Discussion What is survival instinct?

[Emma.D]

Maybe I'm being dumb but I'm genuinely interested in people's thoughts. I always thought of SI as being the last minute reaction of your body stopping you doing something which could cause you harm. Like a reflex almost? Coming to a halt before jumping. Stopping you turning the steering wheel into a wall etc.. something like that.
But then sometimes I see people referring to SI and how to overcome it.. and I think what if this is not SI? What if this is someone rethinking their choice? Being scared or just having doubts?
Where is the line? Where is it appropriate to tell someone how to overcome SI? Could it not be seen as telling someone to ignore their doubts about ctb?
What do people think?

 

[Darkover]

The fight or flight or freeze response is an automatic physiological reaction to an event that is perceived as stressful or frightening. The perception of threat activates the sympathetic nervous system and triggers an acute stress response that prepares the body to fight or flee.
It's a survival instinct that our ancient ancestors developed many years ago. Specifically, fight-or-flight is an active defense response where you fight or flee. Your heart rate gets faster, which increases oxygen flow to your major muscles. Your pain perception drops, and your hearing sharpens

 

[Praestat_Mori]

That's a difficult question. Where's the line in between. I would say just doubts can have many reasons but it's not directly a form of SI. I would say SI is really the last thing that kicks in, just imagine you try let yourself fall forward onto the floor, at some point you will automatically move your arms in front of you not to fall on your head you can't control this, whether it is an accident or your trying to do it willingly. This is SI a reflex that tries to save the life in any case.

 

[vitbar]

Personally I see survival instinct as a whole range of behaviours including the instant reaction to harmful situations.

One psychological example is the urge to keep living. Many find themselves not wanting to die, but wanting the pain to end and seeing death as the only path. Often the will to live is still present.

 

[Per Ardua Ad Astra]

Dopamine

dear @Emma.D - please see - Dr John Leach - UK - one of the world's leading experts on Survival Psychology

The medical mystery of those who "think" themselves to death

Those with dysexistential syndrome can literally will themselves to die. Medicine is just starting to understand

www.salon.com

 

[Sapphire]

SI is really a fear of death. I don't think that it can be completely eliminated. It is a primitive instinct that will always be there to some degree in order to protect you from perceived danger. I don't think that it is the same thing as someone having doubts as to whether they should go through with ctb. Even when someone has carefully thought it through and has no doubts that it is the right choice, SI still kicks in at the last minute.

SI just doesn't show up in cases where someone is thinking about suicide. It shows up any time that someone thinks that they are about to die. I have come to dying more than once that were not suicide attempts and experienced the same feeling of fear that I was about to die.