“Someone I loved once gave me a box full of darkness. It took me years to understand that this too, was a gift.” ~ Mary Oliver

Polyvagal-Informed Therapy

Understanding and befriending our nervous system

The science behind the Polyvagal Theory (PVT) can seem a little intimidating, especially for those of us who don’t have degrees in physiology or biology. However, learning how our nervous system impacts our daily lives and relationships can be quite empowering. It provides a sense of relief in some ways because once we know what our nervous system is doing and why, the shame and frustration related to some of our survival behaviors are reduced and we discover that we have more options.

The Polyvagal Theory was identified and developed by Dr. Steven Porges as he studied the autonomic nervous system and the specific changes to the vagal pathways regulating the heart. Among many other things, PVT explains how we can recognize the involuntary responses of our autonomic nervous system (ANS), how we might increase awareness of self and others through understanding our ANS responses, how to accept and regulate our defense and survival responses, and how to internalize feelings of safety to build connections with others. It also reminds us that all behavior is enacted in the service of survival.

Deb Dana, the pioneer of the Polyvagal Theory in therapy, calls Polyvagal-informed learning “the science of feeling safe enough to fall in love with life and take the risks of living.” This is such a beautiful and hopeful goal, yet it may feel difficult for many of us to imagine due to experiences with unsafe others or situations in our past. But understanding some of the science of our autonomic nervous system responses is possible, and practicing how to identify and map the different states of the ANS helps us to build physiological self-awareness, reduce feelings of shame related to our ANS state responses, and increase our ability to build safe connections with others.

Healing is possible with a flexible nervous system

Our nervous system is adaptable and can learn to be more flexible over time with practice and safe support. Once we learn to identify our state responses, triggers, and patterns of response, we can also learn to increase our ability to observe without judgment, influence our state response, and decrease patterns of being hijacked by our emotions.

Support for you and your nervous system

PVT is a complex theory that I continuously strive to comprehend more fully, My passion for holistic health includes learning how our physiology and biology impact our mental and emotional health and vice versa. Increasing physiological flexibility and building pathways to safety and connection improves our overall well-being so that we feel better in our bodies, in our relationships, and in our lives. We can do this together by increasing awareness about what is happening in the body, learning to accept the responses and conditions that are out of our control, and working to develop and practice new habits when things are out of balance.

If you’re ready to learn more about your nervous system's responses and increase your experiences of safety and connection, I provide an encouraging, safe environment where we can start the exploration process together. To learn more about why I’m Polyvagal Passionate, you can find my blog post on the topic here.

Contact me for a free consult as the first step of your body-mind-heart-soul journey toward a life with more connection.