Our nervous system cannot easily distinguish between anxiety and excitement and prepares the body to respond via the “fight or flight” (stress response) whether we are dealing with something truly dangerous or simply something new or unknown. Anxiety and excitement are both aroused emotions. The only difference is that excitement is a positive emotion often involving optimism. The anticipation of something really wonderful or really bad can also stimulate the stress response, even if that anticipation is exaggerated or completely incorrect. In this sense, the brain does not distinguish between fantasy and reality.
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