Trauma Responses

The above shows the 'Sympathetic' attributes of Polyvagal Theory. 

I found this interesting because Fight or Flight had always seemed a horrible place to be. Adding in Fawn and Freeze also assisted me in recognising my body's feelings and the likelihood of where my mood was going. 

Early recognition of moving towards overwhelm/ shutdown (Dorsal Vagal), or creativity/ contentment (Ventral Vagal), helps to self-regulate, and encourages the brain to operate using automatic rather than cognitive centres.

This is one of the issues, the cognitive brain is simply too slow. By the time I've procrastinated over what, if anything, to say, the moment has passed, and I'm thinking what should I have done? That kicks off shame and guilt. Driving the mood further downwards. 

Training the cognitive brain to do what it should, and stop doing what it shouldn't, assists self-regulation.  Self-regulation is the key. The more control you have over your emotions, the easier to manage. It won't make everything suddenly amazing, but the more practice, allows for being able to deal with life.

The mood diary helped me develop this, by recording the feelings within my body, I was able to identify patterns. This, in turn, helped me associate certain body feelings with my mood, and know what emotions were likely to arise. I may not be able to change them but prepare for the alteration.