Why we use Mindfulness, Polyvagal, and Attachment Theories in Therapy
Mindful awareness, polyvagal, and attachment theories in therapy can help you cope with anxiety and other intense emotions.
You are more than just your brain; your whole human body is made up of magnificent, complex and interdependent systems that impact your mental health so it makes sense to work with a therapist that is holistic, somatic and mindful of these interdependent systems. By respecting these complex systems, a holistic and mindful therapist can help you connect with your somatic experiences, emotions and moods through guidance during session, homework assignments and psycho-education so that you are empowered with knowledge and understanding of your whole body but especially of your autonomic nervous system (ANS).
While there is a brief definition of the ANS below, we like to think of your ANS at Flourish as your ‘danger detection system’. This system picks up external and internal cues that the vagus nerve determines are a ‘perceived threat’ and then the vagus nerve re-routes internal resources to help you survive or protect from a perceived threat to your survival. Without this fantastic danger detection system the human species would not have been able to survive for this long.
Becoming mindful of which ANS physiological state you are in can help you cope with anxiety, overwhelm, hopelessness, and feeling shutdown by knowing what strategies and skills to use in different states. Combining the mindful awareness of your physiological state with attachment theory in therapy can help you gain even more understanding of why your body might have a difficult time disengaging from anxiety or depression. A therapist who uses polyvagal and attachment theories can help you learn when and why your body chooses to engage in an ANS state. This can help you to accept and process past experiences, which in turn will soften intense emotional states that may seem impossible to soothe.
What is the Autonomic Nervous System?
The human autonomic nervous system (ANS) is a sub-system within the central nervous system (CNS). The ANS has many responsibilities such as regulating your breath, heartbeat, digestion, elimination, pupil function and sexual arousal. The ANS is sub-divided into three other sub-systems: the parasympathetic nervous system, sympathetic nervous system and enteric nervous system. All three of these sub-systems are connected through the vagus nerve which carries messages that turn on (and off) the various functions within these sub systems.
Understanding how your body responds to stressors by being aware of your ANS
Dr. Stephen Porges has been researching the ANS for over 40 years and his work shows that most of us do not have a choice of how we respond during a tense interaction or any other type of ‘perceived threat’. For example: if you have an argument with your partner or boss and notice that during it you don’t say anything, disconnect or become hopeless afterwards, you are not depressed; instead your ANS has engaged in a dorsal vagal response by default. In that same argument, your partner or boss may have become angry and confrontational which means their ANS state was in sympathetic, the opposite of your body’s disconnected response. Both of you didn’t ‘choose’ your response; your ANS chose for you based upon your earlier experiences when you were much younger.
By learning about the ANS and becoming aware of which ANS state your body is engaged in you (hopefully) learn to not judge, shame or berate yourself for your behavior. Instead you can shift to a self-compassionate narrative which allows you to be human, connects you to the discomfort of the present moment, and embraces acceptance that your behavior was an innate defensive and protective mechanism at work on an unconscious cellular level, which Dr. Porges refers to a ‘neuroception'.
At Flourish we often use The Ladder during psychotherapy sessions to help our people visualize what is happening within their bodies when they are feeling anxious, angry, depressed, tired, or trapped. For instance, when a client is feeling anxious, they may describe a tight feeling in their chest, a desire to run or confront, and intrusive worrying thoughts. By referring to The Ladder, they could see their ANS is engaged in sympathetic nervous system. Demands from others to calm down and think rationally won’t change their ANS state and it is physiologically impossible for them to calm down and think rationally. In order for the person experiencing anxiety to ‘calm down,’ they would need their neuroception to shift from a state of protection (indicating a perceived threat) to a state of safety, which cannot be done in an instant. The Ladder helps by showing breath and/or social engagement need to be introduced to disengage the protective state. Once the body picks up signals of safety, such as long exhales or eye contact with a friendly, empathetic person, then the anxiety will subside and they will be able to think clearly and speak articulately.
What is the best way to learn how to embrace and shift your Autonomic Nervous System responses?
Working with a psychotherapist who has received training on the clinical uses of polyvagal theory, developmental trauma through attachment theory, and mindful awareness of your somatic, whole body experiences is the fastest way you can learn how to become familiar with your body’s responses to adversity, big and small. Doing this work with someone who is grounded, experienced, and brings in other therapy models like Internal Family Systems (IFS), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), or Mindful Self-Compassion can help build your ANS engage into a neuroception of safety, which in turn can help you ‘re-wire’ your protective responses while building vagal tone, which is the mechanism for resilience for coming in and out of ANS states.
While you could try do this on your own, it can be difficult since the ANS wires us for social connection to another grounded nervous system. Dr. Porges’ work has proven we are social creatures, we are not meant to be isolated or alone especially when feeling intense emotions such as overwhelm, fear, anger, hopelessness, powerlessness, or insignificance. Being in a therapeutic relationship with an empathetic, non-judgmental, attuned, and present therapist is exactly what your ANS is yearning for.
All of our therapists at Flourish have had foundational training on mindfulness, polyvagal, and attachment theories, as well as mind-body connection training that is based on somatic and holistic principles.