ABSTRACT
The brain continues to develop from infancy to adulthood, influenced by the evolving body and its interaction with the environment. The autonomic response of fight or flight results from the neurocircuitry that controls hard drives and instincts to help ensure survival in the environment. In order to survive in a complex and ever-changing environment, humans must rely not only on evolved non-conscious instinctual responses, but also on cognitive survival strategies developed and taught in societal environments. Emotions are tied to expressions of physical symptoms. Feedback loops involving an organism’s emotional state are present in both the neural and chemical networks. Neural responses are paired with primary emotions to help navigate the complex signaling that regulates personal and social behavior. Feelings are based on a combination of neural imagery, feedback loops of bodily responses to an experience, the perception of the body state, and thought processes associated with that experience.
