The Gate keeper?
The Reptilian- or R-brain is activated when the organism perceives a threat. As long as it perceives a threat, it will try to suppress feelings of joy and remain in a serious mode. When confronted, this gatekeeper knows only 2 options:
1) Action, such as Fight or Flight, or
2) NO-Action, such as Freeze or Surrender
The primary emotions and actions such as: love, hate, fear, lust, consume, seek a mate, breed, riot, obey, eat, worship, kill, shop, compete, get more, guilt, sin, and judge appear to emanate from this brain part.
When we are out of control with rage, it is the primitive emotions within our reptilian brain that override the rational components of the neo-cortex. It communicates via visual imagery. Reptiles communicate by visual symbolic gestures, each having a specific meaning.
In the reptilian brain, sex, aggression and territoriality are treated the same way. Reptilian territory is acquired by force and staunchly defended. Might is right.
There is no “unconscious or dream state” in reptiles because they are 24/7 in a waking state. Thus, our reptilian part is awake 24/7, and controls our “sleep and dream state”, when the left hemisphere is “relaxing and house cleaning”.
Certain chemicals repress this brain part during our waking hours, but it is still functioning like “an invisible hand”. Since it is not satisfied with being relegated to the “night watch” of an inert body, it makes us act and often attract certain – sometimes unpleasant – events, enabling it to feel alive.
