The body is an amazing thing. It comes to us packed in a tightly woven package and as we fill it with food and water, it grows into an adult form within 18 years. It’s complex. There are many factors in the making of a human being that need to be considered. For instance, vitamins are essential to growth. A healthy diet can and will create the best outcome for a healthy human body. Likewise, an accepting, supportive environment will create the best outcome for a healthy human mind. There’s more to consider, though, and that’s the nervous system.
The human being is wrapped around a system of nerves, bundled through the spinal cord, and it spreads out all over the entire body. A network of connections and sensors runs from the brain stem, entwines around organs, and tendrils down to the fingers, toes and sexual organs (Dana). The Vagas Nerve is human’s primitive, original system. It is the “reptilian” mind; it is the survival system, still primarily utilized by animals like snakes, lizards, turtles, and frogs. It can sense danger from up to 16 feet away, from all directions, and reacts immediately by coursing hormones throughout the body, sending the message to either fight, run, or submit. When the Vagus Nerve reacts, if there has been no self-regulation in a person’s existence, it can feel like the human body has a mind of its own. …because in a way, it does.
The Vagas Nerve is connected to the Nervous Security Surveillance System; it actually is the nervous system and it presents with three responses; yes, thankfully only three. Activating the Vagas Nerve isn’t something we do consciously; it is instinctual, automatic. It’s our survival program.
When we are feeling safe, can socialize, learn new skills, and feel calm we are utilizing the Ventral Vagal System. When the system is at rest it’s not detecting danger and the brain is stimulated to dose the body with hormones like Serotonin, Dopamine, and Melatonin, based on what is occurring in the human’s life. While in Safe and Social mode, a person can function well, they can get things done, they feel confident and accomplish goals. It is our best mode of operation; our best work is done while performing in the ventral vagal system.
When the Vagas Nerve detects danger, the human body reacts with sudden instance. Perhaps long before the mind detects danger, the Vagas Nerve has taken control of the situation; it’s made the decision for the body. The Sympathetic Nervous Response System kicks on and the human feels pressure; it is either time for fight, or time for flight. You’ve probably heard this before; it’s best not to make important decisions while in Fight or Flight (angry, fearful), because the brainstem is disengaged from the reasoning centers of the brain (pre-frontal cortex). As soon as the Vagas Nerve detects danger, Cortisol is flooded throughout the body; Adrenaline pumps to the legs, blood is shut off to the gut, and an intense sensation is felt over the limbs, torso and head; that’s the energy needed to run –flee from danger. The Vagas Nerve’s response isn’t avoidable, and it isn’t to be ignored. Again, it is our survival program, and it is watching, searching, always surveying the proximity with an eye for any possible danger (Dana). During Fight and Flight mode, we likely feel irritable, pressured, ignored, forced to decide, late, conflicted, and over-burdened by the responsibility of too many things. We will either fight back or flee from what ever is posing a threat; we may also unload our abundance of anxiety onto others to stop feeling it, ourselves. We may act sensitively, because we feel so threatened; we may even act completely out of character, exploding emotional outbursts, and reacting as if we are in great danger; overstimulated by sounds, people, and surroundings.
The final of the three responses of the Vagas Nerve is the Dorsal response, also known as Freeze mode, or Shutdown. In Shutdown, we feel that there are no options left; our choices are removed. We may feel criticized, feel like we don’t belong, feel isolated, and unimportant. This phase is not maintainable for long-term, it is longer lived by more durable beings (perhaps those accustomed to it, already), but for most, Shutdown needs to be broken out of, and quick! Depression is also a form of Shutdown.
I like to liken humanity with the pandemic of 2019 to the Vagas Nerve. Prior to mid-2019 many people in America were feeling safe and definitely social. Inventions, creativity, and recreation were abundant. As the pandemic grew in severity, immobilizing country after country, fear set in. Humanity detected danger, and fights broke out. World-wide capitals, governing authorities, and businesses were swarmed with angry citizens demanding ‘normal’ to return, insisting on returning to what was comfortable, again (regardless of the fact that for others, that normal was intolerable). As the pandemic enveloped the globe, a shutdown occurred. Governments forced citizens to stay home, stay put, and the hive mind of humankind settled into Shutdown. and depression.
See, the three responses; Ventral, Sympathetic, and Dorsal must be met in order. There’s no jumping from Shutdown (dorsal) to Safe and Social (ventral). A human must move either up through Fight/Flight, or down on the Vagas ladder. All of humanity is under the same rules (Stuck 1).
I’ve learned through therapy and research that what happens inside, happens outside, too. In order for humanity to rise up out of Shutdown, there will need to be a return to Fight and Flight. There will be arguments, fighting, maybe even wars; there will be great changes made in order for mankind to return to Safe and Social, again –and what a world that will be!
Sadly, most misunderstand the makings of the human body, they don’t understand what is causing feelings and emotions to swell inside, because most people haven’t been taught Self-Regulation. Self-Regulation is best taught early in life, when emotions are arising, new and bold. Self-Regulation is the sharing of emotions and the coping skills to get through the hardest of them without harming the self or others. Instead, ignorance has humans hurling insults onto other humans for their emotions, ridiculing those who stand up and state pain. Unfortunately, instead of helping, they victimize those who are already suffering in Shutdown.
If Self-Regulation hasn’t been learned, the body is flooded with reaction hormones, like normal. However, if we do not process, but instead stuff the feeling down without understanding the meanings, dis-ease sets deep in the organs. Updated research is proving that when we store emotions, holding them tight, we are storing the energies and chemicals that were sent for our survival. Children and adults can suffer gut problems such as IBS throughout their lives due to feeling unsafe in their homes, afraid to step out of expectations set by guardians. Recall, when in Fight/Flight mode, all blood is shut off to the brain and gut, and is sent to the legs for quick escape. A sluggish gut equals a chaotic home, but humankind is oblivious; we carry on, taking our over-the-counter medicines and wishing for heaven.
If mankind could be educated in the Vagas Nerve and the Nervous System responses, those in leading roles like care givers, teachers, police, judges and doctors could recognize what stage of the Polyvagal ladder they’re facing. If they were trained to recognize each level of the ladder (only three rungs), they could respond by trying to lift aggressive people up into Safe and Social; they could be prepared for the Fight response when an individual is coming up of Shutdown. If police could see a person exhibiting fear responses (flight, fight), and try to reason, calmly talk about things instead of reacting with a gunshot, more human lives would be spared. Unfortunately, the mindset of today is impatient –“get it done, now!” Patience is a key to stopping needless deaths due to fearful police officers. Likewise, if police knew this about their own bodies, they could respond in ways that were more self-loving and seek assistance from others, taking breaks to recuperate from their work-related trauma.
Trauma is a catalyst of Vagas Nerve’s reactions.
Some people’s Vagal Nerves are more pumped up than others. Having been raised in a chaotic home with unreliable role models causes the vagal nerve to flex more often, flooding the body with Cortisol and Adrenaline (Stuck 2). Children raised in toxic (trauma inducing/negligent) environments can be programmed to detect event the slightest of dangers. As these children grow into adults, they can make great emergency workers, police, fire fighters, soldiers, and doctors. They’ve been taught to think fast on their feet, and to make big decisions during the Fight/Flight Response. Without intending, they are constantly searching the people around them for danger, hyper-focused, and hyper-aware. This was an essential coping skill for them while growing up, and it is a trait many have.
The Vagal Response is human, it’s unavoidable, it’s going to happen, but there are ways to help you bring yourself up out of fight or flight (once you recognize the feelings), and into Safe and Social, again (Dana). We are not victims of this system! A person can experience the feelings of fear, anger, shame, regret and learn to label them in their body. They can listen to emotionally charged music (like heavy metal, rock, death metal, etc) to feel their anger through; they can exercise, ground themselves, do four-square breathing (breathe in for 4 seconds, hold for 4 seconds, exhale for for seconds, hold for 4 seconds, repeat), or meditate (Stuck 3). By doing self-loving things such as these, the Vagas System is able to disengage, the mind is given opportunity to fixate on something other than the issues, and the body is able to regulate the emotions and discharge the abundance of hormones. A person can practice skills while all is Safe and Social, then use them at their disposal when the time comes that they’re flung down the Vagal ladder rungs (Dana).
People called me crazy growing up; they said I was “too emotional,” overreactive, a “snowflake,” and sensitive. I wasn’t shown these wonderful tricks of the human body, and I can’t tell you how many times I wished for an owner’s manual. Discovering the Polyvagal Theory has exposed me to the powers of self-compassion, empathy for myself and others, and a sense of accountability. I no longer listen to the rude insults calling me “crazy” for feeling emotions. I’m a feeling being; that’s what humans do –and if I ignore it, then I am crazy.
Cited Work:
Dana, Deb, and Stephen W. Porges. Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection: 50 Client-Centered Practices. W.W. Norton & Company, 2020.
“Stuck Not Broken – a Polyvagal Podcast.” JustinLMFT, 11 June 2019, Season 1, ep 18, www.justinlmft.com/podcast.
“Stuck Not Broken – a Polyvagal Podcast.” JustinLMFT, 9 April 2019, Season 1, ep. 9, www.justinlmft.com/podcast.
“Stuck Not Broken – a Polyvagal Podcast.” JustinLMFT, 16 April 2019, Season 1, ep. 10, www.justinlmft.com/podcast.