WHAT IS ‘THE FREEZE’ RESPONSE?
WHY WE SOMETIMES ‘FREEZE’
What can help people who have experienced a freezing response during a traumatic event is the understanding that it’s an entirely automatic response of our nervous system that we have zero influence over.
We may reflect back on that time and not comprehend why we didn’t run or fight. It’s useful and healing to understand this part of our nervous system would have completely overwhelmed the other potential response of fight/flight (mobilisation). It is in fact our bodies acting in a heroic way by protecting us from possible death.
POLYVAGAL THEORY
When we think of the autonomic nervous system, you may have heard or read that it’s made up of 2 systems: the parasympathetic (commonly known as the rest and digest response); and the sympathetic (commonly known as the fight or flight response). This is absolutely correct, although there is a third adaptive response to threat and that is to freeze. The Polyvagal Theory makes sense of this third neurobiological state.
The Polyvagal Theory was discovered by Stephen Porges (Distinguished University Scientist and Professor of Psychiatry) through his extensive research in behavioural neuroscience.
What’s useful to understand is that this third response of freeze is commonly linked to trauma and is completely automatic based on our neuroception (a word coined by Porges), which is a sub-conscious system for detecting threat and safety.
ACCORDING TO THE POLYVAGAL THEORY THE 3 RESPONSES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM ARE:
Immobilisation: Freeze/feigning death/behavioural shutdown. It is dependent on the oldest branch of the vagus nerve and is the unmyelinated portion of the parasympathetic system.
Mobilisation: Fight/flight. This neural circuit is dependent on the functioning of the sympathetic nervous system and is associated with increased metabolic activity which increases cardiac output, pumping blood to the muscles in our arms and legs as well as activating the production of adrenaline to give humans additional strength to run or fight.
Social connection: Rest & digest. This is the other parasympathetic response that’s dependent on the myelinated portion of the vagus nerve that fosters calm behaviour and inhibits the sympathetic system to create a physiological state allowing us control of facial expression, vocalisation and listening. This is what enables our ability to connect with other human beings when we feel safe and relaxed.
According to Stephen Porge’s research, the freeze response (or immobilisation) is the most primitive of 3 stages of the development of the autonomic nervous system that’s shared with most vertebrates and is associated with ‘feigning death’ in animals in life-threatening situations.
Physically the heartbeat & metabolism slows right down and certain areas in the brain shut down completely. In humans, physically the same things happen when we feel our life is under threat and from a behavioural perspective, we display characteristics of dissociation. This is when we avoid being in the here and now as a protective response to a traumatic event or the memory of one.
MISSED ADHD GENERATION
The last few years have seen an increase in women aged in their 40’s and 50’s with ADHD. Is it an impact from Covid , menopause or maybe both?
The last few years have seen an increase in women aged in their 40’s and 50’s being diagnosed with ADHD.
Is it an impact from Covid, menopause or maybe both?
A message from one of my clients;
“At the age of 50 and with the end of 2021 fast approaching, for the first time in my life I was feeling like I wasn’t coping. This had actually never happened to me before, I was a doer, always had a project or two or three on the go at any one time, a mother of 4, own business + full time job and I loved every single minute of it.
Fast forward to the end of 2021 and I wanted it all to stop - the constant chatter in my head - the internal motor that never stops - I actually wanted to stop and smell the roses but couldn’t. It was a very foreign concept for me and one that I tried to ignore, until I ended up in therapy where I was diagnosed with ADHD (combined type). Straight away the penny dropped - it all made sense. Not only to me, but to my husband and children.
I booked in to a psychiatrist where the diagnosis was confirmed. It has been life changing.
After a few sessions with Kate, she provided me with tools to help manage my ADHD and also understand that it’s a super power - you just need to know how to harness it and have it working for you, rather than against you.
I love my sessions with her, she booked me in straight away, and anyone with ADHD knows that is super important - waiting is not normally an option and she was brilliant. Her empathy, personal experience, ability to listen, lack of judgement, honesty and humour is what makes her so great and I seriously look forward to my sessions with her.
Boundaries - this was one of the biggest lessons I learned to implement from Kate and it has been a relationship lifesaver. “