PSYCHOLOGY

Change Your Response to Stress

Stress responses are great if we are about to cross the road and we spot that a man has lost control of his car, but it is not helpful if it stops us from being and having what we want.

Fighting or fleeing are well-known ways to deal with trauma, stress, and danger. They are triggered by the perception of threat, and they date back to the time our ancestors faced dangerous animals and had to fight or flee to survive. It is primarily a physiological reaction that ignites the sympathetic nervous system and releases hormones, prompting the body to react.

Back in our days, our challenges are more mental and emotional and we found additional ways to deal with traumatic, stressful, frightening events — freeze, fawn, flood, and faint.

These are desirable responses to a real threat but cease to be so after the threat is gone or when we find ourselves in non-threatening situations. But sometimes our subconscious gets stuck in a response. Consequently, we can find ourselves in freeze mode about a broken relationship, or fawn mode when we feel that we are falling short at work. These responses affect the way we feel, think and act.

These are normal responses of the body, but the problem is that sometimes they don’t disappear after the threat is gone, and for some of us they may become automatic in situations that don’t represent a threat at all.

We want to shift to a place of neutrality in the areas where we struggle the most. That will give us the proper perspective and the emotional resources to deal with, and overcome what lies ahead.

Fight goes to war

Physically or verbally, she defends her beliefs, values, and her way of doing things. She fights for her truth, freedom, and security. A conversation can easily become a battleground of ideas and concepts that lead nowhere but to the pleasure of winning or proving the other person wrong.

In the heat of debate, she turns friends, colleagues, and family into opponents. Fight is demanding. She feels the need to be on alert mode all the time, anticipating solutions to problems that don’t exist yet and being ready for whatever comes her way.

Flee runs away

She suffers from anxiety and tends to worry too much. She has trouble staying focused. She will avoid commitments and end relationships abruptly. She does not hold to contentment for long. She is always looking for happiness in her next job, home, or relationship. She is a workaholic, is always in a rush, and has trouble sitting still or having downtime. He flees from confrontation, from what seems harsh, from failure, from the expectations of others, and often, from herself.

Freeze can’t move

Freeze is not going anywhere. He can freeze on top of a stage or when the spotlight is on him. He is unable to break off a relationship that is no longer working and he is more likely to hold a job he hates and fail to start a business he loves. He lacks the strength to face or run away from abusive people and situations. The intense use of TV and social media keeps him alienated from a reality he wants to deny. He might have been misdiagnosed with depression.

Fawn is a
people-pleaser

Fawn is a yes-man, cause he fears expressing himself. At the first sign of conflict, his first instinct is to appease the angry person. He is unable to say no and disregards his happiness and well-being no matter how poorly someone treats him. He often put others’ needs ahead of his own. He follows others’ lead and relies on them for decision-making. He feels uncomfortable or threatened when asked to give an opinion. He takes on more if asked even if he feels overwhelmed already.

Flood loses control

Flood gets overly emotional and has to release emotions. She may break into hysterics or cry, unable to control the wave of fear, anger, or sadness that sweeps through her.

Faint shuts down

Faint may get sick in response to stress. She can feel exhausted and may become very sleepy.

The biological stress responses activated by certain stimuli can prompt you to react in ways that deviate significantly from your normal behavior. You find yourself responding to people, events, and situations in ways that seem uncharacteristic. Over time, such reactions can solidify into habitual patterns of behavior that may not be beneficial to you.

The good news? You're not hard-wired to keep reacting this way. It's possible to identify and understand the automatic stress responses that you associate with specific people, life situations, or circumstances. This understanding empowers you to dig deep into the roots of your actions and behaviors, and make changes from within.

By releasing trapped emotions - those unresolved feelings from past experiences that have been stored in your body - you can break free from these limiting patterns. This transformation enables you to adopt more empowering attitudes, more in tune with your true authentic self.

Are you excited to take the next step towards a stress-free life? If the answer is a resounding yes, it's time to turn that inertia into action. Make a change today by deciding to understand and address your emotional imbalances. By booking a session with me, we can discuss and assess your stress responses. Together, we will push past those barriers and find solutions to clear stressful triggers. This opportunity is about investing in yourself and paving the way to a more balanced and fulfilling life.

PSYCHOLOGY

Change Your Response to Stress

Fight goes to war

Flee runs away

Freeze can’t move

Fawn is a
people-pleaser

Flood loses control

Faint shuts down

Ready for Change?

SUPPORT

ENERGY HEALING

PSYCHOLOGY

Change Your Response to Stress

Fight goes to war

Flee runs away

Freeze can’t move

Fawn is apeople-pleaser

Flood loses control

Faint shuts down

Ready for Change?

SUPPORT

ENERGY HEALING

Fawn is a
people-pleaser