Freeze state that follows fight flight survival mechanism - Trauma education I

Thank you for signing up to my newsletter! As I am starting with my series on trauma education I am resending my first article of the series. If you missed the introduction “What is trauma” you can find it on my blog on my web site.

Most people have heard about fight and flight: It’s a survival mechanism that kicks into place when we are in danger and chatting and smiling don’t work anymore. The new situation requires us to do something different: We now need to be assertive and set a clear boundary , when it’s more severe push someone away (fight impulse) or we need to turn around, walk or run away (flight impulse).

It is normal having to use fight/or flight in life and it is clever that our bodies are set up for it. Without it people could walk all over us and things would get messy very soon.

 It is just as healthy that we have access to the freeze state. It’s our oldest survival mechanism controlled by a nerve called dorsal vegal. It helps us in smaller doses to go to sleep, in big doses it helps us to survive when even  fight/flight isn’t enough anymore. We then go numb, dissociate and submit into immobility - we take refuge in the freeze state. In this state nothing hurts too much emotionally nor physically. Nature intended it this way to help us for when we have an accident or when we are being attacked.

While on this survival mode systems like digestion are shut down to conserve energy.  Staying in this state too long means our digestion suffers (irritable bowel syndrome) and since we feel less pain we also shut down from pleasurable experiences. We are meant to stay in this state for short times only -  we are not reptilians who can comfortably stay frozen for hours and even days.

The thing is – and here it gets problematic – that some of us when we were young were faced by situations where fight/flight would have been necessary. But a baby can’t set a boundary or pack its bags and walk away. The only way it can escape is by physically contracting  and then by going into a freeze state straight away.

The freeze state works so well, that as babies we then become used to frequently going into the freeze state. As adults later on we therefore go into a freeze state when fight or flight would be much more appropriate. Life that way becomes difficult and complicated very quickly and can look like one big exhausting survival instead of a joyful living.

The good news is, that therapies like Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, MATES and Brain spotting can help reinstate fight/flight and support a person to become unstuck from a freeze. By following sensations and slowing things down the body can carefully be coaxed back to homeostasis. Having fight flight online again and being able to transition to relaxed social engagement translates into a much more healthy way of being. Fun, joy, relaxing and nurturing can now be a much more regular part of your life with a healthier nervous system supporting you.

If you like these posts, please share them. Information on trauma is something that needs to go viral. Everything I have written is copy righted and I am requesting to give me credit for information passed on and copied. Thanks.

Should you have missed my post “What is trauma?” , just check out my Facebook page “Barbara Schmidt Counselling Somatic” or have a look under the blog section on my web site www.counsellingsomatic.com.au If you want more info on this subject, check out Stephen Porges Polyvagal theory.

Next week I will write about “Reptilian, mammal and rational brain “speak” different languages”

Have a great day,

Barbara

Counselling Somatic

Barbara Schmidt Mental Health Social Worker,  EMDR,  Somatic Experiencing Practitioner

Barbara Schmidt

Mental Health Social Worker

EMDR, Somatic Experiencing Practitioner

144 Stirling Terrace, Albany &

3/55 Strickland Street, Denmark

e: barbara@counsellingsomatic.com.au

w: www.counsellingsomatic.com.au

m: 0458 234 410

Trauma education I: Freeze state that follows fight flight survival mechanism

This is my second posting of my trauma education series:
Most people have heard about fight and flight: It’s a survival mechanism that kicks into place when we are in danger and chatting and smiling don’t work anymore. The new situation requires us to do something different: We now need to be assertive and set a clear boundary , when it’s more severe push someone away (fight impulse) or we need to turn around, walk or run away (flight impulse).

It is normal having to use fight/or flight in life and it is clever that our bodies are set up for it. Without it people could walk all over us and things would get messy very soon.

 It is just as healthy that we have access to the freeze state. It’s our oldest survival mechanism controlled by a nerve called dorsal vegal. It helps us in smaller doses to go to sleep, in big doses it helps us to survive when even  fight/flight isn't enough anymore. We then go numb, dissociate and submit into immobility - we take refuge in the freeze state. In this state nothing hurts too much emotionally nor physically. Nature intended it this way to help us for when we have an accident or when we are being attacked.

While on this survival mode systems like digestion are shut down to conserve energy.  Staying in this state too long means our digestion suffers (irritable bowel syndrome) and since we feel less pain we also shut down from pleasurable experiences. We are meant to stay in this state for short times only -  we are not reptilians who can comfortably stay frozen for hours and even days.

The thing is – and here it gets problematic – that some of us when we were young were faced by situations where fight/flight would have been necessary. But a baby can’t set a boundary or pack its bags and walk away. The only way it can escape is by physically contracting  and then by going into a freeze state straight away.

The freeze state works so well, that as babies we then become used to frequently going into the freeze state. As adults later on we therefore go into a freeze state when fight or flight would be much more appropriate. Life that way becomes difficult and complicated very quickly and can look like one big exhausting survival instead of a joyful living.

The good news is, that therapies like Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, MATES and Brain spotting can help reinstate fight/flight and support a person to become unstuck from a freeze. By following sensations and slowing things down the body can carefully be coaxed back to homeostasis. Having fight flight online again and being able to transition to relaxed social engagement translates into a much more healthy way of being. Fun, joy, relaxing and nurturing can now be a much more regular part of your life with a healthier nervous system supporting you.

If you like these posts, please share them. Everying I have written is copy righted and I am requesting to give me credit for information passed on and copied. Thanks.

Should you have missed my pos “What is trauma?” , just check out my facebook  page “Barbara Schmidt Counselling Somatic” or have a look under the blog section on my web site www.counsellingsomatic.com.au   More info to this weeks topic: read Stephen Porges Polyvagal Theory. 

Next week I will write about “Reptilian, mammal and rational brain “speak” different languages”

Have a great day,

Barbara

 Counselling Somatic

Barbara Schmidt MAASW (Acc.)

Trauma education series introduction: What is trauma?

I am passionate about sharing what I know about trauma, especially now  having finished my three year training in Somatic Experiencing. I have sat down and written six articles on the following topics:

1.     Freeze state that follows fight flight survival mechanism
2.    Reptilian, mammal and rational brain “speak” different languages
3.     How the self soothing Parasympathetic Nerve develops and how patterns of        worrying and over-thinking can be set up in childhood
4.    Corrective experience creates a new imprint in cells of our body
5.   When sympathetic and parasympathetic nerve go into chaos and trauma        symptoms take over

I will start posting them each one week apart on the weekend (I am away this weekend without internet, so this one comes early) . If you like these posts, please share them. Information on trauma is something that needs to go viral. I am often stunned how little even professionals know about trauma.

What is trauma? It’s an event that is potentially life threatening (like a car crash where nothing much gets damaged and you walk away apparently unscathed  - it still has the potential to be life threatening and you might develop trauma symptoms). 

Trauma is also when we sense we have no control, feel overwhelmed and our whole organism is strained beyond its adaptional capacity. The Nervous system cannot restore to balance when it holds highly activated survival energies frozen in time (Maybe you wanted to turn the wheel around, but you couldn't as something was in the way – but your arm muscles still prepared for the turning of  the wheel). Biological responses that couldn't be completed at the time (as not enough time or resources were available or as it was not safe to do so) are stored in the body, signalling the brain that the trauma isn't over when in fact it might have finished years ago. Here an incomplete list of possible traumas:

·         Neglect and abuse in childhood

·         Attachment issues (avoidant, ambivalent or disorganized)

·         Accidents and falls (often overlooked!!!)

·         Birth trauma

·         Previous hospitalisations and Medical interventions (also often overlooked)

·         Over anxious parent

·         Sexual abuse

·         Domestic Violence

·         Transition issues

·         Loss of loved one

·         Lack of support

·         Generational inherited trauma

·         Natural and man-made catastrophes

Even if you can’t remember the trauma, because you subconsciously wanted to forget it (dissociating and forgetting is often a reaction to trauma) or you where too young to remember it (the hyopocampus brain, which helps us build memory isn't fully developed in younger years yet) – the body remembers every trauma! It then gives signals off that something isn't right which causes disruption in our organism and effects our nervous system, brain and mental health.(Effects of trauma have been named in my last post.)

Most of us have experienced some sort of trauma in our lives - how well we recovered depends on how early we experience the trauma (how helpless where we?), how severe or how ongoing it was and how much support we received afterwards.

I consider myself very fortunate and am grateful that I have had extensive trauma training, I feel humbled being able to help people recover from trauma. I have had my own share of trauma as most professionals do drawn to this profession and I can see in myself the amazing changes and shifts that occur due to the right care for my own nervous system.

Reading my posts you will hopefully understand why normal talking therapy doesn't work with trauma clients – all parts of the brain need to be targeted and the Autonomic Nervous System needs assistance  to reorganize in a more coherent and healthy way. My understanding of trauma has been informed by many years of personal growth work, training I have been offering myself on “practical neuroscience” and my Somatic Experiencing and EMDR training. If you are interested in reading more I suggest Peter Levine’s book “Waking the tiger”.

Should you miss a post, just check out my facebook page “Barbara Schmidt Counselling Somatic” or have a look under the blog section on my web site www.counsellingsomatic.com.au

Have a great day,

Barbara

 Counselling Somatic

Barbara Schmidt MAASW (Acc.)

Trauma education series starting soon

I have decided to do a series of blogs on trauma education and will be starting posting these blogs weekly. It’s so important that we all know more about trauma, so we can understand our neighbours, friends, kids, partner, family and the world around us better and be of better service.

The result of trauma can be:

·         drug and alcohol issues, any kind of addictions,

·         promiscuous behaviour, reckless behaviour,

·         trauma symptoms like IBS, migraines and other pain syndromes, insomnia,

·         anorexia, eating disorders,

·         repeatedly getting into unsafe situations,

·         dissociation, avoidance, care taker patterns,

·         aggression, social problems,

·         depression, anxiety, PTSD, post natal depression.

I look forward to hearing your responses and hopefully this stuff gets out there! Please share “recklessly”.   ;) 

Should you miss a post, just check out my page “Barbara Schmidt Counselling Somatic” or have a look under the blog section on my web site www.counsellingsomatic.com.au