In teacher training we were often warned about not allowing our lizard brains to take over. “Lizard brain” is where fight or flight lives, the oldest and most primordial part of our brain, the part tasked with keeping us alive. It’s the part that makes us yell and throw things and generally behave like we belong on a cable reality show. When someone threatens you, the stem—the lizardy part—lights up like a Christmas tree, flooding your system with adrenaline. This can happen a lot if you have a high-stress job where people yell at you often, like teaching in an impoverished school district, or working a customer service line, or being an MLB pitcher.
Chase de Jong controls lizard brain, Mariners win big, 8-2
