FIGHT, FLIGHT, FREEZE & FAWN
Understanding how your body reacts to trauma will help you tremendously on your journey to better health. It connects parts of you that you wouldn’t have noticed before. It brings clarity to your present moment, because you finally have some peace of mind about what you are experiencing, and why you are reacting that way. A lot of times we dismiss our bodies warning signs due to the nature of society, and how we are "expected" to show up in the world. It can often feel isolating, and confusing, experiencing things you are told are your problem. Today I hope to shine some light on the different trauma responses people can experience. I also want to note that you don't have to have a complicated or intense past to have trauma. Anyone can carry trauma with them, and it effects everyone very differently. There's a saying that goes "you are not responsible for what happened to you, but you are responsible for how you choose to heal"
So what is fight, flight, freeze & fawn?
When your nervous system is overwhelmed, or perceives a threat to survival, your body will release hormones that send you into a specific state. Your amygdala sends signals to the hippocampus that triggers these states. Also known as fight, flight, and freeze. (and most recently discovered: Fawn) You can get into these states from various circumstances, but some of the most common are life stressors, environmental issues, and sometimes even your diet/health.
You have two main parts to your nervous system, and you stay in a singular part depending on your current state. Your freeze response is directly related to your parasympathetic nervous system (your dorsal vagal nerve), and your fight/flight are directly related to your sympathetic nervous system. In the parasympathetic branch you have a ventral vagal nerve, that responds to cues of safety, and a dorsal vagal nerve that responds to danger cues. We will get to the fawn later. To get back into a safe state again, your ventral vagal system is the most ideal. This is when you feel happy, safe, and healthy! Your body can fluctuate in between states, and in some cases you can be in multiple states at the same time. Sometimes people can stay in these states for months, and even years. Myself included. I mentioned in another post that regulating your nervous system is extremely beneficial to your healing, but it truly is the best way to finally heal.
Now that you have some background, let's break down these systems, the warning signs and how they affect us:
FIGHT: (sympathetic dominance) I would describe this state as you are always "on guard". Adrenaline is rapidly being released, and defensive responses will come into play. It is almost like your body is looking for any possible threat. You may think everyone is out to get you. Your body is trying to protect itself, but your responses can be intense. Your body can’t tell the difference between severe and minor threats, so even small triggers can make you feel rage. You act out in social settings, or with people you care about. You may take anything personally, and as a threat to protect yourself. You may put yourself in dangerous/unfortunate situations, so you can act out. Road rage is a great example of this because it shows you put yourself in danger for the sake of taking out your anger on someone else.
Warning signs: Anger, rage, frustration, road rage, passive aggressiveness, defiance
FLIGHT: (sympathetic) This state can be described when your body is trying to "run" away from the trauma. You are constantly on the run from your problems/issues and overcompensate by overworking yourself, or putting yourself in positions that take a lot of your time/energy. Your decisions are based off of fear and you often fall in the trap of perfectionism to avoid traumatic experiences. You are always on the run and it’s hard to stay in once place. You constantly overthink, and develop intense feelings of anxiety, fear, and worry.
Warning signs: Anxiety, fear, workaholic, paranoia, panic, worry/concern, OCD
FREEZE: (parasympathetic)Dorsal Vagal State of Shutdown of the Nervous System. This is when your body cannot cope with the trauma you are experiencing, and it is so exhausted it completely shuts down. You can become bed ridden, and have no energy to do anything else. You may be extremely exhausted, and start to oversleep. Its almost like your body stops functioning how it used to. This can be the most confusing state, because people label a lot of these symptoms as being "lazy" or "not doing enough/anything", when in reality your body is so tired from years of trauma that the only way it is trying to save you is by shutting down some functions.
Warning signs: Depression, bed ridden, unable to do self care, unable to go to work, doom scrolling, oversleeping, addiction (can be from anything), extreme exhaustion
FAWN: (hybrid) In this response is you experience a hybrid of flight and freeze. The main takeaway of this response is you are actively pushing away your own needs to keep the peace within relationships/connections. You may thrive off of people pleasing because it "secures" experiencing no conflict.But it still effects you down the road because you almost lose yourself while trying to maintain having no conflict. This may be familiar with people who experience codependency.
Warning signs: prioritizing others before yourself/your needs, people pleasing, difficulty saying no/setting boundaries, OVER APOLOGIZING (i do this so much), difficulties identifying your own needs/wants, trying to save others