ROAD RAGE , WHERE AMYGDALA TAKES OVER FROM THE NEOCORTEX , IMMATURITY BEHIND THE WHEEL , FALSE CONCEPT OF WINNER AND LOSER - CAPT AJIT VADAKAYIL
Recently I gave a lift to one of my friends. He took out my Bruyere pipe from the dash board ( which I used quarter century ago) and asked me what tobacco I use.
I said “ I used to smoke Captain Black’s flavoured tobacco before. But now this pipe is NOT for smoking, but to act as a pacifier when I feel road rage consuming me .
It always works PUFF PUFF “.
I am sure he did NOT believe me for he had a nice laugh , about an old guy with a pacifier..
Well I was NOT joking. I was dead serious.
Just last week I started thinking about road rage when I flew into an instant rage from inside my stationary car.
This means motion , “need for speed” etc had nothing to do with it.
It was about somebody virtually assaulting my personal space with a blaring horn. It had to do with my reptilian instincts , and that meant my amygdala was involved.
I had stopped at a cart vendor to buy some mangoes. In order that my wife does NOT have to get out of the car in a drizzle, I stopped ahead of a parked car and then reversed leaving about 4 feet space from my rear bumper to the other car’s front bumper.
Pretty soon I heard a honk and this meant that the driver of the car astern of me was trying to attract my attention. When I looked back he signaled using his hand to move ahead so that he can take his car off on to the road.
But I noticed that he had 30 feet of free space behind his car.
My wife knew that if the man honks again, I will step out of my car to “bell the bad cat”. So she held on for dear life , to my arm .
The guy honked again—this time multiple honks with very little space between them.
I just shook of my wife’s clutch and got off the car.
A guy bigger than me , probably 4 years younger with a HUGE handlebar mustache was in the driver’s seat of a SUV —one of the military colonel types by his golf cap and body language.
So I asked him “ What is your problem , buddy?”
He tells me “ Move your car ahead , I need to take out my car . You parked in front of me . I parked here first . So you have to move your car “.
I asked him “ Are you aware that you have 30 feet space behind your car?’
Our man responds “ I do NOT reverse my car once I come out of my house “.
My first impulse was to grab him by his huge whiskers— but then he had grey hair and looked respectable . More over my wife was keeping a hawk’s eye using the rear view mirror .
So I quickly removed his SUV keys.
Then I told him “ I have just decided to teach you a lesson . If you want you can step out and snatch the keys from my back pocket . Let us rough it out maan , come on ” – I egged him on .
The guy started threatening me with dire consequences - he will do this , he will do that, he wants my home address-- BLAH BLAH .
So I showed him my tattoo and said “ Ask the first policeman you meet about a guy with obscene tattooed biceps and, a grey pirate beard — they will bring you to my home themselves in the police jeep . This is my neck of the woods— apnaich mohalla hai“.
Then I handed back his keys and advised him --
“ You must cut short your handle bar moustache to size. You are what I call small caliber big bore. If you have such a terror invoking handle bar moustache, make sure you have the physical capability and guts to back it up . Now buzz off by reversing your car, before I drag you by your nostrils out of your car and kick your ass . FU#K OFF YOU DRIPPIN’ C#NT !”.
When I came back to my car, mE wife gave me a piece of her mind . ( Don’t ask me how many pieces OK? ) She had heard everything as her sense of hearing is very sharp.
She asked me “ What if that big guy had thrown a punch ?”
I did NOT reply.
But , you see , IF is a very pregnant word. IF your auntie had balls she could be your uncle, right?.
Well, I am NOT proud of that incident at all.
But then I forced a LORD FU#KLAND type of guy to use the reverse gear of his car. And that was a good deed , in mE book.
Road rage is an uncontrolled aggressive response by a driver of an road automobile .
Such behavior usually includes rude and obscene gestures, loud verbal insults, deliberately driving in an unsafe or threatening manner, or making retribution threats .
Road rage can lead to altercations, physical assaults, and deliberate collisions that result in injuries and even death.
The term road rage was coined in USA in 1988.
Road rage fuelled behavior includes aggressive driving -- sudden acceleration, braking, close tailgating , cutting off , deliberately preventing overtaking , flashing head lights , sounding horn excessive , showing the “up yours” middle finger etc – in an attempt to “take on “ the other driver.
Some road rage consumed drivers exit their car to start a physical confrontation—some even strike or kick the other car with an assault object.
Remember once you exit your car , and there are witnesses to your overly aggressive behavior you may lose your driving license, spend some time in jail or get sued heavily for assault.
Most of such drivers ( 96% ) and young ( less than 35 ) which shows the role of testesterone in road rage.
Alcohol has been associated when women are involved in road rage incidents.
Despite a clear evidence of a hormone disorder defining "Road Rage" as a medical disorder will allow criminals to plead “ not guilty “ and provide them an excuse to shrug off.
Below: The raging bull? , the X Box warrior !
A feeling of revenge and retribution , “to teach a lesson” to a guy who has “cut you off “ is always involved in road rage . Some delusional ones even feel that they have been chosen to “bell this bad cat”.
One of the best way to avoid becoming a victim of "Road Rage" is to avoid responding and avoid making eye-contact. Often it so transpires that what seems to be harassment may be a simple innocent mistake .
Never allow driving to become a competition. Many times a higher priced car owner gets “humiliated” just because an inferior car with a better driver gets ahead of you.
Excessive speed with poor braking causes more than 40% of all fatal road motor vehicle crashes.
The energy released in a collision at 60 kms per hour is 200% greater than at 40 kms per hour , even though the speed has increased by only by 50%.
If you show aggressive anger , you must expect the other driver to give back as good as he got from you. So it is simple- avoid making other drivers angry by avoiding anger yourself.
Safe driving is all about good anticipation.
There are many low IQ drivers on the road—remember this. He is NOT busting your balls. He is just trying to reach his destinations using his limited cerebral faculty.
Never drive more than three hours without a short break. This allows some locked up stresses to be released.
Always signal well in advance when changing lanes. Do NOT use your horn excessively to irritate .
Cooperate and don't compete on the road.
Don't take another's actions personally. Everybody makes mistakes, and remember some drivers have poor intelligence.
Lock your doors – to prevent road rage consumed drivers from assaulting you or snatching away your keys or specs .
Remember , if you carry a weapon in your car, you will be forced to use it.
Road rage is a dangerous phenomenon that can happen to anyone, either as a perpetrator or a victim. It will be too late to regret once the situation has gone out of control.
Driving a car in heavy chaotic traffic is stressful , especially in India where people do NOT have road sense and a cat or a dog can pop up from any corner.
It is inherently dangerous even if you are a very safe and level headed driver , as there are a lot different variables that you can't predict .
Someone challenges your manhood and you are forced to respond. You do NOT get angry with stationary trees which have popped up on your path, right?
The car is NOT the place to exhibit vigilante behavior and teach lesser erring mortals a lesson..
For many of you, with expensive are powerful cars , you imagine that you car is an extension of your personality. Even a minor scratch on your car send you either into depression or an aggressive mode.
Driving might be an expression of freedom but such freedom with rage can send you to jail.
Road rage is a tendency to concentrate only on selfish needs while dismissing the communal and social aspect of driving. Remember road rage is NOT a relief vent, like normal anger which forces you to be more constructive.
Road rage makes you give in to your negative emotions. Be aware of your emotional state to that your do NOT screw up your choices.
The human mind is the combination of three brains, one of which is known as the reptilian brain and is similar to the brain found in reptiles.
This part of the human mind, which consists of the brainstem and cerebellum, is responsible for our sense of survival and the fight-or-flight reaction we have to fear and stress.
This part of the human mind, which consists of the brainstem and cerebellum, is responsible for our sense of survival and the fight-or-flight reaction we have to fear and stress.
Road-rage incidents stem from the stimulation of the reptilian mind -- a driver experiencing road rage feels threatened and responds aggressively to ensure his “survival”. The reptilian brain is inflexible, compulsive, ritualistic and incapable of learning from previous screw-ups.
A typical road rage incident happens when at least one driver chooses to act out in anger. It takes to hands to clap — just ignore this road rage maniac.
Territoriality - like many animals, human beings react negatively when we feel our space is threatened by someone else.
One you are consumed by road rage you are in denial and there is absolute loss of objectivity , where you deliberately overlook your own faults and place the entire blame on others.
There must be an official hand signal or a light signal to to signal an apology to another driver. This is the way to move ahead . If this law is NOT made urgently, we will suffer as a society.
You may be a honest, sane, peaceful, level headed man, but you could land up in jail or die on your way to office.
As one driver reacts in rage to the other, and the second driver in turn reacts negatively or callously , then emotions and aggressive tactics escalate, feeding each other in a vicious cycle.
Ultimately, these behaviors lead to a complete surrender to base animal reactions, and the drivers leave rationality behind.
The rush of adrenaline that comes as a result of real or perceived danger makes it easy for us to give into anger. It is so easy to fall into the trap of directing anger toward another driver and trying to match the other guys behavior, to show your child sitting in the back seat that his daddy is a man’s man..
Don't use your car horn aggressively to express displeasure at other drivers -- doing so might make them more aggressive.
Try to be kind and courteous to your fellow drivers. When you do encounter an aggressive driver, it's better to let him have his way, even when it feels unfair. It's more important to think of driving as a group experience instead of a competition.
So how do we avoid becoming a road warrior?
It boils down to maturity . A mature man does not engage in self-destructive behavior.
Maturity is the ability to bear an injustice without wanting to get evenand act within the framework of dignity.
In proactive behavior there is a pause between stimulus and response ( not a knee jerk reaction )— for making a suitable choice of response. I will explain later why it may NOT be able to have this pause , when your amygdala hijacks your emotions.
He does not care for success at the cost of his dignity and honour. If you family is in the car, they may lose respect for you –forever.
Mature people have the ability to focus on important things, they do NOT lose their shirt and behave shabbily on trivial matters..
It is always possible that the other driver is singling you out, and even if he is, it's not worth it to follow suit.
So resist the urge to honk your horn, curse and go through the array of obscene gestures in your repertoire—even to give back as good as you got.
Driving is NOT a gladiator contest or power play, in which people need to prove that they need to prove to others that they're in control and playing by the rules while others are not.
When you are consumed by rage you hyperventilate , there is an increase in your heart rate, BP and a rush of adrenaline, cortisol and other stress-induced hormones.
Breathing deeply from your diaphragm is essential to calming and relaxing you. Breathing deeply helps to slow down the reactions mentioned in the previous step, including slowing your heart rate and blood pressure.
You should notice a drop in sweating levels too. Training yourself to breathe deeply every time something bothersome occurs while out driving can help keep you calm. Breathe deeply when you feel road rage is on the way to consume you.
Every time something happens that has the potential to raise your ire, breathe deeply. All make mistakes including you.
Think of the other person as human, NOT a thing of your “ Need for speed “ video game on X Box.
The people in the cars around also have a family like you . They too have the same hopes and aspirations as you.
Just because they made an error in judgement , that that NOT empower you to judge and punish them .
A photo of your wife , children , parents or people you love can keep you centered when you feel like getting off your car and giving the other guy a bloody nose or a shattered windshield. Glance at this photo while breathing deeply, to help you prioritise and maintain your sanity.
Try and diffuse the situation instead of making it worse. Once you name is in the police station records, you do immense damage to yourself. The other driver can press false charges using a clever lawyer.
Once you too hire a lawyer, the only thing sure is the expense. More often than NOT both the soulless lawyers collude to milk both of you.
“He practically ran me off the road – what was I supposed to do?” does NOT work.
Almost nothing makes another driver angrier than an obscene gesture. So keep your hands on the wheel.
If you and another driver see a parking space at the same time, don’t fight for it. Many drivers get angry when they are followed too closely—as this prevents them from braking for an enexpcted situation .
Always allow at least a two-second space between your car and the car ahead. This is measures in time and NOT by distance.
If you think another car is driving too slowly and you are unable to pass, pull back and allow more space.
If you feel you are being followed too closely, signal and pull over to allow the other driver to go by.
One angry driver can’t start a fight unless another driver is willing to join in. You can protect yourself against aggressive drivers by refusing to become angry at them. It takes two hands to clap.
Below video : In Bigg Boss 7 we saw a man with his Amygdala switch in the stuck position.
The amygdala can mistakenly misfire messages of danger creating a chronic state of anxiety and panic.
The amygdala triggers your emotions faster than your conscious awareness. The unique “speed dial circuits” of the two almond sized nuclei within your brain are the first to react to emotionally significant events. These organs protect you from harm by interpreting subconscious hints of danger to trigger lightning fast responses.
The amygdalae react to negative events in many ways, including activation of your sympathetic nervous system. The results cause you gut wrenching turmoil.
While it takes around 300 milliseconds for you to become aware of a disturbing event, the amygdalae react to it within 20 milliseconds! Sadly, the knee-jerk responses of these organs cause you to overreact to the world around you.
While you may forget a compliment, your amygdala will never forget a slight.
The Amygdala Hijack is considered to happen in any situation when our emotions take over our intelligent thinking. This includes outbreaks of rage.
This happens because it sends out hormones that basically override our prefrontal cortex, which can happen is a second, and we act on instinct and not on rational thoughts. Often times when people look back on Amygdala hijacks they feel guilt and understand that their actions were often irrational.
You must have noticed our Punjaabi Puttar on Bigg Boss 7 flying into a blind rage at the drop of a hat and then falling on his feet and asking for forgiveness, after he has cooled down .
Below: CONTROOOL YAAAR !
Because the amygdala helped the ancient cave man survive, it remained as the brain grew and evolved. Today, it’s rare that we face an extreme emergency that requires the amygdale to spring into action, but it does so nevertheless.
It is the classic “fight or flight response.” Road rage is one example of an out-of-control amygdala response to modern stress (fight).
When a threatening or stressful situation suddenly pops up. The amygdala wakes up, pushes the logical cortex out of the picture, and takes over. It hijacks control of your brain and your body by ordering the pumping out of the chemicals that create the fight or flight reaction.
The amygdala is two almond shaped clusters of interconnected structures perched above the brainstem near the bottom of the limbic ring. When the thalamus (the brains sensory switchboard) receives input from the senses, its sends a message along two independent neural pathways, a high road’ travelling up to the cortex and a low road’ going directly to the nearby amygdala therefore triggering an emotional reaction before the neocortex has a chance to scan the experience and what is causing the reaction.
This puts the amygdala in the most powerful post in mental life. The amygdala is nearly fully developed at birth. Traumatic events like beatings or outright neglect will imprint early on. The amygdala can only react based on previously stored patterns. Sometimes this kind of reaction can save our lives.
When a Sri Lankan sailor hit Rajiv Gandhi with his rifle butt, his amygdala saved him.
Once you’ve been hijacked, it’s very difficult to get back under control. It’s much easier to prevent the hijacking in the first place.
The emotional brain is the amygdala and rational brain is the neocortex but in situations that involve extreme emotions, the emotional brain takes over and cognitive abilities are restricted. Amygdala acts in a hijack type manner. Some will freeze from fright, while others will become aggressive. This is commonly referred to as the ‘fight or flight mechanism.’
This hijacking is triggered crucial moments before the neocortex (thinking brain) has had a chance to fully observe what has happened and when moments pass, usually the person does not know what came over them. These occurrences can lead to horrific incidents, some leading to brutal crime.
All our Punjaabi Puttar needs to do is to breath deep ( diaphragmic ) . Yoga teaches only deep diaphragmic breathing, NOT the bullsh#t hyperventilation SOO HUMM by Triple Sri Ravishankar , who fools the people by Martini Effect ( Nitrogen Narcosis ) .
There is nothing mystical about the power that breathing has to prevent panic. As you control the rate of your breathing, it sends a subconscious message to the amygdala that there is no need to be stressed. Just breathe deep and slow until you feel any butterflies start to settle down.
Under stress/excitement or joy the nerve running from the brain to the adrenal glands atop the kidneys triggers the secretion of hormones; dopamine and endorphin actively appear to underlie pleasurable emotions whereas serotonin and norepinephrine play a role in anger and fear.
The prefrontal cortex, is responsible for emotions including empathy and guilt. The amygdala, controls levels of fear and anxiety. Brains of psychopaths have 'broken links' between parts responsible for empathy and guilt. The lack of communication between these two areas makes it difficult for psychopaths to regulate their social and emotional behaviour.
A MRI scan can determine if someone is a psychopath. You may be surprised to know that more than 80 % of Jewish business leaders are psychopaths. No, psychopaths don't suffer from delusions. Scans of psychopaths show that 'links' present in normal people are lacking in the psychopathic brain
Rage is connected to a medical condition called intermittent explosive disorder and to dangerous social behaviors such as road rage. Often, people will later report that they “snapped” and could not control their behavior. Rage is a situation when a person is not able to handle their anger in a proper way.
Anger is considered to be healthy, whereas rage is not considered healthy. This means that a person who is angry will have the power to control the emotions. But a person having rage has no control of their emotions and it could be sometimes destructive.
Anger causes chemical and neurological changes that make your muscles stronger and your senses more acute. These changes help you interpret your environment more accurately and make important decisions quickly. Rage does quite the opposite.
Anger causes chemical and neurological changes that make your muscles stronger and your senses more acute. These changes help you interpret your environment more accurately and make important decisions quickly. Rage does quite the opposite.
The prefrontal cortex is the more advanced, newer part of our brains known as the “executive center.” It helps us plan, solve problems, make decisions and control our impulses. It’s the prefrontal cortex that helps us in deactivating anger in ourselves and others .
Rage only sees its own "rightness". Rage does not care if it hurts others, in fact it aches to hurt somebody. Rage feels justified in hurting others.
Rage detracts from the quality of your life, driving away the people who love you and can help you. Remember good old Henry beating up his dad with a baseball bat?
When you are in a rage, you destroy everyone everything in your path, even if they mean a great deal to you. Rage makes you drive your car into a tree, punch through a glass pane and cut your arteries.You inflict pain on yourself by destroying what you love most..
Rage seethes just below the surface; you need little or no provocation to have an emotional meltdown.
Back to road rage-
Many road ragers are otherwise model citizens ( like surgeons , judges ) who are successful in work and in relationships and well respected in their communities. None of them had a short fuse.
It is important for everyone to remind themselves that, whatever happens on the road, it is not personal. Ask yourself --is really worth it to get out of the car or take some other dangerous action
Either you in the hospital, or I in the hospital or we both ( apun donoh ekatta ) in the hospital is NOT a bright idea.
Don't grip the steering wheel too hard— it pays to steer lightly with one hand. This avoids tensing up the arm and neck muscles.
Remember that you can't control other drivers. You can only control your reactions to them. Do NOT allow misplaced driver fury, to convert our roads to killing fields.
Computer and video games influence the manner in which we approach the roads and our sense of immunity within the car. "The crucial difference is that when things go wrong in Grand Theft Auto, you just press reset,".
Remember- driving is not a contest. For when you compete your consciousness is focused on beating the other driver at all costs .
Grace and peace !
A 7000 year old invocation .
A 7000 year old invocation .
Om Jatavedase sunava masomamarati yato nidahati vedah
Sa nah parshhadati durgani vishva naveva sindhum duritatyagnih 1
Tamagnivarnam tapasa jvalantim vairochanim karmaphaleshhu jushhtamh
Durgam devii sharanamaham prapadye sutarasi tarase namah 2
Agne tvam paaraya navyo asmaansvastibhiriti durgani vishva
Pushcha prithvi bahula na urvi bhava tokaya tanayaya shamyoh 3
Vishvani no durgaha jatavedassindhunna nava duritatiparshhi
Agne atrivanmanasa grinanoasmakam bodhayitva tanunamh 4
Pritanajitam sahamanamugramagni huvema paramatsadhasthath
Sa nah parshhadati durgani vishvakshamaddevo atiduritatyagnih 5
Pratnoshhikamidyo adhvareshhu sannachcha hota navyashcha satsi
Svanchagne tanuvam piprayasvasmabhyam cha saubhagamayajasva 6
Gobhirjushhtamayujonishhiktan tavendra vishhnoranusamcharema
Nakasya prishhthamabhisamvasano vaishhnavim loka iha madayantamh 7
Om kaatyaayanaaya vidmahe Kanyakumaari dhiimahi Tanno durgih prachodayaath
Om shaantih shaantih shaantih
Our oblations of Soma to the fire god,
May he, the all knowing one destroy all those who do not like us,
May that divine fire lead us out of all perils,
Like a captain takes his boat across the sea,
And also save us from all wrongs.
I take refuge in the divine mother Durga*,
Who shines like a fire due to her penances,
Who resides in actions and their fruits and makes them effective,
And I salute her who helps us cross our difficulties.
* It could be translated as Mother of difficulties also
Oh God of fire, you are worthy of praise,
For by novel methods you help us cross,
The difficulties and make us happy,
May our land in this earth become extensive,
May the land for growing crops become large,
And be pleased to join our children and,
Their children with joy and happiness.
Oh Jatha Vedas who is the destroyer of all sins,
Make us cross all our troubles like a boat,
Which takes us to the other shore without problems,
Oh Fire, protect us like the sage Athri, who would take care of us,
Mindful of our safety and our happiness.
We invoke the fierce Fire God who is the leader of us all.
And who is the killer of all our enemies from the highest place,
To take us across all difficulties and all that is perishable and protect us.
Oh Fire God, you are praised during sacrifices,
And always increase our happiness, and exist as sacrifices,
Which are olden and those which are new,
Please make us, who are only yourself, happy,
And grant us good fortune from all our sides.
Oh Lord, you are not connected with sin and sorrow,
Permit us to always serve you who pervades all wealth,
May the Gods who live in the highest region make me,
Who adores Vishnu, delighted and happy and grant my wishes.
THIS IS ADDENDUM-
THE GUY IN THE SUV-- GAVE ME A MIDDLE FINGER SALUTE AFTER HE REVERSED AND WAS ABOUT TO BUZZ OFF-
I IMMEDIATELY SNATCHED A BANANA FROM THE VENDOR'S CART AND SHOVED IT INTO THE EXHAUST PIPE OF HIS SUV -- AS A REFLEX ACTION.
HIS ENGINE DIED OUT-
AND THE POOR GUY HAD TO APOLOGISE , BEFORE I WOULD LET HIM GO--
HE DID NOT DARE TO GET OUT OF HIS SUV- OR LOWER HIS WINDOW GLASS MORE THAN AN INCH.
WHY DID NOT ANY SLAVE INDIAN PUSH A BANANA INTO THE EXHAUST PIPE AND SET THE VEHICLE ON FIRE ?
CAPT AJIT VADAKAYIL
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