How Long Do Emotions Last?

Question: 

Not long ago, I learned about Jill Bolt Taylor's '90 second emotion rule', where she states an emotion lasts for 'anywhere up to 90 seconds'. I'm now intrigued to find out, via your site - http://www.6seconds.org/2004/02/05/why-six-seconds-about-our-intriguing-name/, that an emotion lasts '6 seconds'. So that I am able to know and relay this to others, could you please explain the six seconds idea?

Answer: 

Our understanding from our advisory board member, the late Dr. Candace Pert (who wrote The Molecules of Emotion), is that an individual neurohormones, or molecules of emotion, last from 4-7 seconds. Their effects last much longer -- typically, when we have an emotional reaction, there is a "cascade" of multiple releases of an emotion neurohormone, which is probably what Dr. Taylor is referencing. Further, when our adrenal system is activated, it generally stays activated for around 20 minutes to sustain "readiness" to handle a threat. So... depending on which part of the emotional reaction we're discussing, the time varies.