Why does time seem to slow down when I fall?

Cynthia, your altered time perception when falling occurs thanks to millions of years of evolution. It all ties back to the instincts than our prehistoric ancestors needed in order to survive.

When faced with a threatening situation, humans as well as other animals often go through quick and startling physiological and psychological changes that often help us deal with the threats with the best likelihood of survival. Our pupils dilate so we can take in more visual information on the threat, our bodies produce adrenaline to give us more energy and strength, and our perception of time slows down in order for us to take into consideration our surrounding environment and how it can be used to our advantage. This is what psychologists call the Fight-or-Flight response.

So basically, as you are threatened by a fall, your body's time perception slows down in order for you to focus on the environment and deal with the situation.

Several years ago, I asked an old man (he was totally into psychology) about that very same thing. He said it's just a trick your mind plays on you. A part of your brain called the amygdala is responsible for this distortion in time. When this happens it is an auditory hallucination. This usually happens to car crash victims or those in fear for their lives. This has been true for me with one exception. When I was a teen a friend of mine & I saw a plate fall off of a high shelf. I could have reached out and grabbed it 3 times before it hit the ground. Yet I seemed to lack the ability to do anything but observe. My friend immediately reported seeing it in slow motion. My question is...our lives were not in danger, so why did both of us observe it? Science falls sort of any definitive answers when it comes to this phenomenon.

Adrenaline something to with all that help you to react and hopefully not injure yourself had that expierence quite a few times while free running :L quite a nice feeling apart from hitting the ground :L

Hi Cynthia, it seems like it takes forever to land when we fall, and we can have so many thoughts run through our minds because of "adrenalin".

We have such an adrenalin rush because of the intense fright when we are falling. In that quick instance of falling, with such an intense rush, your mind can fly with thoughts. =-)

I'm guessing it's just how your brain 'reacts' to the fall.

For me, any fall I have I don't even remember it clearly, it seems to go so fast and dazzles me (literally too!).