Getting goosebumps when you feel excited or experience strong emotions, such as feeling good, is a physiological response that dates back to our evolutionary past. This reaction is known as piloerection or the pilomotor reflex.
When you experience strong emotions like excitement, pleasure, or awe, your body releases certain neurotransmitters and hormones, including adrenaline (epinephrine) and dopamine. These chemicals trigger a chain of physiological responses, one of which is the activation of the sympathetic nervous system, often referred to as the "fight or flight" response.
Here's how it works:
Muscle Contractions: The activation of the sympathetic nervous system causes small muscles at the base of hair follicles called arrector pili muscles to contract.
Hair Follicle Response: When these muscles contract, they cause the hair on your skin to stand upright. In animals, this response helps create a larger and more threatening appearance, which can deter potential predators or rivals.
Goosebumps: When the hair stands up, it creates small raised bumps on the skin's surface, which are commonly known as "goosebumps" or "goose pimples."
In modern humans, the pilomotor reflex is not as functional as it once was, given that our body hair is much finer and less dense compared to our ancestors. As a result, goosebumps are now more of a vestigial response that is primarily triggered by emotional stimuli rather than serving a practical purpose.
So, when you feel excited, happy, or experience any other strong emotion, the pilomotor reflex can be activated, leading to goosebumps. The intensity of this response can vary from person to person and may also depend on the intensity of the emotion you're experiencing.