Fight or Flight: How your Brainstem protects you
Season 1 - Episode 41
In this three-part series, Lauren talks about parts of the brain that most relate to emotions and behavior:
Prefrontal Cortex – Thinking Brain or “Wise Owl”
Limbic System – Emotional Brain or “Barking Dog”
Brainstem – Reptilian Brain or “Fight or Flight”
This episode is about the Brainstem, often referred to as the Reptilian Brain, the Primal Brain, or the Fight or Flight area. The Brainstem is located at the back of the skull, near the bottom of your brain. This area is wired for your survival and is responsible for all vital respiratory and cardiac functions.
This part of the brain is responsible for our survival, so it’s reactionary and impulsive. We do things without thinking. We just react. Lauren refers to it as the fight, flight, freeze, or fawn brain.
How is this part of the brain involved in processing emotions and affecting behavior?
Emotions are highly dependent on the body’s networks that regulate alertness, involuntary body functions, motor, and sensory controls….all located in the brainstem. The brainstem parts play a critical role in emotional regulation.
If the brainstem is under-developed, how can you learn to better self-regulate?
Train the brainstem to be calm by embedding things like touch, movement, physical exercise, and breathing techniques. We talk all about it in our course: From Wild Emotions to Tamed Feelings – How to Self-Regulate. Or check out our linked blog posts below.
Lauren answers this week’s listener question:
What are good strategies I can use in my classroom (or at home) for a proactive approach to SEL?
Try-at-home tip: 10 minutes of direct attention a day with a child.
Mentioned in this episode:
Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art - book by James Nestor
Wim Hof Method – book by Wim Hof
Aaron Alexander resources – books, podcast
Related resources from The Behavior Hub:
Blog Post:
Thinking Brain: The Wise Owl
Emotional Brain: The Barking Dog
Reptilian Brain: Better known as the Brainstem
How Exercise Impacts Emotional Regulation
5 Breathing Exercises for Your Kiddo
Our Online Courses:
From Wild Emotions to Tamed Feelings – How to Self-Regulate (5 Needs Areas)
Do you have a question? I can answer it in a future episode!
Email questions to podcast@thebehaviorhub.com or send via text to 717-693-7744.Subscribe to our mailing list and find out more about the Emotional Brain.
Check out our Facebook Group – Raising and Teaching Respectful Children
Find all the answers here: The Behavior Hub blog
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