AMYGDALA HIJACK
Amygdala
hijack is a term
coined by Daniel Goleman in his 1996 book Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can
Matter More Than IQ. Drawing on the work of Joseph E. LeDoux,
Goleman uses the term to describe emotional responses from people which are
immediate and overwhelming, and out of measure with the actual stimulus because
it has triggered a much more significant emotional threat.
Concept
From the
thalamus, a part of the stimulus goes directly to the amygdala while another part is sent to the neocortex (the "thinking brain"). If the amygdala perceives a match to
the stimulus, i.e., if the record of experiences in the hippocampus tells the
amygdala that it is a fight, flight or freeze situation, then the amygdala
triggers the HPA (hypothalmic-pituitary-adrenal) axis and hijacks the rational
brain. This emotional brain activity processes information milliseconds earlier
than the rational brain, so in case of a match, the amygdala acts before any
possible direction from the neocortex can be received. If, however, the
amygdala does not find any match to the stimulus received with its recorded
threatening situations, then it acts according to the directions received from
the neo-cortex. When the amygdala perceives a threat, it can lead that person
to react irrationally and destructively.
Goleman
states that "Emotions make us pay attention right now - this is urgent -
and gives us an immediate action plan without having to think twice. The
emotional component evolved very early: Do I eat it, or does it eat me?"
The emotional response "can take over the rest of the brain in a
millisecond if threatened."An amygdala hijack exhibits three signs: strong
emotional reaction, sudden onset, and post-episode realization if the reaction
was inappropriate.
Goleman
later emphasised that "self-control is crucial ...when facing someone who
is in the throes of an amygdala hijack" so as to avoid a complementary
hijacking - whether in work situations, or in private life. Thus for example
'one key marital competence is for partners to learn to soothe their own
distressed feelings...nothing gets resolved positively when husband or wife is
in the midst of an emotional hijacking.' The danger is that 'when our partner
becomes, in effect, our enemy, we are in the grip of an "amygdala
hijack" in which our emotional memory, lodged in the limbic center of our
brain, rules our reactions without the benefit of logic or reason...which
causes our bodies to go into a "fight or flight" response'.
Positive hijackings
Goleman
points out that 'not all limbic hijackings are distressing. When a joke strikes
someone as so uproarious that their laughter is almost explosive, that, too, is
a limbic response. It is at work also in moments of intense joy'.
He also
cites the case of a man strolling by a canal when he saw a girl staring
petrified at the water. Suddenly, 'before he knew quite why, he had jumped into
the water - in his coat and tie. Only once he was in the water did he realize
that the girl was staring in shock at a toddler who had fallen in - whom he was
able to rescue'.
Emotional relearning
LeDoux
was positive about the possibility of learning to control 'the amygdala's
hair-trigger role in emotional outbursts: "Once your emotional system
learns something, it seems you never let it go. What therapy does is teach you
how to control it - it teaches your neocortex how to inhibit your amygdala. The
propensity to act is suppressed, while your basic emotion about it remains in a
subdued form"'
Reacciones desproporcionadas:
“Secuestro de la amígdala”
El doctor Daniel Goleman nos cuenta como ante una tensión acumulada o una
respuesta grabada, la amígdala puede producir una respuesta desproporcionada
ante una situación o estimulo que bajo otro contexto habría sido menos drástica. Bajo una situación de estrés emocional, la amígdala se
dispara.
Es un concepto muy interesante, ya que nos permite por un lado reconocernos
en situaciones eliminando la sensación de culpa que se siente por la reacción
desmesurada; y por otro lado el disponer de una nueva información acerca de los
posibles patrones de desarmonía, que ante una nueva situación de estrés pueda
permita reconocer la incapacidad de actuar de forma armónica ante dicho estímulo/s,
y permitir observar en lugar de actuar para ser capaz de descubrir nuevas
posibles respuestas con menor gasto y tensión para el cuerpo.
En Wikipedia se recoge más información bajo el término inglés “Amygdala
hijack"
