/Video/The Science of Emotion Regulation: How Our Brains Process Emotions

The Science of Emotion Regulation: How Our Brains Process Emotions

Have you ever walked into a room and suddenly felt sad or anxious without knowing why, even when no one was around? Your brain has the ability to trigger powerful emotions that you may not consciously understand. This is the topic Dr. Tracey Marks, an American psychiatrist, will address in the first video of her series on emotions and emotion regulation on her channel, Dr. Tracey Marks, which has nearly 1.8 million subscribers.

What Are Emotions?

Emotions drive us to act and communicate with one another. Body language and facial expressions reflect the emotions we feel. Often, facial expressions or tone of voice convey a message more powerfully than the words we use. Emotions also provide information about our surroundings. You might have a gut feeling that something is wrong in a certain situation.

The Science of Emotions

Several brain regions are involved in generating and processing emotions. To simplify, we will discuss three key areas, especially when we experience stress and trauma: the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex.

  • Amygdala: The emotional alarm structure that helps us react quickly to danger.
  • Hippocampus: Involved in encoding and consolidating emotional memories, linking emotions to context.
  • Prefrontal Cortex: Regulates emotional responses by evaluating the situation and providing appropriate reactions.

Emotional Turmoil: When Things Go Awry

When you face adverse situations early in life, the amygdala may become overactive, dominating over the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. This can lead to emotional responses that feel uncontrollable. Even if you do not have PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), you can still experience stressful situations that overwhelm you with emotions. Chronic stress can elevate cortisol levels, a harmful hormone for the brain, leading to the shrinkage of the hippocampus.

The good news is that the hippocampus is flexible. It is not made of plastic but can change shape. You can stimulate neurogenesis (the growth of new neurons) in the hippocampus and other brain areas through exercise, intermittent fasting, and a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Psychology and learning new skills are also great ways to promote neurogenesis.

Dr. Tracey Marks promises to continue exploring different aspects of emotions and emotion regulation in upcoming videos in this series.

The content has been adapted from the video “The Science of Emotion Regulation: How Our Brain Processes Emotions” on the Dr. Tracey Marks channel. You can select Vietnamese subtitles to fully understand this information.

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