Category: Polyvagal Theory

In today's world, there's a significant push towards relentless positivity. We're often encouraged to think positively, maintain a cheerful demeanor, and dismiss negative emotions. While this sounds appealing, it's a simplistic approach that can sometimes be more harmful than helpful.

Superficial Solutions

Motivational and positive thinking frameworks often skim the surface. They encourage us to plaster on a smile and think good thoughts, but they fail to address the deeper, underlying causes of our emotional and psychological struggles. This approach can be likened to putting a band-aid on a deep wound – it doesn't heal the underlying injury.

Ignoring Reality

These frameworks can create unrealistic expectations. They suggest that by simply thinking positively, we can achieve anything we set our minds to. However, life is more complex. When our high expectations aren't met, we can end up feeling even more defeated and inadequate.

Neglecting Emotional Processing

Encouraging constant positivity often leads to the suppression of negative emotions. But emotions, both positive and negative, are a natural part of the human experience. Ignoring or dismissing our negative feelings can prevent us from fully processing and learning from them, which is crucial for emotional growth and resilience.

Lack of Personalization

A one-size-fits-all approach to positivity doesn't account for the unique experiences and challenges each person faces. It's not always feasible or effective to apply the same strategy to everyone, as individual circumstances vary greatly.

Supporting a Deeper Approach

In contrast, my approach delves deeper. By integrating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), trauma therapy, polyvagal theory, and absurdism, we address the root causes of distress. This method promotes psychological flexibility, helping individuals accept their thoughts and emotions without judgment and commit to actions that align with their values.

ACT and mindfulness practices encourage us to stay present and fully engage with our experiences, rather than avoiding or suppressing them. Understanding the role of our nervous system through polyvagal theory can help us better regulate our responses to stress and trauma. Absurdism reminds us that while life is unpredictable and chaotic, we can find meaning and humor in the journey.

This comprehensive, personalized approach not only helps manage stress and emotional challenges but also fosters true resilience and fulfillment. If you're seeking more than superficial solutions and are ready for meaningful change, let's connect. Together, we can navigate the complexities of life and find a path to genuine well-being.

Our nervous system is functionally a triangle upside down. I’m talking about the circuits that are being regulated in the brain stem, that regulate our underlying state. Perculate information up to the brain stem and the brain stem it clearly is, transmitted information to the higher brain structures enabling access to different brain areas. So that when we're in safe states we can access higher corticol functions but when we're in danger states those systems turn off and we're defensive. If we think of this triangle, each time we get higher and higher we have greater diversity of expression and outcome.

0:43 So I'm talking about basically three states that provide a neural platform for great diversity of expression. If you are in a constant dangerous environment your nervous system is going to find it difficult to detect safety. So if it can't detect it's going to be more in this state of more fight flight, a low threshold to react, and when you're in that state you're going to misread other peoples cues.

1:10 So you're more likely to see neutral faces as being aggressive, you're more likely see fearful faces as if they were angry. So you can really confound difficult relationships. So you won't be able to use people to self regulate, they will become threatening and reactive. So if you have a history in which there is no experiences of using people to regulate a very pro social positive way, people will then become threatening or damaging to you. And what I always want to emphasize is that the social interactional behavior is a neural exercise. It's a neural exercise of using newer mammalian structures. Its evolutionary newer structures to inhibit very primitive defensive systems. So if we feel that we're in safe environments, we'll use our face, we'll use the intonation of our voice and we'll negotiate a relationship or maintain safety by doing that.

2:08 And this is what friends do, this is what lovers do, this is what supposedly teachers are supposed to do and therapists, right? If we're a little bit in a more dangerous situation, like a novel environment, we don't know anything about it. We'll go into another physiological state of the support, fight or flight mobilization behaviors. And if we can fight or flee, get away from something then we've actually negotiated the danger. But what if we can't get away from the danger? What if we're held down while we're in a confined environment? What if we're trapped in a car or a plane or in the bathroom and someone is now going to hurt us the possibilities could trigger a third circuit which shuts us down. And it’s that shutdown circuit that makes it so important in understanding trauma and the polyvagal theory articulates that shutdown circuit. While most other theoretical models of trauma and and what people would call stress disorders, only talk about a fight flight system.

3:07 Okay, so that's the core of what I would tell a person about the polyvagal theory. And the second component of that core is that these responses are not voluntary.
Our nervous system is picking up information the environment in evaluating that information, not on a cognitive level, but on an on a subconscious. We want to bring back that term. But on the neurobiological level, we're picking up features of risk or danger. And our nervous system puts us into those different states. And we can become aware of that because when we're in certain environments, we may feel our heart pounding. We ask the question, why is my heart pounding? And then you'll say, well, something in the environment must have triggered it. But often we don't know the cues that trigger these things. So the point I want to make is first that the polyvagal theory provides us with an understanding of three neural circuits that support different types of behavior. One is social engagement behaviors in safe environments. The other was fight flight and mobilization. And the third one is really a shutting down a second level of defense.

Please note - these cases are based on real life scenarios but have been altered to help maintain confidentially.

The client is an international student who has been in the USA for 3 months. They feel discriminated against and are struggling with loneliness and isolation, finding it easier to express their emotions in their native language. Despite having English-speaking friends, they want someone to talk to in their own language. The client is overwhelmed and finds it hard to study due to procrastination, exacerbated by a history of anxiety and depression. They have a strained relationship with their family, who have subjected them to physical punishment and verbal abuse over the years. This has led to a deep-seated belief that they are unlovable and need to achieve more to be loved, contributing to their ongoing anxiety.

How My Approach to Therapy Can Help This Client

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Addressing Negative Thoughts and Feelings:

• Present Moment Awareness: Help the client become more aware of their thoughts and feelings without being overwhelmed by them. Techniques such as mindful breathing and grounding exercises can anchor them in the present moment, reducing the impact of anxiety and depression.
• Cognitive Defusion: Teach the client to separate themselves from their thoughts, such as “I’m unlovable” or “I need to achieve more to be loved,” and view these thoughts as just words, not truths. We can learn to notice the thoughts and feelings rather than being consumed by them. "I notice I'm feeling anxious".

Absurdism

Finding Meaning and Resilience:

• Embracing the Absurd: Help the client understand that life’s inherent lack of meaning doesn’t diminish their experiences. By accepting the absurdity of their situation, they can focus on creating personal meaning and values. Good things happen to bad people, bad things happen to good people.
• Empowerment through Choice: Encourage the client to choose their own path and actions despite the absurdity. This can help them regain a sense of control and purpose.

Trauma Therapy

Healing Past Wounds:

• Safe Space for Expression: Create a safe and supportive environment where the client can share their experiences of discrimination, loneliness, and past abuse without fear of judgment.
• Processing Trauma: Use techniques such as narrative therapy to help the client process and make sense of their traumatic experiences, including physical punishment and verbal abuse.
• Building Resilience: Develop coping strategies to help the client deal with the emotional impact of their past and build resilience against future stressors.

Polyvagal Theory

Regulating the Nervous System:

• Understanding the Body’s Response: Educate the client on how their nervous system responds to stress and trauma, helping them understand why they physically feel anxious or depressed.
• Self-Regulation Techniques: Teach the client techniques to regulate their nervous system, such as deep breathing exercises, grounding techniques, and safe social interactions. These can help them feel calmer and more in control.

Implementing the Approach

1. Initial Assessment and Rapport Building: Begin with a thorough assessment of the client's current emotional state, history, and immediate needs. Build rapport and create a safe, non-judgmental space.
2. Setting Goals: Collaboratively set therapeutic goals that are meaningful to the client in line with life values, focusing on reducing anxiety, improving study habits, and enhancing social connections.
3. Mindfulness and Present Moment Awareness: Introduce mindfulness exercises and present moment awareness practices to help the client manage overwhelming emotions and reduce procrastination. Like ACE - Acknowledge thoughts and feelings with curiosity. Connect with the body with actions like wriggling the toes, noticing the body sitting on the chair. Engage with the wider world through what can be seen and heard through the eyes and ears. Engage with what can be done to benefit life right here, right now.
4. Trauma Processing: Gradually introduce trauma therapy techniques, ensuring the client feels safe and supported while processing their past experiences.
5. Polyvagal Techniques: Incorporate self-regulation strategies to help the client manage their anxiety and depression, improving their overall emotional resilience.
6. Meaning and Values Exploration: Use absurdism and ACT principles to help the client find personal meaning and values, empowering them to live a more fulfilling life despite past and current challenges.

By integrating these therapeutic approaches, we can address the client's complex needs, helping them manage their anxiety, process trauma, and find meaning and purpose in their life.

If a person is going through a stressful time, perhaps elevated anxiety, lots of worry, uncertainty, how can polyvagal theory help better understand what is going on?

Polyvagal theory, proposed by Dr. Stephen Porges, offers valuable insights into how the autonomic nervous system (ANS) responds to stress and helps us better understand what may be happening during times of elevated anxiety, worry, and uncertainty. Here's how polyvagal theory can help shed light on these experiences:

1. Understanding the Polyvagal Theory:

• Polyvagal theory describes the hierarchical organization of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and its role in regulating physiological states and behaviors in response to perceived threat or safety. The theory identifies three distinct branches of the vagus nerve, each associated with different adaptive strategies for coping with stress.

1. Social Engagement System:

• The ventral vagal complex, often referred to as the "social engagement system," is associated with states of calmness, social connection, and safety. When activated, this branch of the vagus nerve promotes social engagement behaviors, such as facial expressions, vocalization, and prosocial interactions. Individuals feel calm, connected, and able to engage with others in a relaxed and open manner.

1. Sympathetic Activation:

• In response to perceived threat or danger, the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) becomes activated, triggering the "fight-or-flight" response. This physiological state is characterized by increased heart rate, respiration rate, and energy mobilization, preparing the body to confront or flee from the perceived threat.

1. Dorsal Vagal Shutdown:

• When faced with overwhelming stress or danger, the body may initiate a "dorsal vagal shutdown," also known as the freeze response. In this state, the dorsal vagal complex inhibits sympathetic activation and promotes physiological shutdown, leading to immobility, dissociation, and feelings of helplessness or numbness.

1. Understanding Anxiety and Worry:

• Elevated anxiety and worry often involve dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system, with shifts between states of sympathetic arousal and dorsal vagal shutdown. Individuals may experience periods of heightened arousal, characterized by racing thoughts, physical tension, and hypervigilance, followed by states of immobilization or shutdown, marked by feelings of overwhelm and fatigue.

1. Applying Polyvagal Theory in Practice:

• By understanding the autonomic underpinnings of anxiety and stress through the lens of polyvagal theory, individuals can gain insight into their physiological responses and develop targeted interventions for self-regulation and stress management. Techniques such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, and social engagement activities can help regulate autonomic states and promote feelings of safety and calmness.

In summary, polyvagal theory provides a framework for understanding the complex interplay between the autonomic nervous system and stress responses, offering insights into how individuals respond to anxiety, worry, and uncertainty. By recognizing the role of the vagus nerve in regulating physiological states and behaviors, individuals can cultivate greater self-awareness and develop effective strategies for coping with stress and promoting well-being.