Workbook instruction: Please refer to page 26 of the workbook for this sprint.
The Fight, Flight and Freeze response is our body’s response to perceived threats and stressors and is controlled by the nervous system.
It is an evolutionary response which originates from our experience as primates and early hominids when we were likely to be hunted by predators.
The fight/flight/freeze response prepares our body for this –however, in modern civilization we’re very unlikely to be chased by a tiger!
However, we are likely to feel threatened and stressed by deadlines, demands and other 21st century stressors – our response to these threats hasn’t changed even though the nature of the threats we experience has.
Watch Braive – The Fight Flight Freeze Response
Braive is a mental health service. In this video they outline the basics of the fight, flight and freeze response.
The nervous system is divided into two parts, the central and peripheral. The peripheral is comprised of two parts, the autonomic and somatic.
The autonomic nervous system is the system of interest as this contains the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions which control the fight/flight response.
The sympathetic system is our arousing system; it is this element of the autonomic nervous system which triggers our fight/flight/freeze response.
The parasympathetic system is responsible for helping to calm our body down when we are past danger (Roelofs, 2017).
Task: Personal Reflection
Take a moment to consider times you might have been outside of your Window of Tolerance. What caused this? How did you respond at the time?