The fight-or-flight (or freeze) response is an automatic survival reaction of the nervous system that activates when the brain perceives danger.
It is not a choice. It is reflexive, fast, and largely unconscious.
The Basic Mechanism
When a threat is detected:
- The amygdala (threat detection center) signals alarm.
- The hypothalamus activates the autonomic nervous system.
- The sympathetic nervous system releases adrenaline and noradrenaline.
- The HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis) releases cortisol.
This prepares the body for immediate survival.
1. Fight
Purpose: Confront the threat.
Body changes:
- Increased heart rate
- Muscle tension
- Anger or aggression
- Sharpened focus
Psychologically, this can show up as irritability, argumentativeness, or dominance behaviors.
2. Flight
Purpose: Escape the threat.
Body changes:
- Restlessness
- Urge to run or leave
- Rapid breathing
- Anxiety or panic
Psychologically, this can look like avoidance, distraction, overworking, or compulsive busyness.
3. Freeze
Purpose: Immobilization when fight or flight seem impossible.
This response is often linked to the dorsal vagal system (parasympathetic shutdown). Consult a Neurologist/MD.
Body changes:
- Numbness
- Dissociation
- Slowed heart rate
- Feeling stuck or paralyzed
- Mental blankness
Freeze is not weakness, it is a survival strategy seen across mammals.
Why It Matters Clinically
You already know this response becomes problematic when:
- The threat is psychological rather than physical.
- The system stays chronically activated (hyperarousal).
- Early attachment disruption wires the nervous system to misinterpret relational cues as danger.
In trauma work, many symptoms, panic disorder, dissociation, emotional flooding, identity destabilization, are variations of this survival circuitry firing in non-life-threatening contexts.
A More Complete Model
Modern trauma theory expands this into:
- Fight
- Flight
- Freeze
- Fawn (appeasing the threat)
“Fawn” is common in traumatic attachment dynamics.
Key Insight
The fight-flight-freeze response is not pathology.
It becomes pathology only when:
- It activates too easily
- It does not deactivate
- It dominates identity
It’s also worth noting: intense inner experiences (existential rumination, identity shifts, altered states) can sometimes be misinterpreted by the body as threat, triggering survival physiology even when the “danger” is psychological or ontological rather than physical.
Shervan K Shahhian
LIBERTY PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION 