MORE ABOUT YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM
by Elizabeth Lehmann
In addition to the fundamental information you’re given about your nervous system in the audio program, and your innate process of resilience, I’d like to share some more specifics with you, as to what occurs when your nervous system is regulated, as well as its process of becoming dysregulated and then restoring regulation. This information builds upon what's given in the audio program, and is intended to be further revealing and empowering.
Internal and external stimuli are constantly being assessed by your nervous system, usually outside of your conscious awareness, as to whether they’re manageable, overly stimulating or threatening. Stephen W, Porges, neurophysiological researcher, developer and author of The Polyvagal Theory*, refers to this unconscious evaluation of stimuli as being “safe” or “unsafe” as “neuroception”. Following neuroception, your nervous system automatically responds in an hierarchical manner to stimuli, from more highly evolved responses (when stimuli are “read” as “safe”) to more primitive ones (when read as “unsafe”). These responses are organized around supporting you functioning at your best when “neuroceived” as being “safe” and protecting you when “neuroceived” as being “unsafe”.
Internal and external stimuli are constantly being assessed by your nervous system, usually outside of your conscious awareness, as to whether they’re manageable, overly stimulating or threatening. Stephen W, Porges, neurophysiological researcher, developer and author of The Polyvagal Theory*, refers to this unconscious evaluation of stimuli as being “safe” or “unsafe” as “neuroception”. Following neuroception, your nervous system automatically responds in an hierarchical manner to stimuli, from more highly evolved responses (when stimuli are “read” as “safe”) to more primitive ones (when read as “unsafe”). These responses are organized around supporting you functioning at your best when “neuroceived” as being “safe” and protecting you when “neuroceived” as being “unsafe”.
The Social Engagement System
When stimuli are experienced as being manageable and positively motivating (i.e. “safe”), your nervous system maintains your emotional and physiological equilibrium and you’re able to act in productive ways. You’re also able to be your best self, to feel centered and engaged with life, in other words, to be RESILIENT-YOU®. In this state, what Porges calls the brain/body’s “social engagement system” is on-line, allowing you to feel securely connected to yourself and others.
The Mobilization System
Fight Response
When something internal or external is experienced or “neuroceived” as being anywhere from overly stimulating to threatening, this gets expressed behaviorally in various ways. When something is “neuroceived” as a threat, your brain/body automatically mobilizes to defend itself. Active adaptations for protection and survival, which include the fight and flight responses, can spontaneously occur.
Flight Response
In this process of mobilization, you might find yourself acting anywhere on a continuum from irritable to out of control with rage, fidgety to hyperactive, elated to manic, apprehensive to panicky, or anywhere from noticing yourself wanting to leave a situation to even literally running away from a scene, in the face of perceived danger. Of course, if your life is indeed in danger, it is natural to protect yourself in these ways. Your nervous system’s primary “intention”, if you will, is to keep you alive. It’s when your nervous system’s mobilizing for an undesired fight or flight response that you want to intervene and self-regulate.
The Immobilization System
Freeze Response
However, if for whatever reason or reasons, the fight or flight responses are not available to you when your nervous system senses you’re threatened, the brain/body will then automatically resort to immobilization for survival. Immobilization in the face of threat or unsafety can include the adaptation commonly referred to as the “freeze” response. In this process of immobilization, you might find yourself behaving anywhere from tending to isolate socially and avoid certain experiences, to feeling exhausted, being unable to appropriately act on your own behalf, feeling numb, depressed, or experiencing other forms of collapse and shutdown. A more extreme version of nervous system overwhelm and immobilization is passing out. A less extreme version of immobilization, although you may not always be aware of it, is to feel disconnected from yourself and others, also known as “dissociation”.
Clearly, when the state of immobilization becomes highly pronounced, for all practical purposes the social engagement system goes off-line. It’s too overwhelming for your nervous system to interact with others and all that requires, while in an emergency state of desperately trying to stabilize itself. Your body spontaneously becomes like “The Starship Enterprise” on “Star Trek”, when it powers down.
Heightened forms of mobilization (fight and flight) and immobilization (freeze) responses obviously indicate dysregulation of the nervous system. Your brain/body, which includes your mind, spontaneously resources itself on a regular basis, keeping itself regulated, maintaining an equilibrium to the best of its ability. It’s truly amazing how the brain/body automatically functions in this elaborate way to support and protect you, so that you will survive.
Clearly, when the state of immobilization becomes highly pronounced, for all practical purposes the social engagement system goes off-line. It’s too overwhelming for your nervous system to interact with others and all that requires, while in an emergency state of desperately trying to stabilize itself. Your body spontaneously becomes like “The Starship Enterprise” on “Star Trek”, when it powers down.
Heightened forms of mobilization (fight and flight) and immobilization (freeze) responses obviously indicate dysregulation of the nervous system. Your brain/body, which includes your mind, spontaneously resources itself on a regular basis, keeping itself regulated, maintaining an equilibrium to the best of its ability. It’s truly amazing how the brain/body automatically functions in this elaborate way to support and protect you, so that you will survive.
Restoring Resilient-You®
However, as I say in the audio program, there are times for all of us when our nervous system becomes too stimulated and overwhelmed, triggering an undesired fight, flight or freeze response. At these times, our nervous system needs help in regulating itself. Therefore, as you will discover, it’s incredibly empowering to learn how to consciously resource yourself, thereby helping your nervous system restore “Resilient-You®”.
The audio program fosters Resilient-You® in the following important ways, among others. By regularly resourcing yourself when you’re calm, in the ways identified and learned, you’ll become less easily thrown by highly charged stimuli. Also, when you notice you’re moving towards an undesired fight, flight or freeze response, you will be able to decidedly turn toward previously or newly established resources to help your nervous system regulate itself. Information and techniques for doing this are provided in the “Resilient-You®” audio program, further supported by the additional resources on this website. The sooner you’re able to notice you’re feeling stressed out and overwhelmed, moving towards an undesired fight, flight or freeze response, and then apply what’s offered here, the faster you’ll be able to restore “Resilient-You®”.
*An even more sophisticated description of the nervous system’s process is found in Stephen W. Porges’ groundbreaking book: Porges, S. (2011). "The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological Foundation of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, Self-Regulation". New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Co.
And in this YouTube video clip: https://youtu.be/ec3AUMDjtKQ