Polyvagal therapy: A non-judgmental approach to mental health

A dysregulated nervous system is the most confining prison that can trap you. But if you can understand the bodily cues of safety and danger, you can learn how to regulate your responses and harness the most effective key to free your mind.

According to Polyvagal theory, your autonomic nervous system can spot cues of danger or safety by analyzing voices, facial expressions, and other bodily movements. When you hear the right intonation or pitch in someone’s voice, for example, you can sense whether that person is safe or unsafe. If your nervous system senses danger, it will make your body feel or do certain things. For example, your heart rate might increase, or you might feel sweaty or shaky, and you might be unable to concentrate on anything but the danger. If your nervous system senses safety, your heart rate will slow down, your muscles will relax, and you will be able to concentrate on other things.

Your autonomic nervous system can be useful when there is a need to spot danger. But if there is a misalignment between your nervous system and reality, if you sense danger when there is none, you can end up trapped from within. Your nervous system becomes your prison, and you can end up having panic attacks or feeling jumpy, or give up and withdraw altogether because you just don’t feel safe.
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