SCARSSCARS SCARS - Society of Citizens Against Relationship Scams Inc. A government registered crime victims' assistance & crime prevention nonprofit organization based in Miami, Florida, U.S.A. SCARS supports the victims of scams worldwide and through its partners in more than 60 countries around the world. Incorporated in 2015, its team has 30 years of continuous experience educating and supporting scam victims. Visit www.AgainstScams.org to learn more about SCARS.™ Psychology of ScamsPsychology Of Scams Psychology Of Scams is the study of the psychological or emotional effects of scams or financial fraud on victims of these crimes. It helps victims to better understand the impact of scams on them personally or on others. To find the SCARS articles on the Psychology of Scams, use the search option to enter the term and find them.: How Fear Affects You After A ScamScam A Scam is a confidence trick - a crime - is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust through deception. Scams or confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, irresponsibility, or greed and exploiting that. Researchers have defined confidence tricks as "a distinctive species of fraudulent conduct ... intending to further voluntary exchanges that are not mutually beneficial", as they "benefit con operators ('con men' - criminals) at the expense of their victims (the 'marks')". A scam is a crime even if no money was lost.

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If You Are Overcome By Fear And You Need Someone To Talk To Now Call This Number: Call 1-800-273-8255 Or Your Local Crisis Hotline

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Overview: What Do Fear And Anxiety Feel Like?

When you feel frightened or seriously anxious, your mind and body work very quickly. These are some of the things that might happen:

Your heart beats very fast – maybe it feels irregular
You breathe very fast
Your muscles feel weak
You sweat a lot
Your stomach churns or your bowels feel loose
You find it hard to concentrate on anything else
You feel dizzy
You feel frozen to the spot
You can’t eat
You have hot and cold sweats
You get a dry mouth
You get very tense muscles

The following article is reposted courtesy of Popular Science for preservation and continued access by our audience. The original article can be viewed here.

When Fear Strikes It Affects Your Whole Body

This is something that affects almost all romance scam victims, especially those that sent money to a scammerScammer A Scammer or Fraudster is someone that engages in deception to obtain money or achieve another objective. They are criminals that attempt to deceive a victim into sending more or performing some other activity that benefits the scammer.. Even more so if it is a large amount – one that will profoundly affect your life and future because of its loss.

Fright in the flesh.

Alarm strikes your body within seconds of recognizing a threat. Here’s what’s going down.

1. Amygdala

Before you consciously process a problem, this almond-shaped brain region activates and begins to amp up the sympathetic nervous system’s fight-or-flight response.

[see our article on Amygdala Hijack for additional information]

2. Hippocampus and Frontal Cortex

The rational centers of our brain kick in, analyzing whether the perceived visual or auditory input shows a true danger.

3. Cardiovascular System

Stress hormones increase your heartbeat and breathing rate while dilating the tiny airways in your lungs. This allows more oxygen to reach your muscles.

4. Endocrine Glands

Signals from the Amygdala hit the Hypothalamus, which starts a cascade of activity throughout the endocrine system. The result: a surge of adrenaline and cortisol.

5. Gastrointestinal System

Fear really can make you poop your pants. That and retching may be side effects of shrinking blood vessels in the GI tract—diverting resources to give you strength.

6. Musculoskeletal System

Endocrine signals push glucose and other energy-storing molecules out of reserve and into the blood, which rushes in to fue