Understanding Your Nervous System Through the Lens of Polyvagal Theory

Aug 04, 2025

Building on my recent post about the Window of Tolerance, let’s take a shallow dive into Polyvagal Theory, an essential lens for understanding your nervous system and how it shapes your daily life.

Polyvagal Theory was developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, PhD, over 25 years ago and has become increasingly mainstream in recent years, especially among somatic therapists and trauma practitioners. It’s a powerful tool for understanding how your body responds to safety, danger, and connection, and for learning how to support your own regulation with more intention and care.

What Is Polyvagal Theory?

Polyvagal Theory explains how the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS), the part of your body that runs things like breath, digestion, and heart rate, shapes your emotional and physiological experience, especially in response to stress or perceived threat.

The ANS could also be called the Automatic Nervous System, as it operates beneath conscious awareness. You don’t have to consciously think about your heart beating, taking a breath, or digesting your lunch for those things to happen. The ANS is in charge of making sure all of those things are happening with or without your awareness. But with mindfulness, we can begin to recognize our patterns and even influence the pathways that bring us back into balance.

Here are the three main states described by Polyvagal Theory:

Ventral Vagal (Regulated / Safe)

When we feel safe, we’re in a ventral vagal state. From this place, we can connect with others, engage in creativity and play, tolerate discomfort, and stay grounded in the face of stress. This is where we’re most resourced, able to respond instead of react.

Sympathetic (Fight or Flight)

When we perceive danger, our body may activate the sympathetic response, commonly referred to as “fight or flight.” In this state, we might feel:

Increased heart rate or physical activation
Flooded emotions
Racing, disorganized, or catastrophic thoughts
Hypervigilance or intrusive imagery

Let’s say you get an email from your boss asking for a meeting this afternoon. Your mind immediately spirals: They’re going to fire me. Your chest tightens, your heart speeds up…you’re shifting into a sympathetic state.

This response is fast, automatic, and protective. But with awareness, you can begin to pause and respond differently.

Dorsal Vagal (Freeze / Shut Down)

The other common threat response is the dorsal vagal, also known as the “freeze” or “collapse” response. This is the body’s way of conserving energy or playing dead in the face of a threat. You might experience:

Numbness or disconnection
Difficulty thinking clearly
Emotional flatness or shutdown
A sense of fog, fatigue, or dissociation

In dorsal, there may be an absence of sensation or a sense that everything is too much. This too is a protective state, and one we can gently shift out of with care and presence.

Bringing Mindfulness to the ANS

The amazing thing about the nervous system is that while it runs on autopilot, we can learn to influence it through attention, breath, and movement.

Here are a few nervous system tools to try the next time you notice yourself feeling activated, shut down, or anywhere outside your Window of Tolerance:

To Support Sympathetic Overactivation (Fight/Flight):

Lengthen your exhales. Try breathing in for 4 counts, out for 6 or 8. This sends a signal of safety to your body.
Ground through your senses. Orient to your environment by naming 5 things you see, 4 you hear, 3 you can touch.
Move your body. Shake out your arms, stretch, or take a brisk walk to discharge excess energy.

To Support Dorsal Vagal (Freeze/Collapse):

Gently turn your head side to side. Slowly scan the room with your eyes as you do, helping your system orient to the present.
Use light tapping. Try softly patting up and down your arms and legs with an open hand, focusing on the sensation.
Invite subtle movement. Wiggle your fingers or toes. Play music. Wrap up in a weighted blanket or find warmth.

These aren’t instant fixes, but over time, consistent attention helps build capacity and trust in your ability to come back to yourself.