Wired for Alarm and Freeze

The HPA axis exists in a state of permanent dysregulation. Negative feedback loops

have become hypersensitized. The result is a chronically low baseline of cortisol.

Because of this, circulating adrenaline remains in the system without being neutralized.

The organism stays in biological high alert. Sustained stress leads to atrophy of

the hippocampus. The capacity to timestamp memories is lost. Simultaneously,

the amygdala shows neural hypertrophy. The alarm system physically extends. The ventromedial prefrontal

cortex loses tissue density. The physical connection between logic and emotion is

severed when the threshold is breached. The periot-onto gray activates the freeze response.