Unleashing the thrill & adrenaline rush

Written by: NANCY M. GOR CLASS OF 2023

THE ADVENTURE ADRENALINE

Adventure sports, thrilling activities are nowadays the new “bucket list “ add on for many of us.

Well with adventure, adrenaline rush goes hand in hand. An adventure trip is a lot more than just the adrenaline rush. It’s the one thing you mind can benefit the most. Even the thought of an adventure trip can make us so happy! Imagine being on one. It’s the perfect kind of exercise our brain needs. In this fast-paced world, our minds are running faster than us. They need to take a break too.

The thrilling experiences such as bungee jumping, skydiving, white-water rafting, edge walking, highlining , all these exciting, fascinating and challenging creates a adrenaline rush which can be exciting, addictive, exhilarating and fearful too.

The “swim with the dolphins, safari ride in a dessert, go karting, scuba or deep diving, skateboarding driving sports bike,rides in amusement park or even a car on a high speed can give us that thrills !

What is adrenaline rush ?

Ever wondered what’s that rapid chill filled with energy,excitement, fear, euphoria all at once ? You start to breathe quickly and your start sweating , body begins to tremble? This roller coaster experience is what we call a Adrenaline rush.

It’s a physiological response which while engaging in the adventurous activities our brain perceives them as potentially dangerous and our body’s flight-or-fight response is activated. As a result our adrenal gland releases adrenaline (epinephrine) , a hormone released in bloodstream for stressful situations by increasing heart rate, blood pressure, stimulating glucose levels, sweating and trembling. These feelings and sensations are part physiological natural responses of human body.

The effects on our energy levels, focus, sense of alertness , not only it has positive impact on our mood but also cognitive abilities.

All In all this hormone as physical, emotional, psychological effects on our body.

BENEFITS OF ADVENTUROUS & THRILLING ACTIVITIES

“It’s not for the faint hearted “- you must have come across this thread before many times. Like two sides of a coin this activities have it’s own pros and cons. Many of us wants to embrace this sports while some of us don’t even want to indulge ourselves into such risky adventures.

This experiences are not only fun and thrilling but affects the health and body positively.

Numerous benefits such as boost in energy levels, increased fitness level, a sense of accomplishment with new experiences, build up on confidence and self esteem. Not only it’s a great way of having fun but also it helps you escape from your day to day routine. With more adrenaline flowing there’s improvement in your decision making process, ability to work with others more emotionally stability.

According to Murray-Prior, all the symptoms of irrational fear are similar. It starts with delay, nervous laughs, constant talking and endless questions. Then reality hits, legs go weak, palms sweat, and it’s impossible to stand straight. The instant they leave the edge is followed by a panicked frozen moment, a second of free-fall, and the dreaded, “Am I falling to my death?” pondering. “Gradually and smoothly, they slow down and realize, ‘I’m OK! I’m alive!’, which then turns into victorious screams,” he adds.

Adventures are often undertaken to create a psychological arousal or in order to achieve a greater goal says Wikipedia.

While such experiences are always quoted as dangerous, traumatic, possibly fatal even with safety precautions putting life in unnecessary danger just for recreational purposes.

There was recently case stating a rarest complication of bungee jumping and other recreational activities is venous stasis and Hemorrhage due to venous engorgement.

NEUROSCIENCE OF THRILL SEEKING

The Neurochemistry in adventurous or thrill seeking situ-which almost poses some kind of danger or fear whether real or perceived starts with the amygdala.

As the situations or sports becomes imminent our amygdala (almond shaped structure in our limbic system of brain) registers that risk, which releases a combination of dopamine, adrenaline, endorphins and other hormones in order to prepare our body for the experience. Following this there’s a sense of immense pleasure and reward, endless euphoria and a craving for doing it again.

Adrenaline junkies- Superheroes of adventures

It’s a phrase used to describe the people who live for the thrills, intense sensations, potentially dangerous lines of work (firefighters, emergency rescue teams), extreme sports which all generates adrenaline rush.

While many studies have shown Risk taking has a strong biological and genetic component involved. Because of our early ancestors relied on hunting for survival, meant that those prone to risk-taking has a better passing down.

But at the end not all of us can be adrenaline junkies, the spectrum states that only few among us are junkies or completely risk averse rest all of us are somewhere in between.

The adrenaline junkies owns a negative effects of raised adrenaline rush on them. Long term exposure to hormones are linked with chronic stress, heart diseases, diabetes and depression.

Concluding that in the end it’s all about exploring and expanding our horizons, exploring new places, embracing new experiences, awareness and gaining new perspectives and escaping our daily lives it’s necessary to have that adrenaline rush once in a while as the famous slang states

“ You Only Live Once “.