Exceptionally clear memories of emotionally significant events are called flashbulb memories. They're called so because they are typically very vivid and detailed, much like a photograph, and often pertain to surprising, consequential, and emotionally arousing events, such as hearing about a national tragedy or experiencing a personal milestone.| Simply Psychology
A panic attack is a sudden episode of intense fear or anxiety that triggers severe physical reactions, such as a racing heart, sweating, trembling, shortness of breath, or a feeling of impending doom, even though there's no real danger or apparent cause.| Simply Psychology
Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers that play a vital role in how your brain and body communicate. They affect everything from your mood and memory to your heartbeat and breathing.| Simply Psychology
The Central Nervous System (CNS) consists of the brain and spinal cord. It acts as the body's control center, processing sensory information and directing responses. The CNS coordinates both voluntary activities, like movement, and involuntary ones, such as breathing and heartbeat.| Simply Psychology
The sympathetic nervous system is a branch of the autonomic nervous system that prepares the body for "fight or flight" responses during stressful situations. It increases heart rate, dilates pupils, and inhibits digestion, among other functions, to mobilize the body's resources for immediate action.| Simply Psychology
The amygdala is a complex structure of cells nestled in the middle of the brain, adjacent to the hippocampus (which is associated with memory formation). It is part of the limbic system and plays a key role in processing emotions and emotional reactions.| Simply Psychology
The limbic system is a complex set of brain structures involved in emotion, motivation, memory, and behavior regulation. Key components include the amygdala, hippocampus, thalamus, hypothalamus, basal ganglia, and cingulate gyrus. It's central to emotional processing, memory formation, and various autonomic functions, bridging higher cognitive processes and primal emotions.| Simply Psychology
A neuron is a nerve cell that processes and transmits information through electrical and chemical signals in the nervous system. Neurons consist of a cell body, dendrites (which receive signals), and an axon (which sends signals). Synaptic connections allow communication between neurons, facilitating the relay of information throughout the body.| Simply Psychology
Anxiety disorders are characterized by distressing, persistent anxiety and are often paired with unhelpful behaviors that individuals may use to try to reduce anxiety, such as avoidance or other safety behaviors.| Simply Psychology
The fight or flight response is a physiological reaction that occurs in response to a perceived harmful event, attack, or threat to survival. It prepares your body to either confront or flee from the threat by triggering changes like increased heart rate, quickened breathing, and heightened alertness.| Simply Psychology
