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Ten seconds

9:38 am Sunday, 23rd September, 2007

Imagine if you had ten seconds extra. Things that happened in your life can be changed by ten seconds in such a dramatic effect that your whole future changes.
Things you've said when you've jumped in might not have been said if you took ten seconds longer to think.
Everyone has a 'fight or flight' response built into their brain. It's what has ensured our survival as a species. The Dodo didnt have one as it existed in an environment with no natural predators so it didn't perceive danger. That's what ultimately lead to its extinction. they were easy to walk up to, smack over the head, pluck and eat.
We have one. Since time began its what has made us decide that a Sabre-Toothed Tiger isn't something we need to hang around to see. It tells us to run like fuck!
Here's how it works:
When a danger signal is relayed from the sensorycortex of the brain through the thalamus to the brain stem, that route ofsignalling increases the rate of noradrenergic activity in the locus ceruleus,and the person becomes alert. Atthe same time, shit loads of catecholamines at neuroreceptor sites give you areliance on spontaneous and intuitive behaviours often related to combat orescape….fight or flight.
If the brain says danger, the locus ceruleusactivates the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system. This activation is associated with specific physiological actions in the system,both directly and indirectly through the release of adrenaline and to a lesserextent norepinephrine from the medulla of the adrenal glands.
The release istriggered by acetylcholine released from preganglionic sympathetic nerves
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The other major player in the acute stressresponse is the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis. This has only been around in the human brain for the last 100,000 or so years. it's this little bugger that makes us think. It can over ride the fight or flight and make us re-evaluate what we're faced with. In effect its this bit that gives us ten seconds.
Its no good whatsoever if you're faced with a Sabre-Toothed Tiger. You really don't want to be hanging around thinking 'hmmmm......it looks quite dangerous......but is it really?' You want to be running like Forrest Gump!
What its good for is giving you a breather to prevent rash decisions. You now when someone really pisses you off? You can get so mad that you're starting to shake? Your heart rate goes up, breathing becomes rapid and shallow? Thats the fight or flight thing.
Ten seconds. Blank your mind. The only danger is someone saying something that questions your own perception of yourself which in turn questions your very existence. Its not really life threatening but that primitive response doesn't distinguish. It makes you act irrationally. Just breathe and take ten seconds. You'll be surprised at how better equipped you are to answer.




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try walking a mile in your enemies shoes....at the end of the day you have new shoes and a head start on him


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