How much of our 'states' and 'feelings' are... simply biology and chemistry?

[Guest guest]

[...]

 

> > Is Enlightenment too similarly Mental and Physical...

Physical and Mental?

 

 

 

Fear can be said to be a mental state, but...

 

 

 

http://www.reuniting.info/science/oxytocin_cortisol_love_fear

 

....

 

Various spiritual teachings, such as A Course in Miracles,[1] say that there are

only two fundamental emotions: love and fear. For the body, this is true. All

mammals, including humans, have two opposing hormonal responses to stimuli.

Threatening stimuli cause an increase of stress hormones - adrenaline and

cortisol. Soothing or reassuring stimuli cause an increase in oxytocin.

 

 

A sudden threat triggers the fight-or-flight response associated with

adrenaline. Adrenaline steps up heart rate, increases respiration, activates

muscles, and promotes hyper-alertness. Longer-term stress (from a few minutes to

days and weeks) increases a different stress hormone: cortisol. Cortisol, too,

makes us hyper-vigilant, but its evolutionary functions are quite different than

the temporary jolt of adrenaline designed to propel us out of danger.

 

 

....

 

As you can see from the chart above, nearly all the negative effects of

continued stress on the body and mind are related to elevated levels of

cortisol. These include: chronic anxiety and depression, emotional

over-reaction, negativity, weight gain, heart disease, high blood pressure, and

weakened immunity. Oxytocin, by countering cortisol, can ameliorate all of these

conditions - as well as some others (see list of recent discoveries at end of

article).

 

Numerous activities produce more oxytocin: meditation, yoga, exercise, massage,

caring for a pet, joining a support group, worshiping, and so forth. Yet one of

the most important avenues for decreasing stress and increasing levels of

oxytocin lies in our intimate relationships. In Love & Survival, Dr. Dean Ornish

points out that love and intimacy are such powerful determinants of health that

if they were produced in pill form, doctors who failed to prescribe them for

unhealthy patients would be guilty of malpractice.

 

....