Do you have a client like “Eve”? Let’s talk about Fight or Flight.
Have you ever met an "Eve"?
I wonder if you know someone like my client Eve*...
Or, you may identify with Eve, in some way.....
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Eve looked like a pretty typical woman in her high 40's. She lived in the suburbs, married to an accountant and had three children and an Australian shepherd dog. To give you a better picture of her, let me describe Eve. She was an educated cardiologist, got excited about brainy concepts, and was often found reading research papers with her early morning coffee. At the same time, she was also a social butterfly, The life of the party.
You'd often find her hosting social events in her community...and she would often be found laughing at the top of her lungs, surrounded by her close girlfriends.
And this is why she felt so confused about her symptoms.
Life was so good.
But she felt far from good.
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To the world, Eve seemed put-together, but behind closed doors, when Eve was alone, she would shiver in fear.
In our therapy room, I saw a different side of Eve.
I saw a scared girl, almost terrified.
When she'd explained her feelings to me, she said that she never really understood what the fear was about because there was no apparent danger. But, there was this feeling of fear that flowed through her body, and no matter what she did, she couldn't shake it.
Stuck in Fight or Flight
When The Mind + Body Experiences Danger From the Past
Without knowing too much about her story, it was clear to me as a therapist, that she was stuck in sympathetic arousal (also known as fight or flight). Something (either recently, or in the past) in her life, left her body feeling scared, maybe almost terrified. It was my job to figure out what that reason was, and how to help her experience relief.
And eventually...... resolve, or at least significantly reduce the feelings of fear .... so she could enjoy the beautiful life she had built.
Your Mind + Body are *Brilliant*
Psycho-eduation is the first step to providing relief.
When clients come into our offices, they often feel scared, worried and downright confused! One of the most important tools we can give our clients is helping them better understand their nervous system and the "why" behind their symptoms.
The First Exhale
When You Understand Why Your Are The Way You Are
Working with Eve, she began experiencing significant relief when I started explaining the concept of "fight or flight" to her, and how nothing was "wrong" with her, but rather, something was keeping her body stuck in sympathetic arousal. And the good news was that I would be able to help her as I am a specialist in treating trauma and anxiety, aka : nervous system specialist.
Does Eve sound like one of your clients?
If you're a therapist, read more...
As a sister-program to our group practice, we have special training for therapists! We are passionate about training therapists to keep providing trauma informed care so their clients can experience greater levels of relief!
Trauma Therapists = Nervous System Specialists
If you already have a lot of skills- but you're looking for more.....we've got you covered! We offer
Trauma training and specialized consultations to help you develop & expand your ability to help your clients with exercises and knowledge.
Good trauma training helps you grow your confidence which helps your clients feel more secure in the work- and helps you improve your clinical outcomes.
In our Trauma Training & Consultation Course we teach you skills + provide clinical consultation to support you.
We help you be more intentional in your work and provide the best care to those who seek you out. Click below to apply for the training.
And, check out the different states of the nervous system in the images below.
Cheers to continued growth, together =)
With Love,
Esther & The Integrative Team
