Human beings have been walking the earth for around 300,000 to 200,000 years. And it’s already a long way since we were vulnerable, as we were in the Paleolithic, walking through the African savannahs with our 150 centimeters of height and barely 49 to 50 kilograms, just for a snack from the large predators of the time such as large cats. size, hyenas and leopards.
And despite the clear physical disadvantage, a “mysterious” force helped us gain territorial supremacy and evolve into today’s modern man, like you and I who read this article.
Beyond the natural mystique of the human being, by imagining that a supernatural force has intervened to shape our destiny, without realizing that we were looking in the wrong place, it is not outside of us, but inside where we can find identity. of that shaping force of destinies; and I don’t mean the power of the Star Wars force but the power of emotions because we must understand that each emotion is a real chemical that impacts our nervous system and modifies it.
The reason is that Each emotion emerges as a guiding light to prepare us for an external or internal challenge, increasing our strength, sharpening our senses or distributing energy to survive high-stress situations; In this case I’m talking about adrenaline and cortisol. Phenomena that, manifested through the emotions of anger or fear, prepare us for fight or flight.
The person responsible is the HPA axis, or hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis ; This involves a group of glands that are part of the nervous and endocrine systems that are part of the fight or flight process. I will not go into details, but it is through this route that we obtain cortisol or the stress hormone; which is the “turbo” that will move us so as not to die trying to live.
As you can see, emotions have power, real power. They determine the life or death of an individual, because without them our beloved civilization would not exist. And many will think: “This is the result of our intelligence (or rather, neocortex)!” But it’s not like that. For example, the only reason we manage to survive at birth, since we are born “Premature” compared to other mammals, is for the care of our mothers and that attachment and love is nothing more than a recharged dose of oxytocin from the moment of pregnancy.
And it’s not just attachment, this hormone helps improve contractions during childbirth and reduce bleeding after birth, so this hormone saves our lives in many ways, and then it is transmuted into an emotional alchemical process (as I call it). I). We name it affection or love. And a hug, a caress or a kiss makes us feel that well-being of oxytocin and the reward system of our brain is put into action to repeat the experience and; This is how a bond is generated with that defenseless living being, to which we will give a name and dedicate part of our life and resources to help it grow and be autonomous.
And so we could continue listing infinite emotional dynamics that have a transcendental impact on our existence
Conclusions
Emotions are that force that guided our destiny for more than 200,000 years, that helped us avoid dangers, that gave us the strength to fight for our life and that of our tribe, they helped us care for and protect our vulnerable offspring; and without a doubt they are and will be the shapers of destinies, lives, civilizations and their understanding and management without a doubt is the key to the resolution of the main social and environmental conflicts that plague our humanity.
I am sure that the world crisis is not about resources, nor about ideologies… It is a crisis of emotional competencies, to live empathy, which would distance us from all violence and self-destructive egocentric behavior. And just as they shaped our destiny in the distant Paleolithic, in the Neolithic I hope that they will know how to trace the path that takes us away from the shadow of extinction that the modern era has left us as a legacy. Emotions are the force that create the destiny of all human beings on earth.
