As humans, we may experience the symptoms of anxiety from two different pathways. One pathway is called the “High Road” and the other is called the “Low Road”. What makes them different is how our body and brain inputs and then outputs the information. Both pathways are important in identifying the source of your anxiety and using different strategies to manage the symptoms.
Now let’s bring in some brain-based understanding, identifying a few reasons we experience anxiety. Humans are amazing in so many ways, starting with the most evolved part of the brain, the “neocortex.” Wikipedia defines the neocortex as “a set of layers of the mammalian cerebral cortex involved in higher-ordered brain functions such as sensory perception, cognition, generation of motor commands, spatial reasoning, and language.” The “cerebral cortex” occupies 90% of the neocortex.
It is our cerebral cortex that provides humans with the capacity to build bridges, skyscrapers, and other amazing innovations. Yet it is also the cortex that causes so much of our anxiety. In the cortex's forebrain, nestled in the forehead region of the brain, is the “prefrontal cortex.” The prefrontal cortex is the powerhouse of our brain, directing our executive functioning, such as planning, decision-making, and memory. The prefrontal cortex can be both a gift and a curse, depending on what it is focusing on. It helps us to plan, build, navigate risk, and organize our lives. Unfortunately, it can also cause misery and set a precedent for over planning, ruminating, trying to control things outside of our control, over predicting, and over-evaluating risk, which can lead to psychological inflexibility. CBT and ACT are very helpful in managing these overthinking symptoms.
Both high road and low road systems activate the fight, flight, or freeze response. The amygdala is the brain’s alarm system, sitting in the midbrain, essential for survival. This alarm system bypasses our thinking brain and alerts the body to take immediate action. Both pathways use the cortex’s sensory system (see, hear, smell, touch, and taste), evaluating incoming information. The high road anxiety has a neurological pathway from the thalamus though the cortex to the amygdala, producing an anxiety response. This high road system appraises the world and threats continuously. Worry, social anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms often come from the high road pathway.
The low road anxiety travels directly from the thalamus to the amygdala. The purpose of the low road pathway is to act without thinking. This is an intense and reflexive reaction. For example, you will want to quickly avert the spider rappelling in front of you before your high road brain determines whether it is venomous. The high road brain will then kick in after the immediate threat has passed and evaluate the real risk. Often, panic symptoms, phobias, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms come from cuing the fast-acting amygdala.
It is important to begin to become aware of the cognitive processing that may lead to some anxiety, identifying the body-based sensations, and becoming aware of the behaviors that are used to manage your symptoms. 4anXiety: 4 goals, 4 weeks, and 4 daily steps workbook can help guide you through identifying and understanding these elements and learn practical solutions to manage the symptoms, whether high road or low road..
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