Fight, flight, or freeze, also known as acute stress response, is a biological survival instinct for difficult situations and plays a critical role on how we deal with stress. Adrenaline and nor-adrenaline hormones are released when the body is stress causing increased heart rates, blood pressure, and breathing. By preparing yourself for the situation emotionally, mentally, and/or physically, it allows you to respond more calmly to the situation therefore response can differ on the individual depending on their preparation.
The “fight or flight response” was first described by Walter Cannon in the 1920s. The phrase “fight or flight” is more commonly used and taught at schools. However, the “freeze response” was added in 2002 to represent situations too traumatic to face.
The fight response is a reaction your body takes when it wants to control the situation or scare the situation away. The fight response can be useful to set boundaries, pushing yourself, or protect loved ones. But the fight response can also have negative impacts on human relationships and your reputation because you can be seen as aggressive or not a team player. Typical everyday situations that displays a fight response is someone who wants to take charge of a project, poke holes in your presentations, or trying to negotiate a better deal.
Common signs of fight responses are:
The flight response is a reaction to run away from the situation. A good phrase for the flight response can be “live to fight another day.” The flight response helps people avoid confrontation and conflicts as a result the person can be portrayed as a “pushover” or “coward.” In the typical day to day situation, a flight response can be not pushing back when they have too much on their plate or a “Yes” person.
Common signs of flight responses are:
The freeze response is mainly a reaction to traumatic events where a person will feels hopeless and weak. Common and frequent display of a freeze response is someone who is about to get hit by a moving object such as a car, bike, person, or ball. People with PTSD from war or were robbed are more serious cases of the freeze response and should consult a professional.
Common signs of freeze responses are:
