Table of contents:
- Anytime you get goosebumps?
- Why can the skin get goosebumps when scared?
- What does it mean if goosebumps appear suddenly?
When you feel tense or scared, for example from watching a horror movie or are in a dark place alone, you will shudder or get goosebumps. You can also get goosebumps when you are at high altitudes and you are afraid of heights. If you have this, usually the feeling will be even worse. However, what really happens to your body when you are scared that these sensations can arise? Check out the full answer below.
Anytime you get goosebumps?
Everyone does have different physical reactions when faced with certain situations. In general, people will get goosebumps when they are cold, scared, feel threatened, have experienced quite emotional events, listen to music, or when they come into contact with other objects or people. You can even get goosebumps because of an event that you experienced many years ago, for example when you look back on your first kiss and your partner or remember a scary incident that had happened to you.
The reactions your body displays are automatic (reflex), which means you can't control when you start or stop feeling the sensation of goosebumps. You can only notice when your skin starts to show symptoms.
Why can the skin get goosebumps when scared?
In the medical world, goosebumps are also known as pilomotor reflex. Reflexes like this occur because when you feel scared, your brain immediately goes into threat alert mode. The body will also produce a hormone called adrenaline which is produced by glands located above the kidneys. As a result, the small muscles that are connected to the hair follicles on the skin will contract. This is what causes the fine hairs on the skin surface of your arms or legs to become erect. This phenomenon is also known as hair on a standing neck. In addition, the skin surface will also show prominent spots like the skin of a bird that has been plucked out.
This pilomotor reflex is also responsible for warming body temperature. Instinctively, this serves to heat up the muscles of the body to immediately move and work when you need to run away from a threat, especially when your brain reads a signal that you are feeling fear. Usually the thicker the fine hairs that cover the skin, the faster the body will feel warm.
However, in humans, the function of the pilomotor reflex is not that useful. Apart from the fact that the hair on the surface of human skin is quite thin, it is not necessary for people in general to flee immediately when there is a threat. With the exception of life-threatening situations, usually the fear you feel doesn't require you to physically respond. While in prehistoric times, this pilomotor reflex was very useful when every day people were faced with serious threats such as attacks by wild beasts.
What does it mean if goosebumps appear suddenly?
At certain moments, a person can suddenly get goosebumps for no apparent reason. The myth that many people believe states that when this happens, it means that there are other creatures that cannot be seen by the eye near you. In fact, there are a variety of reasons why the hair on your neck can suddenly stand up.
You can get goosebumps suddenly when there is a significant change in temperature. Notice if the air around you feels colder. This can be triggered by natural factors such as changes in weather and winds blowing your way, or even because of a drop in your own body temperature.
In other cases, a sudden active pilomotor reflex could be a symptom of a certain disease. If there is a disturbance in your body's reflex system, you may suddenly have goosebumps and experience various other physical reactions that appear without cause, such as a pounding heart or sweating. This disorder is known as autonomic hyperreflexia or autonomic dysreflexia. Goosebumps that appear suddenly can also indicate various diseases such as influenza, gastroenteritis, and pneumonia. Note if the goosebumps you feel are accompanied by excessive sweating, a heartbeat that is too fast or slow, blood pressure drops or increases suddenly, and pain in certain body parts.
