Every day, it seems like the taken-for-granted foundations of our lives are crumbling. Sometimes, it’s a sad loss and other times it’s an opportunity for a fresh start. But the initial reaction to this persistent uncertainty—threat, fear, resistance—is pretty much a given.

The human brain strives to maximize certainty and predictability as a central driver of behavior. In the presence of ambiguity, people fill in knowledge gaps with fear. Even the smallest change can be experienced as a threat and activate the flight or flight response.