Activity:
When you are under stress, some interesting things start to happen in your brain. This is a leftover effect from the days when humans regularly encountered life-threatening situations - like encounters with wild animals that might eat you. When you are under stress, the amygdala (a small, almond-shaped structure in your brain) sends out a signal that you are in danger. Your endocrine system releases cortisol and adrenalin, your heart rate and breathing rate increase, your digestive and immune systems are suppressed (after all, there's no point in digesting breakfast when you're about to be somebody else's lunch). Back in the caveman days, this response was helpful; it prepared the body to either run away or fight off the physical threat. The problem is, the amygdala, and the stress response it sets in motion, does not distinguish between real, physical threats and psychological threats. For the types of stress modern humans encounter, this response it not very helpful. In fact, over the long run, it can be extremely detrimental to your health.
Furthermore, in times of stress, the frontal lobe (the part of your brain responsible for critical thinking and reasoning) starts to shut down and does not function properly. So right at the point where you need it the most, your ability for critical thinking is reduced.
Assignment: Watch the videos below on the stress response, and discuss the content with your EF. Then answer the questions in the Google doc here. Make a copy of the document for yourself, then you can type in your answers and share it with your EF.
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