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Fright or flight: 3 facts about fear

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Though it starts in the brain, fear affects your heart rate, breathing, muscles, digestion, and more. | Gif by SEAtoday

While ghosts, goblins, and ghouls may be imaginary, fear is very real.

In honor of spooky season, we’re peeling back the layers of what happens when our bodies go into full “freak out-mode” in frightening situations.

Warning: These facts about fear that could give you goosebumps — without stepping into a haunted house.

1. Your brain gets “fight-or-flight” ready

When something scares you, your brain kicks into high gear. The sympathetic nervous system (responsible for the fight-or-flight system) goes into overdrive and decreases the functions of your brain’s frontal lobe (responsible for logical thinking and planning). Read: The more animalistic parts of your brain take over.

This could mean your heart races, your breathing quickens, and suddenly, you’re on high alert. It’s like your body’s own horror movie scene — but instead of escaping zombies, you’re running from stress.

2. Anxiety happens when worry takes over

Anxiety is like fear’s sneaky cousin. While fear is a response to an immediate threat, anxiety is more of a lingering unease about something your brain thinks is dangerous (but often isn’t). It creeps in when you’re anticipating the unknown, like worrying about a big presentation or an unexpected phone call.

Unlike fear, which triggers a short-term response, anxiety can hang around longer, keeping your body in a state of heightened alert. While some anxiety can be helpful, constant fear should be tackled through methods like therapy, medication, or both.

3. Fear is a built-in survival tool

Fear might make your knees shake, but it’s not all bad. Our fear response is designed to help keep us safe. In prehistoric times, fear helped our ancestors avoid life-threatening situations (think: saber-toothed tigers instead of Halloween vampires). Today, it still helps us stay safe by making us more aware of our surroundings.

Now, we hope you feel more prepared to face those Halloween frights — both real and imaginary.

Health

3 scary body facts that may make you squirm

Beware: These eerie body facts might just send chills down your spine. | Photo via Pexels

Halloween is full of frights, but your body has its own eerie secrets. Here are three facts that might just give you chills:

Eye-scream: Your eyes see the world upside-down + your brain flips the image for you.
Skin-crawling guests: Tiny Demodex mites live in your hair follicles and on your eyelashes. They’re mostly harmless, but still strange.
Bone chilling: Your skeleton regenerates every 10 years. That’s right — every decade, you’ve got a whole new set of bones.

Want more fascinating facts? Dive deeper — if you dare.

Uncover more surprising body facts

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