This section addresses the following questions: I'm wondering what is meant by 'tone' in the context of low dorsal tone? I understand what low dorsal tone involves, just not what 'tone' actually is in this context. Does the ventral vagus nerve regenerate? How does the tone change through this work? Is it a lasting change or will I always be prone to dysregulation because of C-PTSD? How do you keep a lot of ventral vagus tone when you are alone? I have prenatal trauma, so more early shock than developmental trauma, slow heart beats ever since, and no strong voice. Do people who were better wired from the start ‘get a reserve of social engagement energy’ they can survive on longer than me? When we say ‘tone’ we simply mean the amount of energy. High tone is a lot of energy, low tone is a little bit of energy. In the context of the dorsal vagus, this is the difference between getting ready to die, and successfully living! The high tone dorsal vagal response is the Freeze response, the last ditch effort of the organism to survive, or at least to be more numb to the experience of dying. The low tone dorsal vagal response is what governs digestion, immune function, cell repair, barrier-keeping in the gut, proper sleep, and growth. In other words, all the good stuff. If the vagus nerve never got properly tuned and myelinated, then it will probably never be ‘good as new.’ However, in most cases it can recover and be functional enough to live a healthy life. Once we learn to regulate our nervous system, I would say we are actually LESS prone to dysregulation, because we have already taken that journey; we know what dysregulation looks and feels like, and we know how to return to regulation when we get momentarily activated. In short, we have more tools in our belt than someone who has never had to recover from trauma. If someone got proper support during their early life, then they will generally be more comfortable with others, and often more comfortable with themselves, for they have learned how to self-regulate. I don’t think they get some kind of reserve gas tank of ‘social energy,’ it’s just that they are likely to be much more comfortable both alone and with others. If someone who is recovering from trauma needs to build that ventral vagal function, but they are alone, there are many ways of doing this. Toning or singing is great for the ventral vagus, as is listening to soothing music and sounds, or pleasing human voices. Believe it or not, even watching a good TV program with characters you care about and are emotionally invested in can stimulate the ventral vagal system. I lived pretty much alone for years, and the tv show ‘The West Wing,’ was my positive social engagement :) It’s not as good as the real thing, unless the real thing terrifies us, in which case it is better than the real thing, at least until we build more capacity, and it’s certainly better than nothing.

This section addresses the following questions: I'm not sure I understand the baby Liv videos. Is this just a sign of how disconnected from my body I have become? How does not crawling affect the NS development? And do I need to crawl now in order to help my NS? The purpose of the Baby Liv videos is to show how a little one naturally progresses through different stages of development: from laying on the back, to learning how to turn over, crawling, and eventually finding her feet. We get to see how her system organically unfolds and finds different options as she is led by her curiosity. When this is allowed to happen, the development of the different muscle groups and how they function also support the development of the brain and nervous system, and the ways in which they are able to relate to the environment and the self. These developments are interconnected. Many of us who have been through trauma did not get this. Our environment was stressful, and/or we were never allowed to roll around and play on the floor and explore with curiosity. Many of us were strapped into seats or put into different devices meant to keep us occupied. There is even the common practice called ‘tummy time,’ in which a parent places their baby on their tummy in an effort to force them to figure out how to start crawling. All of this is quite bad. The system is meant to organically unfold led by curiosity -- as is demonstrated in the videos. When this natural process is restricted, interrupted, or not allowed to progress slowly and sequentially, there is a negative impact not just on the developing muscle groups, but on the brain and nervous system as well. A lot of this damage can be repaired though, and the nervous system can rewire, or even link up wires that were never connected at all. Playing on the ground, exploring, crawling, letting our curiosity lead us (which are all fundamental principles of Feldenkrais) -- these are all ways in which we can start to do that work, along with all the rest of the exercises and learning in this program.

FAQs Archive - Page 18 of 21 - SmartBody SmartMind

Q: 3 - Are babies born with the ability to freeze -- go into dorsal vagal? Or just sympathetic in the beginning? I ask because according to my mom, I was always a very calm baby right from the start -- they took me to get tested because they thought I was deaf. I don't think I fussed that much either.

Yes, babies are born with both the sympathetic nervous system and the dorsal vagal nerve ready to rock. They have access to fight/flight/freeze, but they do not have access to social engagement and self-soothing, which are governed by the ventral vagus. This must be learned. If a baby is distressed all the time, that is a good sign that their sympathetic nervous system is in overdrive. If they are super calm and pretty unresponsive, this most likely means that their dorsal vagus is on overdrive.

Q: 6 - I just did potent posture exercise and I got triggered by seeing myself in the window. How do you suggest that I deal with this?

If you get triggered by seeing your own reflection, there are a couple things you can do. One, practice this someplace you can’t see your reflection. See how that goes! If that is alright, then maybe see what exactly is happening when you see your reflection -- what is getting triggered? Does the breath change? Do you become rigid? Are there memories, images, or emotions that arise? Maybe explore this in a titrated, curious way -- see exactly what is happening in the body, and then let yourself settle, orient to the environment -- but not your reflection :) -- then maybe try again, see if it’s different. Leave it, come back later. Explore!

Q: 5 - The key to this exercise isn't adjustment when we notice the holding pattern, is it? Are we meant to pause, notice and follow the impulse related to it?

Actually, with this particular exercise, the key is about adjusting to find better, more efficient options for our physiology. BUT...you certainly could do what you suggest as well, and that would be awesome! These lessons are meant to become a lived part of our experience and intertwine organically, so finding a bracing pattern, and then following your impulse to see what it may want to do, or what emotions that bracing may contain, is also a wonderful idea.

Q: 4 - When we stop bracing and being tense, will our muscles be ok? Or will they forever have some damage from all the tension?

Yes, they can recover! The body is incredibly resilient and repairable, especially so when the nervous system is regulated and we are not continually bracing.

Q: 3 - Why do we hold our breath when stressed?

This can be due to a few reasons. Our posture may not support our diaphragm easily dropping down and so the breath is strained and we unconsciously hold it. It can also be part of a survival response -- holding the breath to stay quiet and hidden.

Q: 4 - How can positive emotions, like joy, enthusiasm and excitement, feel like too much for one’s body?

Anything that is ‘high energy’ can feel like too much to a compromised nervous system, even emotions we perceive as positive. Though it is important to note, there is no such thing as a negative emotion. The Sympathetic Nervous System is ON when it comes to both excitement and threat, and if we have unresolved trauma, particularly early/developmental trauma, it can be very difficult for the system to distinguish between these things -- it all just feels like too much.

3 – Are babies born with the ability to freeze — go into dorsal vagal? Or just sympathetic in the beginning? I ask because according to my mom, I was always a very calm baby right from the start — they took me to get tested because they thought I was deaf. I don’t think I fussed that much either.

3 – Are babies born with the ability to freeze — go into dorsal vagal? Or just sympathetic in the beginning? I ask because according to my mom, I was always a very calm baby right from the start — they took me to get tested because they thought I was deaf. I don’t think I fussed that much either.Irene Lyon2019-11-11T12:38:11-08:00

2 – Vagal Tone

2 – Vagal ToneIrene Lyon2019-11-13T11:06:48-08:00

1 – Intergenerational Trauma

1 – Intergenerational TraumaIrene Lyon2019-11-13T11:04:40-08:00

6 – I just did potent posture exercise and I got triggered by seeing myself in the window. How do you suggest that I deal with this?

6 – I just did potent posture exercise and I got triggered by seeing myself in the window. How do you suggest that I deal with this?Irene Lyon2019-11-13T10:42:50-08:00

5 – The key to this exercise isn’t adjustment when we notice the holding pattern, is it? Are we meant to pause, notice and follow the impulse related to it?

5 – The key to this exercise isn’t adjustment when we notice the holding pattern, is it? Are we meant to pause, notice and follow the impulse related to it?Irene Lyon2019-11-11T12:20:19-08:00

4 – When we stop bracing and being tense, will our muscles be ok? Or will they forever have some damage from all the tension?

4 – When we stop bracing and being tense, will our muscles be ok? Or will they forever have some damage from all the tension?Irene Lyon2019-04-04T18:55:41-07:00

2 – Vagal Tone

1 – Intergenerational Trauma

6 – I just did potent posture exercise and I got triggered by seeing myself in the window. How do you suggest that I deal with this?

5 – The key to this exercise isn’t adjustment when we notice the holding pattern, is it? Are we meant to pause, notice and follow the impulse related to it?

4 – When we stop bracing and being tense, will our muscles be ok? Or will they forever have some damage from all the tension?

3 – Why do we hold our breath when stressed?

2 – Baby Liv

1 – What If this is hard to do, or brings on a big response?

4 – How can positive emotions, like joy, enthusiasm and excitement, feel like too much for one’s body?