How fear memory is formed in the brain

[Eldorado]

""It has been hypothesized that fear memory is formed by strengthening the connections between the hippocampus and amygdala," said Jun-Hyeong Cho, an assistant professor in the Department of Molecular, Cell and Systems Biology and the study's lead author. "Experimental evidence, however, has been weak.

"Our study now demonstrates for the first time that the formation of fear memory associated with a context indeed involves the strengthening of the connections between the hippocampus and amygdala."

"According to Cho, weakening these connections could erase the fear memory.

""Our study, therefore, also provides insights into developing therapeutic strategies to suppress maladaptive fear memories in post-traumatic stress disorder patients," he said."

Full article at EurekAlert: https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-03/uoc--haf031120.php

"Encoding of contextual fear memory in hippocampal–amygdala circuit"

Study at Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-15121-2

[Susanc241]

11 hours ago, Tuco's Gas said:

Every type of memory or learned skill or habit is caused by stronger neural connections.

Think of a field of dry grass that you walk across every day on your way to work.

You eventually wear a path in the grass.

It thus becomes the easiest and most used connection between your home and work. 

Neural connections caused by neurotransmitter firing between brain cells works much the same way.

The more that neural path is used the deeper it gets and then is accessed more frequently when you're faced with decisions.

It's also how addictions are formed.

Peace.

I would like to add to this excellent explanation, that from my own experiences and observations, these neural pathways become so intrenched that, metaphorically, your feet are on this path before you have time to realise there was ever a choice.  It is hard to impossible to back up or turn around and change your route.  This is the bane of anyone with phobias or phobic anxieties.

[qunaquna]

23 hours ago, Tuco's Gas said:

Every type of memory or learned skill or habit is caused by stronger neural connections.

Think of a field of dry grass that you walk across every day on your way to work.

You eventually wear a path in the grass.

It thus becomes the easiest and most used connection between your home and work. 

Neural connections caused by neurotransmitter firing between brain cells works much the same way.

The more that neural path is used the deeper it gets and then is accessed more frequently when you're faced with decisions.

It's also how addictions are formed.

Peace.

As someone who suffered panic attacks daily for 7years or so I can "confirm" that on a subjective level. Once you fall into habit of it it's hard to break the cycle. It's such a shame so many people suffer from panic and anxiety disorders when the solutions is rather simple, yet very hard to achieve, you simply go where you wanted to go until you wear that path in the grass. And it's not like that path never existed, you just need to wear it in good again.

Or simply put, you have to face your fears daily until they wear out. 

Now that I've overcome the panic, about 8 years since my last attack or so, it's really a strange feeling that i can't even remember how they felt despite them ruling and ruining my life for so long. Just as i couldn't remember how it felt to be normal while i had them. It probably has to do with those fear neural paths being destroyed. 

Don't mind my oversimplification of the matter. 

Edited March 15, 2020 by qunaquna