The limbic system is made up of different parts of the brain such as the hippocampus, hypothalamus, amygdala and limbic cortex. Each of these parts plays some part in the emotions you feel, and why you may feel them in the ways that you do. They even release certain hormones in your body which emphasize the already existing symptoms of the emotion.
When you feel fear, it is being processed by both the amygdala and hypothalamus (in that sequence). The hypothalamus may release hormones like adrenaline or cortisol in response to the fear. These hormones cause an imbalance in your body which leads to inconsistencies in your heart rate and breathing rate.
You may be wondering what would happen if your amygdala or hypothalamus were to get damaged. In that case, the way your body would react to whatever
is causing the fear would be different from someone else’s reaction towards it.
Similarly, feeling anger also goes through both the amygdala and hypothalamus. However, it may also occasionally transfer through the prefrontal cortex. While damage to the amygdala in the case of fear affects the fight or flight response, when it applies to anger, it may mean a higher level of aggression.
Unlike those mentioned above, disgust is processed through the insula and can even be influenced through different emotions.
The feeling of love or being in love comes from the hypothalamus. This explains why loving someone may sometimes feel scary or invoke anxiousness. During this time hormones like dopamine, oxytocin and sometimes vasopressin are released via the pituitary gland. These hormones generally make the person feel complete or fulfilled.
Last but not least, happiness goes through the limbic cortex and precuneus. Knowledge gained from studies suggest that the role of the precuneus in this scenario is to develop certain events in our life into nice feelings, like happiness.
While some of what we may feel may not make complete sense, perhaps it may give us some sort of comfort to know the primal, fundamental aspects of what goes on have a completely logical explanation. Understanding the limbic system and the source of our emotions may not only bring us one step closer to knowing the brain, but also ourselves.
References
Seladi-Schulman, Jill. “What Part of the Brain Controls Emotions? Fear, Happiness, Anger, Love.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 24 July 2018, https://www.healthline.com/health/what-part-of-the-brain-controls-emotions#anger.
Comments