When you find out bad news , you might feel your ‘ essence dip ’ or have to consider with ‘ heart aching . ’ There ’s more to these metaphors than only describing vivid emotion – they point to the fascinating direction our bodies see these feelings , both emotionally and physically . But certainly that does n’t make sense - we all have it off that the pump is simply a symbolic representation for love and pain , and that all the " feeling " is done by our brains . So how just do vivid emotions trigger specific sensations in our dresser ?
The simple answer is : scientists are n’t really sure . Robert Emery and Jim Coan , professors of psychology at the University of Virginia , excuse inScientific Americanthat it could be down to the anterior cingulate cortex , a neighborhood in the brainiac thought to regulate excited reactions . They hint that the anterior cingulate cerebral mantle becomes more active during trying place . This region is thought to make the vagus boldness , which starts in the brain shank and connects to the breast and abdomen . This stimulation is thought to lead to the ' painfulness ' we feel in our chest of drawers .
So what eccentric of emotion lead to these sensations ? In a 2013 study , research worker from Aalto University , University of Turku and University of Tampere set out to examine this very question . They asked 700 somebody to nail where they felt different emotion on their bodies .

Image credit : Lauri Nummenmaa , Enrico Glerean , Riitta Hari , and Jari Hietanen
The report , published inProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , found that the outcome were logical and surprisingly similar across different culture . investigator found that sure emotion could be grouped together – for example , anger , anxiousness and fear were all associated with strong sensations in the pectus arena . On the other hand , volunteers reported that happiness and even love spark off activity all over their body .
researcher explicate that these sensations – our hearts ram down or our chest tightening – may be trigger to serve us react to specific challenge in our environment and care with particular threats , for case by adjust the activities of the cardiovascular or nervous system . As of now , though , it ’s still hotly fence whether these corporeal changes are distinct for each emotional intuitive feeling . Further inquiry will be required to record particular bodily change , such as shifts in bloodline flow , when subjects are feeling a picky emotion .