A closer look
Some people are literally built different, chemically speaking. Psychoneuroendocrine resilience is the study of why some humans break under stress while others thrive. Researchers studying Special Forces soldiers during grueling interrogation simulations found that highly resilient individuals secrete astronomical levels of neuropeptide Y (NPY). This neurotransmitter acts as a chemical fire blanket in the brain, aggressively dampening the fear response in the amygdala and preventing the cortisol spike from locking them into PTSD, allowing them to remain completely ice-cold under pressure.
