Understanding the Polyvagal Theory in Managing Stress

Every day we scan our environment for cues, cues of safety or cues of danger. Without even noticing, every thought, conversation, situation, interaction we have, triggers a reaction in our Autonomic Nervous System. When it is triggered, it responds to these cues in one of three ways, bringing us to 3 different states. These states are described by Stephen Porges in the Polyvagal Theory. Understanding the Polyvagal Theory and knowing exactly what these three states are, is the first step in learning what exactly the stress reaction is, how to become more aware of it and ultimately how to better manage ourselves in stressful times.

What are these 3 states?

1. Rest and Digest:

The first state is that of Rest and Digest. This is the state where, as a normal functioning adult, we look to be in for the majority of our time. WE feel connected to the world as well as a sense of belonging. There is no threat.

Why is it so beneficial to be in this state of rest and digest?

When we are in this state, we are calm and grounded. We are mindful, meaning that we can be in the moment and concentrate on exactly what it is that we are doing rather than having out thoughts hijacked to other things which are causing us stress in our lives. In this state of rest and digest, we perform at our best. Our creative juices are flowing. We can think quickly and come up with creative ideas without feeling threatened. Our problem-solving skills as well as our productivity, therefore, are at their best. Furthermore, our ears are attuned to the frequencies of human voices so we can hear one another much more clearly.

This is where we want to be for the most of our time so that we can perform at our best.

2. Fight or Flight

The second state is that of Fight or Flight. In this state, we perceive the demand, challenge or change in front of us as a threat.  Moving into the fight or flight state is an instant and automatic reaction. This is necessary as if we are in danger for example in a house that catches fire or we see a child run out onto an oncoming car, we need to react instantly. If we wait to rationalise whether or not there is a real danger, then it will be too late.

This state is also extremely useful if we want to up our performance for an event like an interview, big presentation or to speak up at a meeting. The challenge, however, is to move back into Rest and Digest afterwards. Very often what we find is that we stay too long here, or we ping pong from one stressor to the next without fully completing the stress cycle, this is what ultimately leads to burnout.

3. Shutdown

The third state is that of shutdown. When we are in this state, we are totally disconnected with a sense of hopelessness. The body becomes listless and we cannot cope in any reasonable way with what life is presenting.

As normal functioning adults, we move from state 1 to state 2 many times each day. The important thing is to make sure that we can get ourselves back into Rest and Digest and spend the majority of our time here. Unfortunately, in the modern world this can be challenging but long-term unmanaged stress can have a detrimental impact on our health and wellbeing.

Signs and symptoms of Chronic Stress

The main signs and symptoms of Chronic Stress are

• Shallow breathing – breathing only from the tops of the lungs, short and shallow breaths

• Increased Heart Rate

• Muscle tension mainly around the base of the skull and the neck and shoulders

• Headaches- pounding tension headaches around the temporal lobes or around the back of the head

• Digestive problems- nausea or diarrhoea

• Tired all the time/Problems sleeping. When we are stressed the Neurochemical Cortisol is released into the body and this keeps us alert. If we do not get back into clam and grounded state this Cortisol will keep us awake at night.

• Teeth grinding or Jaw clenching

• High blood pressure which if left unchecked can lead to heart attack or stroke.

See my Coaching for Stress and Overwhelm programme  for details of a coaching programme that will help you navigate the stress in your life with greater ease