Amygdala and Stress

-Shresta Yasarapu

We’ve all been there. One night, probably around 1-2 am sitting around a pile of books or papers or anything, not understanding what to do and stressing out. But that’s ok since stress is a natural phenomenon that almost all of us experience. All of us feel a general amount of stress that is in fact ‘healthy’ or acts as a ‘booster’. For example, before writing your exam you might worry a bit but in normal amounts. Unfortunately, this is not the same for everyone. At times people are capable of handling pressure and stress well but others are not.

Out of the numerous neurons, lobes and systems in your brain, there is a small part that plays a crucial role in detecting stress, fear and probably anxiety. Amygdala- is a part of the brain that’s very tiny in size and is particularly responsible for the emotional regulation of the person. It is responsible for memory, decision making and emotional responses that include- stress, anxiety and aggression. It’s placed adjacent to the Hippocampus within the temporal lobe. The Amygdala releases hormones that prepare the body to fight or flight. After several psychologists conducting experiments, it was found out that information and stimuli regarding potentially harmful and frightening things in the environment reach the Amygdala before we feel it in our consciousness. Interestingly, there is a relative proportion of relation between the Amygdala and our emotional processes. Researchers and psychologists have found that Amygdala can increase or decrease in size over time. The increase and decrease depends on a few. Depression and anxiety have a profound effect on brain areas associated with memory and emotional processing. In people with depression and anxiety, researchers noted shrinkage to the hippocampus. By contrast, the amygdala increased in size factors.

Although reversing the size of the Amygdala or reducing stress might seem impossible, there are various techniques and processes that help people to reduce their emotional components and it is crucial to know them.