts, I have a passionate interest in “what’s going on up there.” I’m far from being an expert on the brain science of emotions, which is still in its infancy; but I’ve learned a few interesting things. Human emotions are both simple and complex. The basic structure of our emotions is quite simple. At bottom, emotions are our physical responses to satisfaction or dissatisfaction. Either we’re feeling positive because our needs have been (or are likely to be) met; or we’re feeling negative because the opposite is true. We feel safe, or we feel threatened. We feel fulfillment, or we feel want. We feel happy, or we feel sad. On the other hand, the words we use to express emotion suggest a myriad of intensities and emotional nuances. - As we meet our environment: alertness, curiosity, anticipation and excitement - As we confront the threats to our satisfaction and fulfillment: concern, worry, anxiety, stress, fear, dread, and horror, shock and panic - As we react to those who thwart us: distrust, envy, jealousy, aggression, anger, hate - As we react to difficulties and failure: dismay, embarrassment, discouragement, disappointment, frustration, loss, sorrow, grief, despair, depression, sadness, remorse - As we react to those who help us: trust, compassion, sympathy, love, lust and longing - As we react to success: calmness, satisfaction, fulfillment, delight, pleasure, excitement, joy, happiness, elation and euphoria Emotions are both mental and physical. We may think about our feelings, but what we experience is a myriad of bodily sensations: dry mouth; increased warmth and sensitivity of the skin; changes in breathing, heart rate and blood pressure; tightness in muscles and contractions in the viscera; galvanic skin response and increased sweating. Without these and other symptoms we’d have no experience of emotions whatsoever. From the perspective of the brain, emotions are a chemical issue. Neurotransmitters are chemicals produced by the brain. Their presence allows one neuron to activate another, retransmitting the impulse along a pathway from one part of the brain to another. Different neuronal pathways require different neurotransmitters in order to perform their unique functions. Two neurotransmitters that play a big role in emotion are serotonin and noradrenaline (norepinephrine). They are generated in the mid-brain, where pathways radiate to parts of the brain that activate perceptual readiness, alertness and excitement. Another neurotransmitter, adrenaline, excites body and muscular readiness. Dopamine is involved in elation. Melatonin triggers relaxation and drowsiness. Endorphins are related to pleasure. There are well over a hundred different neurotransmitters. How the brain and body interact to produce emotions is a fascinating story. I’ll do my best to “keep it simple.” A good place to start is the senses. Stimuli from the eyes, ears and other sensory organs travel along nerves to the hypothalamus, a kind of command-and-control center that sends this sensory input to the appropriate areas of the cortex (outer layer of the brain) for processing. At the same time, the hypothalamus also signals the amygdala, which coordinates emotion by triggering the thalamus, which causes the generation of hormones, which produce the visceral responses we experience as emotion. Thought also comes into play. In addition to keying the hypothalamus, the amygdala also communicates with the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in meaning, decision-making and knowledge learning. Data sent from the perceptual centers of the cortex also send information to the prefrontal cortex for analysis and decision-making. The bodily responses we experience as emotions are sent back up to the cortex, and these reactions are monitored and analyzed by the prefrontal cortex. You can see that chains of perception, thought and emotion loop back upon themselves. These interconnected systems could cascade, were it not for the prefrontal cortex, which is kept in the loop, sending moderating signals back to the amygdala. Some interesting bottom lines: - Perceptions can trigger emotions. - Thoughts can trigger and moderate emotions. - Ingested chemicals can enter the brain and mimic or inhibit neurotransmitters, changing emotions. - Humans express emotions both verbally and nonverbally. - We can feel emotions internally without expressing them outwardly. - We can experience emotions and not be aware that we are doing so. - We can also express emotions in a habitual, mechanical way without feeling them. - Different people may respond to the same event with different emotions. And finally this: Brain science may be able to outline the general processes of emotion, but it gives little insight into specific emotions. Love, for instance, is actually a potpourri of emotions, engaging our entire being. Triggered by the senses, most of the brain kicks into action. We feel the hair rise on the back of our neck and other indescribable sensations all the way to the tips of our toes. Love is, in short, a many-splendored thing. As the poet said, that is all we know, and all we need to know. So there.
Article Source: http://www.articledestination.com
Dennis E. Coates is CEO of Performance Support Systems, author of MindFrames, a brain-based personality assessment system (www.initforlife.com) and co-founder of the Train-to-Ingrain alliance (www.train-to-ingrain.com, info@train-to-ingrain.com, 800-488-6463), which delivers a reinforcement-centered approach to learning and development that achieves permanent, measurable improvements in workplace behavior and positive impacts on business results.
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