Fear of Dogs

A dog comes toward you — perhaps on a leash, perhaps free, perhaps only barking behind a fence — and your body takes over. Your heart beats faster. Your breathing turns shallow. Your legs go heavy or light, depending on whether you want to freeze or flee. Before your mind has decided whether the situation is truly dangerous, your nervous system has already sounded the alarm. You are no longer in the present. You are in an ancient circuit that knows only one program: get out of here.