Fight-or-flight response

"Fight or flight" redirects here. For other uses, see Fight or flight (disambiguation).
Dog circling in on a cat with an arched back
A dog on hind legs and a cat hissing with an arched back
A dog and a cat expressing the fight (top) and flight (bottom) response simultaneously

The fight-or-flight or the fight-flight-freeze-or-fawn[1] (also called hyperarousal or the acute stress response) is a physiological reaction that occurs in response to a perceived harmful event, attack, or threat to survival.[2] It was first described by Walter Bradford Cannon in 1915.[a][3] His theory states that animals react to threats with a general discharge of the sympathetic nervous system, preparing the animal for fighting or fleeing.[4] More specifically, the adrenal medulla produces a hormonal cascade that results in the secretion of catecholamines, especially norepinephrine and epinephrine.[5] The hormones estrogen, testosterone, and cortisol, as well as the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin, also affect how organisms react to stress.[6] The hormone osteocalcin might also play a part.[7][8]

This response is recognised as the first stage of the general adaptation syndrome that regulates stress responses among vertebrates and other organisms.[9]

  1. ^ Walker, Peter (2013). Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving : a Guide and Map for Recovering from Childhood Trauma. An Azure Coyote Book. ISBN 978-1-4928-7184-2.
  2. ^ Cannon, Walter (1932). Wisdom of the Body. United States: W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN 978-0-393-00205-8.
  3. ^ Walter Bradford Cannon (1915). Bodily changes in pain, hunger, fear, and rage. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts. p. 211.
  4. ^ Jansen, A; Nguyen, X; Karpitsky, V; Mettenleiter, M (27 October 1995). "Central Command Neurons of the Sympathetic Nervous System: Basis of the Fight-or-Flight Response". Science Magazine. 5236 (270): 644–6. Bibcode:1995Sci...270..644J. doi:10.1126/science.270.5236.644. PMID 7570024. S2CID 38807605.
  5. ^ Walter Bradford Cannon (1915). Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage: An Account of Recent Researches into the Function of Emotional Excitement. Appleton-Century-Crofts.
  6. ^ "Adrenaline, Cortisol, Norepinephrine: The Three Major Stress Hormones, Explained". Huffington Post. April 19, 2014. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
  7. ^ Kwon, Diana. "Fight or Flight May Be in Our Bones". Scientific American. Retrieved 2020-06-22.
  8. ^ "Bone, not adrenaline, drives fight or flight response". phys.org. Retrieved 2020-06-22.
  9. ^ Gozhenko, A; Gurkalova, I.P.; Zukow, W; Kwasnik, Z (2009). PATHOLOGY – Theory. Medical Student's Library. Radom. pp. 270–275.


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