15.1 Divisions of the autonomic nervous system  (Page 7/61)

Everyday connections

Fight or flight? what about fright and freeze?

The original usage of the epithet “fight or flight” comes from a scientist named Walter Cannon who worked at Harvard in 1915. The concept of homeostasis and the functioning of the sympathetic system had been introduced in France in the previous century. Cannon expanded the idea, and introduced the idea that an animal responds to a threat by preparing to stand and fight or run away. The nature of this response was thoroughly explained in a book on the physiology of pain, hunger, fear, and rage.

When students learn about the sympathetic system and the fight-or-flight response, they often stop and wonder about other responses. If you were faced with a lioness running toward you as pictured at the beginning of this chapter, would you run or would you stand your ground? Some people would say that they would freeze and not know what to do. So isn’t there really more to what the autonomic system does than fight, flight, rest, or digest. What about fear and paralysis in the face of a threat?

The common epithet of “fight or flight” is being enlarged to be “fight, flight, or fright” or even “fight, flight, fright, or freeze.” Cannon’s original contribution was a catchy phrase to express some of what the nervous system does in response to a threat, but it is incomplete. The sympathetic system is responsible for the physiological responses to emotional states. The name “sympathetic” can be said to mean that (sym- = “together”; -pathos = “pain,” “suffering,” or “emotion”).