Dr. Arash Javanbakt

And our fear circuitry has evolved to basically prepare us to the conditions of fight and flight.

Back in the time 50,000 years ago, the threats were natural disasters, falling rocks, predators, and other humans who were there to kill us.

But the confusion here is within the modern life environment, because basically I say the software has evolved extremely fast and the hardware has not.

So we react to situations of perceived threat in the modern life the way we would react to these situations 50,000 years ago.

Example, let's say I am giving a public speech, and I'm scared, and I'm worried I may be judged, and my heart is pounding in my throat, and I'm short of breath, and my hands are sweating, and it is not helping me.

It sounds stupid that the system which has evolved to help us and serve us is now working against us.

But if you put it in the evolutionary perspective and context, it's less confusing.

So 50,000 years ago, if I'm among my tribe mates and they don't like me, chances are high in a matter of minutes, one of us are dead or I'm exiled or seriously injured.

So I need that fight and flight system to work.

And that's the feeling we feel inside of our chest and inside of our guts and stomach.

That's true that fear and anxiety, mostly anticipatory anxiety, is worse than what it really is.

And a lot of us overshoot, especially more anxious people, overshoot for threat detection.

We have a tendency to catastrophize.

Like right before this, I was talking to a friend who has a company with...

like 30, 40 employees.

And he's talking about some of the challenges, some challenges at work.

And then he goes, well, at worst I can have my own solo practice and work.

Well, that was a big jump from going from 30 employees to, oh, I will be able to function as one person after losing all of these.

So we do overshoot.

And a lot of times I tell people, how about you look back and see on average in the past, every time you worried about something, how much you overshot.