Understanding your nerves

The old English word faer meant 'sudden danger’. Fear is what we experience when something unpleasant or dangerous is happening to us; without any conscious effort our body immediately reacts by producing sensations which are often as unpleasant as the cause. The heart beats faster, blood is shifted from other areas of the body to the limb muscles and to the brain, encouraging quick thinking and vigorous activity. Adrenalin and related chemicals which are released-into the bloodstream provide additional strength, stamina and the ability to respond rapidly. These chemicals help soldiers to survive in battle, athletes to perform better and all individuals to respond more effectively when faced with dangerous situations.

There are people who actually enjoy these sensations, finding them exciting and stimulating, and they frequently seek a career or hobby where there is an element of danger, indulging in hair-raising activities in the name of adventure, exploration or sport. (Think bungee-jumping, white-water rafting and even some of the gut-wrenching rides found in amusement parks.)

Most of us are ashamed to admit that we might be nervous or fearful, since courage has always been considered to be a superior virtue and from childhood we are told to be brave and not show our fears. There can be a backlash, though, because some children - particularly boys - are so conditioned to be 'brave’ that they become over-confident, foolhardy and accident-prone.

Many of the world's great heroes killed in battle might have lived to fight another day if they had been less fearless and more cautious. At the Battle of Trafalgar, Lord Nelson insisted on wearing all his medals and decorations so that the enemy could identify and marvel at the bold British admiral ... they made a great target for a French sniper, and the man who in his youth had remarked, Tear, what is that?' returned to his homeland pickled in a keg of brandy.

Our forebears had good reason to be fearful. In order to survive it was necessary for people to be continually on the alert for danger. Marauding tribes and dangerous animals on the prowl were a constant threat when you had only a club for a weapon and the sparse shelter of a cave to retreat into. When nger threatened, these people, their survival at risk, would e 'tensed up' and ready for action - to stand and fight or to run for their lives.

Over the centuries, as we have become more or less civilised, survival has become easier and most of the earlier dangers have disappeared. Of course, modern humanity has its problems - mainly of our own making - but apart from those people for whom danger is a normal way of life, either in their profession or for entertainment, most of us are fairly assured of our survival to a ripe old age, bar accident or illness. The danger response is not now a necessary daily part of our bodily functions, so when it does occur it is likely to have longer-lasting disturbing effects. The cave people, victorious in battle or having escaped from a woolly mammoth or a sabre-tooth tiger for the umpteenth time, would relax and sleep by the fire, forgetting their nerve-racking experience until the next time. Nowadays, the emotional consequences of a bad shock or accident will persist for much longer, and being unused to such experiences we resent the effect they have on our well-being.

A certain amount of fear is healthy and it prevents us from risking ourselves in dangerous situations. There are, however, many of us who because of our personalities are more prone to fear than others. We can all understand being terrified when onfronted with a dangerous situation, though in these days, apart from being attacked by a mugger or injured in a car accident, life isn't all that dangerous. If we are faced with a life-threatening situation, however, the 'flight or fight* response that our cave people experienced is perfectly normal. In fact, it is imperative that our automatic system goes into overdrive in order that we may tackle the emergency or retreat from the scene as quickly as possible.

But sometimes we get the wrong signals. A sudden surge of fear, even when no danger exists, causes bodily changes. Adrenalin pours into the system, the body prepares itself for action ... but no action follows. If the nervous energy could be discharged, the body would settle down. But when this does not happen there is physiological confusion. I'm sure you recognise the sensations: racing heart, dry mouth, clammy hands, overbreathing, dizziness, a 'tight band round the head', vision disturbance, a 'lump' in the throat and buzzing in the ears. The feelings build up until they seem unbearable and the sufferer, clinging to the nearest static object to support her 'jelly legs', thinks, 'I can't stand it. My system won't take any more. I'll have a heart attack, a stroke, a burst blood vessel. I'll drop down dead, I know I will….’

This is the classic description of a panic attack as experienced by Jane in the previous chapter. Unfortunately the word 'panic' suggests a loss of control resulting in the person screaming and running round in circles. The usual panic attack sufferer does not behave like this. She (or he) feels overcome by feelings of acute fear, but most shrink at the thought of drawing attention to themselves. The struggle to appear calm increases the tension and terror as they fight to conceal their distress. The feelings build up until they seem unbearable and the sufferer, clinging to the nearest static object for support, waits for some dreadful climax. There is no climax. The sensations can only reach a certain level and then they subside.

This does not mean that there are no after-effects of such an experience; a severe panic attack can leave you in a highly sensitised state, weak and exhausted, but it cannot damage you, either physically or mentally.



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