The Role of the Amygdala in Human Behavior and Emotion

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsFunctionWhat Feelings Does the Amygdala Control?What Can Damage the Amygdala?Response to TriggersCalming the Amygdala

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Function

What Feelings Does the Amygdala Control?

What Can Damage the Amygdala?

Response to Triggers

Calming the Amygdala

Close

The amygdala is a region of the brain that is involved in processingemotions, particularly fear. While emotions are not facts, they are one way that our brain keeps us safe and aware of our surroundings. For example, fear and anxiety exist to alert us of potential threats.

Since our emotions inform us about our environment, they impact behavior. Whenemotions serve as a warningof potential danger, we can act to protect ourselves. At the same time, our emotions do not always give us accurate information about threats and can cause anxiety and stress when we are not actually unsafe.

Learn more about the role of the amygdala in how we feel and behave.

What Is the Main Function of the Amygdala?

According toShaheen E. Lakhan, MD, PhD, FAAN, a neurologist and chief medical officer of Click Therapeutics in New York, the amygdala is a “tiny little almond-shaped structure [that] is responsible for all that is emotion—largelyfear, anger, pleasure, and anxiety.”

While amygdala responses can alert us when we are unsafe or need to take steps to manage stress, the amygdala can also become overactive in trauma survivors, contributing to symptoms ofpost-traumatic stress disorder.Additionally, research shows that the amygdala plays a role in mood disorders, includingmajor depressive disorder.

Emotional responses, including fear, ignite behavioral responses.

The amygdala is involved in the regulation of anxiety, aggression, stress responses, memories tied to emotions, and social cognition. It is involved in activating thefight or flightresponse, impacting how we react to potentially dangerous situations.

While this is adaptive and helps us stay safe, it can become dysregulated and lead to anoveractiveresponse. Those with an overactive amygdala may feel these responses acting up even when they are not in danger. This can be stressful and exhausting.

Since the amygdala is connected to emotional memories as well as current emotions, it is involved inflashbulb memories, or vivid, detailed memories of surprising and emotionally significant events or historical moments.

Fawning: What to Know About the People-Pleasing Trauma Response

It is possible to sustain irreversible brain damage. However, even if your amygdala is damaged, you may be able to recover, especially with support and treatment. According to Dr. Lakhan, “The brain has a remarkable capacity for compensating and reorganizing called neuroplasticity.”Neuroplasticityis our nervous system’s ability to adjust and change based on damage or need.

For example, if you experience a stroke, the brain can reorganize itself and rearrange neural pathways to compensate and allow functioning despite the damage.

What Happens When the Amygdala Is Activated?

By engaging theautonomic nervous system, the amygdala prepares you to protect yourself and stay safe. It allows you to react quickly to a perceived threat. For example, if an animal attacks you, and you need to escape, this response can ensure that you have the energy and muscle power to run away. If you are unable to get away, this response routes your resources into being able to fight off the threat.

When we perceive a threat, the amygdala kicks in to activate our body’s stress response.—SHAHEEN E. LAKHAN, MD, PHD, FAAN, NEUROLOGIST

When we perceive a threat, the amygdala kicks in to activate our body’s stress response.

—SHAHEEN E. LAKHAN, MD, PHD, FAAN, NEUROLOGIST

After the threat is gone, or after you realize that there was no threat to begin with, the amygdala is meant to power back down with the help of your frontal lobe. Dr. Lakhan says, “There are mechanisms to dampen this response so that you are not in a constant state of anxiety. The frontal part of your brain actually puts the brakes on the amygdala and says basically, there are no more pressing things.”

However, for some, the frontal lobe does not effectively shut down the amygdala’s triggered state. As noted previously, this can occur following trauma. If you live in a chronically stressful or traumatic state, the amygdala may remain activated long-term out of necessity. When you must always be on alert for danger, the amygdala can switch on and not switch off in an effort to ensure your survival. While this can keep you safe in the moment, it wears you down over time.

According to Dr. Lakhan, when the “cognitive-emotional brain circuit” (or the connection between the amygdala and other parts of the brain that regulate its activation) does not properly deactivate the amygdala, it can cause depressive and anxious symptoms.

Amygdala Hijack and the Fight or Flight Response

How Can I Calm My Amygdala?

The good news is, even if the amygdala becomes overactive in response to trauma or damage, it is possible to reverse these effects. “The amygdala can be trained," Dr. Lakhan says. “Because the brain interacts with a couple key other brain regions and forms what are known as brain circuits, the best exercise actually strengthens these circuits.”

Basically, we can strengthen the connection between the amygdala and frontal lobe to allow de-escalation.

Dr. Lakhan shares the following tips for deactivating your amygdala and re-engaging your frontal lobe:

What to Know About Mindfulness Meditation

5 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Steimer T. The biology of fear- and anxiety-related behaviors.Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience. 2002;4(3):231-249.Nicholson AA, Rabellino D, Densmore M, et al.The neurobiology of emotion regulation in posttraumatic stress disorder: Amygdala downregulation via real‐time fMRI neurofeedback.Hum Brain Mapp. 2017;38(1):541-560.Ruiz NAL, Del Ángel DS, Olguín HJ, Silva ML. Neuroprogression: the hidden mechanism of depression. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2018 Oct 30;14:2837-2845. doi: 10.2147/NDT.S177973. PMID: 30464468; PMCID: PMC6214587.AbuHasan Q, Reddy V, Siddiqui W.Neuroanatomy, amygdala. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Puderbaugh M, Emmady PD. Neuroplasticity. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.

5 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Steimer T. The biology of fear- and anxiety-related behaviors.Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience. 2002;4(3):231-249.Nicholson AA, Rabellino D, Densmore M, et al.The neurobiology of emotion regulation in posttraumatic stress disorder: Amygdala downregulation via real‐time fMRI neurofeedback.Hum Brain Mapp. 2017;38(1):541-560.Ruiz NAL, Del Ángel DS, Olguín HJ, Silva ML. Neuroprogression: the hidden mechanism of depression. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2018 Oct 30;14:2837-2845. doi: 10.2147/NDT.S177973. PMID: 30464468; PMCID: PMC6214587.AbuHasan Q, Reddy V, Siddiqui W.Neuroanatomy, amygdala. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Puderbaugh M, Emmady PD. Neuroplasticity. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Steimer T. The biology of fear- and anxiety-related behaviors.Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience. 2002;4(3):231-249.Nicholson AA, Rabellino D, Densmore M, et al.The neurobiology of emotion regulation in posttraumatic stress disorder: Amygdala downregulation via real‐time fMRI neurofeedback.Hum Brain Mapp. 2017;38(1):541-560.Ruiz NAL, Del Ángel DS, Olguín HJ, Silva ML. Neuroprogression: the hidden mechanism of depression. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2018 Oct 30;14:2837-2845. doi: 10.2147/NDT.S177973. PMID: 30464468; PMCID: PMC6214587.AbuHasan Q, Reddy V, Siddiqui W.Neuroanatomy, amygdala. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.Puderbaugh M, Emmady PD. Neuroplasticity. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.

Steimer T. The biology of fear- and anxiety-related behaviors.Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience. 2002;4(3):231-249.

Nicholson AA, Rabellino D, Densmore M, et al.The neurobiology of emotion regulation in posttraumatic stress disorder: Amygdala downregulation via real‐time fMRI neurofeedback.Hum Brain Mapp. 2017;38(1):541-560.

Ruiz NAL, Del Ángel DS, Olguín HJ, Silva ML. Neuroprogression: the hidden mechanism of depression. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2018 Oct 30;14:2837-2845. doi: 10.2147/NDT.S177973. PMID: 30464468; PMCID: PMC6214587.

AbuHasan Q, Reddy V, Siddiqui W.Neuroanatomy, amygdala. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.

Puderbaugh M, Emmady PD. Neuroplasticity. In:StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023.

Meet Our Review Board

Share Feedback

Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit

What is your feedback?