Almost as soon as man discovered the existence and function of the heart, he recognized that it was influenced by human companionship and love. Most of us have, at one time or another, felt our hearts beating rapidly when we are close to those we love, or occasionally, when we have been offended by others. Many of us have felt our hearts sin as if pressed by some crushing weight, after the loss of loved ones. In an endless variety of verbal and nonverbal dialogues with others, we have learned that human beings have varied, and at times profound, effect on the cardiac systems of other human beings and animals. #RyanPhillippe 1 of 7

Long before scientists began, with the assistance of sophisticated electronic monitoring devices, to catalogue the various ways that human companionship could alter the heart, physicians were already well aware of its influence. Indeed, the very antiquity and ubiquity of this knowledge has, unfortunately, led many of us to take it for granted. It has also served to obscure the fact that while we recognize the power of human contact, we do not understand it. The precise magnitude, generality, and (most importantly) the mechanism of the effects of human contact on the heart have not yet been carefully examined.  #RyanPhillippe 2 of 7

Still, it is now well known that a vast array of human interactions normally alters the heart in ways that are profound—even deadly. It would be remarkable if human contact did not influence our hearts. Like the air we breathe, it envelops every aspect of our lives. A simple visit to the doctor, arguments, reassurance and praise, Netflix and Chill, social gatherings, competitive sports, the loss of a friend or loved one, jealousies, humiliations, human triumphs, the cuddling of a child, the silent hand-holding between two lovers, the quiet comforting of a dying patient—all these affect the heart. Trauma is expressed not only as stand your ground or escape, but also as shutting down and failing to engage in the present.  #RyanPhillippe 3 of 7

A different level of brain activity is involved for each response: the mammalian stand your ground or quickly escape system, which is protective and keeps us from shutting down, and the caveman brain, which produces the collapse response. You can see the difference between these two systems at any big pet store. Kittens, puppies, and birds constantly play around, and when they are tired they huddle together, skin to skin. In contrast, the snakes and lizards lie motionless in the corners of their cages, unresponsive to the environment. This sort of immobilization, generated by the caveman brain, characterizes many chronically traumatized people, as opposed to the mammalian panic and rage that make more recent trauma survivors so frightened and frightening. #RyanPhillippe 4 of 7

Almost everyone knows what the quintessential stand your ground or quickly escape response, road rage, feels like: A sudden threat precipitates an intense impulse to move and attack. Danger turns off our social-engagement system, decreases our responsiveness to the human voice, and increases our sensitivity to threatening sounds. Yet for many people panic and rage are preferable to the opposite: shutting down and becoming dead to the World. Activating the stand your ground at least makes them feel energized. That is why so many abused and traumatized people feel fully alive in the face of actual danger, while they go numb in situations that are more complex but objectively safe, like birthday parties or family dinners. #RyanPhillippe 5 of 7

When fighting or running does not take care of the threat, we activate the last resort—the caveman brain, the official emergency system. This system is most likely to engage when we are physically immobilized, as when we are pinned down by an attacker or when a child has no escape from a terrifying caregiver. Collapse and disengagement are controlled by the DVC, an evolutionarily part of the parasympathetic nervous system that is associated with digestive symptoms like suddenly needing to use the restroom at this very moment, and nausea. It also slows down the heart and induces shallow breathing. Once this system takes over, we may no longer even register physical pain. #RyanPhillippe 6 of 7

If thieves came to you, if robbers in the night—oh, what a disaster awaits you—would they not steal only as much as they wanted? If grape pickers came to you, would they not leave a few good grapes? You should not march through the gates of my people in the day of their disaster, nor seize their wealth in the day of their disaster. You should not wait at the crossroads nor cut down their fugitives, nor hand over their survivors in the day of their trouble. The day of the LORD (Jehovah, Allah) is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head. (www.thedeedle.com) #RyanPhillippe 7 of 7