“Promise me you will not spend so much time treading water and trying to keep your head above the waves that you forget, truly forget, how much you have always loved to swim.” Tyler Knott Gregson
The amygdala, located in the most primitive part of our brains, responds to danger and fear by generating adrenaline, which enables the fight-or-flight response that has been critical to humans' survival. But the amygdala makes no distinction between actual life-threatening danger and regular stressors of modern life like busy schedules, traffic, tests, family disagreements, health and money difficulties. When stress chemicals like adrenaline and cortisol are running through our bodies, our ability to communicate and concentrate is diminished, and sustained exposure to these chemicals can have physical health consequences over time.
ONLINE ARTICLES AND VIDEOS:
How Happy Brains Respond to Negative Things (UC Berkeley)
University of Toronto Scarborough Writing Centre's Guide to Reducing Test Anxiety
"Loneliness May Warp Our Genes, And Our Immune Systems" (NPR / Angus Chen)
TED Playlist: Talks to give you a confidence boost