What is the fight or flight response primarily driven by?

What is the fight or flight response primarily driven by?

• A. Sympathetic
• B. Central nervous system
• C. Parasympathetic
• D. GAS

Answer: (D)

The fight-or-flight response is driven by the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system. When a threat is perceived, the amygdala signals the hypothalamus to activate the sympathetic nervous system and the adrenal medulla, releasing adrenaline and noradrenaline. This cascade boosts heart rate and blood pressure, opens airways, dilates pupils, releases glucose for quick energy, and redirects blood to the muscles—prepping the body to either confront or escape. The parasympathetic system later works to calm things down, returning the body toward rest. The central nervous system is involved in processing the threat, but the immediate surge that powers quick action comes from the sympathetic nervous system. General Adaptation Syndrome describes a longer-term pattern of stress responses, not this rapid, automatic reaction.

The fight-or-flight response is driven by the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system. When a threat is perceived, the amygdala signals the hypothalamus to activate the sympathetic nervous system and the adrenal medulla, releasing adrenaline and noradrenaline. This cascade boosts heart rate and blood pressure, opens airways, dilates pupils, releases glucose for quick energy, and redirects blood to the muscles—prepping the body to either confront or escape. The parasympathetic system later works to calm things down, returning the body toward rest. The central nervous system is involved in processing the threat, but the immediate surge that powers quick action comes from the sympathetic nervous system. General Adaptation Syndrome describes a longer-term pattern of stress responses, not this rapid, automatic reaction.