what is nervous system regulation?
Before we break down what is nervous system regulation, let us first review that regulation means ‘to govern or modulate.’ It is a function within a system to manage and balance the responsibilities in which it oversees. It can be helpful to understand what the nervous system is managing or balancing, when we witness it out of balance. Enter in the notion of nervous system dysregulation.
Dys, has Proto-Indo-European (PIE) roots from deu, meaning ‘to lack, or want.’
I preface this in the name of depathologizing dysregulation; which could easily replace current labels within mental or physical health arenas if we are not mindful of the intent of our newfound neuroscientific knowledge / language.
Framing the concept of dysregulation, as the desire for greater balance, as I am about to present, perhaps provides greater room for understanding, compassion and attunement; to ourselves and others in the navigation of nervous system regulation.
Leading a somatic workshop, Kat Courtney Retreat, Costa Rica
Nervous System Regulation is an act of Loving Self Parenting
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Nervous System Regulation is an act of Loving Self Parenting ~
So, what exactly is nervous system dysregulation?
Nervous system dysregulation is when the autonomic nervous system (ANS) is unable to manage stress effectively. When our nervous system functions optimally, it has greater access and ability to fluctuate between expressions of fight or fight, rest and digest and social engagement.
sympathetic or “fight or flight”
parasympathetic or “rest and digest”
social engagement or “present and connected”
Let it be conveyed, the following are not considered our ‘primary nervous system states,’ yet serve as building blocks to simplify fundamental understandings.
The nervous system can become overwhelmed by stimulus, and it’s ability to manage and modulate stress can become impacted, potentially leading towards chronic states of hyper and / or hypoarousal. (And yes, we can experience both hyper and hypoarousal simultaneously.)
These chronic states can become ‘fixed’ or ‘stuck,’ experiencing challenges to move in and out of sympathetic, parasympathetic and social systems with ease. The challenge to return to a regulated baseline can become taxing on the entirety of our whole-self over time.
Imagine a gazelle out in nature being chased by a lion. The surge of adrenaline and cortisol needed to transition from casual grazing to a full-on sprint will drive the gazelle into a sympathetic response, appropriate and necessary for its survival. If the gazelle however were to be challenged to resume a more regulated, sustaining the same surge of sympathethic arousal necessary for survival, while it were to rest or drink from water pools, it would lead to a lot of energy expenditure constantly circulating, bound and looping within the system.
We want to have access to all sympathetic, parasympathetic and social systems.
It is healthy to have the ability to fluctuate in and out of as necessary.
It’s how resourced, nourished and supported is our system
to maintain present awareness and the ability to
regulate and return to a healthy homeostasis for a baseline.
Unfortunately, due to a myriad of reasons, humans can be challenged to return to regulation, or experience ease in the ability to modulate and adapt. We discuss the causes for these challenges further below in causes for dysregulation.
However, may I offer a gentle inquiry - if we recognize we experience challenges to regulate, can we invite enough curiosity that the means of which our mindbodies relay signs or symptoms serve as a messaging system? Similar to a telegraph if you will, to bring our attention to that which seeks greater support and balance. These communications, while understandingly may come with their discomforts, granule or grave; extend an opportunity for us to lean into our sense of self-intimacy, to discover what our intelligent mindbodies’ are asking of us, and often draw us to illuminate our most authentic, true self.
After all, dys-regulation is the want (request) for more modulation, more governance, more self-parenting. It is asking for us to slow down, tune in and really attune to what is happening within us; in our thoughts, emotions, sensations, connections. The beautiful lotus in all this seeming mud, is that the communication style in which our mindbody relays messages, is a language that can be learned and lovingly attended to.
Signs or Symptoms of Nervous System Dysregulation
Signs or symptoms of nervous system dysregulation can manifest in physical, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral ways. These may vary depending on whether the individual is experiencing hyperarousal (fight-or-flight dominance) or hypoarousal (freeze or shutdown dominance).
We mentioned above that sympathetic, parasympathetic and social are not considered our ‘primary nervous system states.’ There is more nuance than that, yet to save you a deep dive neuroanatomy lesson, let us introduce you to the idea that there are blended nervous system states; and hence we can experience both hyper and hypoarousal expressions simultaneously.
Signs of Hypoarousal (Freeze or Shutdown Dominance):
Feeling numb, disconnected, or “spaced out”
Low energy, fatigue, or lethargy
Difficulty engaging with others or tasks
Emotional flatness or lack of motivation
Feeling hopeless or helpless
Brain fog, slowed thinking, trouble focusing
Cold extremities or slowed heart rate
Digestive sluggishness
Signs of Hyperarousal (Fight-or-Flight Dominance):
Feeling anxious, overwhelmed, or hypervigilant
Racing thoughts or difficulty concentrating
Irritability, anger, or agitation
Increased heart rate or rapid breathing
Muscle tension, headaches or physical restlessness
Sleep disturbances (e.g., trouble falling or staying asleep)
Digestive issues (e.g., nausea, irritable bowel symptoms)
Excessive worry or a sense of urgency
To support the resolution of these ‘stuck’ survival energies, we renegotiate the natural survival responses in which wished to occur, yet perhaps did not have the opportunity to be fully realized; meaning that neurochemistry that entered the system as an original response to an event, no matter the length of exposure, now has the opportunity to be discharged and integrated back into the system.
Additional Signs of Chronic Dysregulation:
Frequent illnesses due to weakened immunity
Chronic pain, tension, or unexplained physical symptoms
Hormonal imbalances (eg. adrenal fatigue)
Emotional instability; mood swings or stuck emotions
Addictive or coping behaviors; overeating, substance use
Difficulty feeling safe or grounded in the present moment
Why do we want discharged energy integrated back into the system?
Bound survival energy consumes resources.
When the mindbody completes a survival response no longer needed,
the energy becomes freed and available for new resources.
In this way we are not ‘releasing’ an experience or symptom, rather
allowing ourselves to reclaim and fully inhabit the spaces in which it once resided.
Causes of Nervous System Dysregulation
Dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system occurs when the body’s natural stress-response system becomes challenged to return to homestasis. This is often due to overwhelming or chronic stressors. These stressors can be multifaceted, including physical, emotional, and environmental factors.
Common Causes of Dysregulation
Chronic Stress
Prolonged exposure to stress, or allostatic load, (e.g., work pressure, financial strain, caregiving) can overwhelm the autonomic nervous system, disrupting it’s ability to return to a homestatic baseline with adaptable ease, sustaining a body in a state of fight, flight, or freeze response.
Trauma
Acute: single overwhelming event (e.g., an accident, assault)
Chronic: ongoing exposure to harmful situations (e.g., abuse, neglect, unsafe environments)
Complex: varied, compounding events / exposure, often invasive & interpersonal
Developmental: adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) like neglect, instability, or witnessing violence
Systemic: collective, social, historical oppression & harm, marginalized identities, communities, memberships
Intergenterational: epigenetics, 15 generations of ancestral DNA
Emotional or Psychological Factors
Overwhelming grief or loss
Anxiety, depression, or other mental health injuries
Relational conflicts or attachment wounds
Loss of agency & autonomy
Physical Stressors
Chronic illness or pain
Hormonal imbalances (e.g., thyroid issues, adrenal fatigue)
Poor sleep or insomnia
Nutritional deficiencies or dehydration
Environmental and Lifestyle Factors
Overstimulation (e.g., loud noises, excessive screen time)
Lack of rest or recovery periods
Substance use or addiction
Lack of supportive relationships or social isolation
Structural or Neurological Conditions
Brain injuries (e.g., concussions, traumatic brain injuries)
Neurological disorders (e.g., multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s)
Autoimmune conditions affecting the nervous system
Persistent States of Unsafe or Threatening Environments
When the body perceives danger, real or perceived, it activates survival mechanisms. If this perception persists, it can lead to dysregulation, even when the threat has passed.
Sensory Overload or Deprivation
Overexposure to sensory input (bright lights, crowded spaces)
Sensory deprivation (lack of touch, meaningful interaction)
Pneumogastric nerve; aka Vagus Nerve or Cranial Nerve X
“All of western medicine is built on getting rid of pain, which is not the same as healing. Healing is actually the capacity to hold the pain.”
Impact of Stress & Trauma
Impact of Dysregulation
When the ANS is dysregulated, it may become ‘fixed,’ or ‘stuck’ in patterns of hyperarousal (fight/flight) or hypoarousal (freeze/shutdown), challenging the body’s ability to respond appropriately to stressors.
How does chronic stress impact dysregulation?
Chronic stress contributes to nervous system dysregulation by keeping the body in a prolonged state of heightened activation, or arousal, which disrupts the balance and homeostasis of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Over time, this persistent arousal response can lead to physical, emotional, and cognitive imbalances, making it challenging for the nervous system to self-regulate.
How does trauma impact your nervous system?
Trauma impacts the nervous system, often leaving it in a state of dysregulation. Trauma triggers the autonomic nervous system (ANS) to activate survival responses (fight, flight, or freeze), and if the threat is unresolved, the nervous system may become ‘stuck’ in these states. This dysregulation disrupts the body’s ability to return to balance, leading to long-term physical, emotional, and psychological effects.
How Stress Impacts the Nervous System
Prolonged Sympathetic Activation
Chronic stress triggers the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), which activates the “fight-or-flight” response. This state floods the body with stress hormones (e.g., cortisol, adrenaline), preparing it to face a perceived threat. When stress is ongoing, the SNS remains overactive, exhausting the body and impairing the ability to return to a calm state.
Vagus Nerve Suppression
The parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), particularly the vagus nerve, helps the body recover from stress. Chronic stress suppresses vagal tone, reducing the body’s ability and capacity to access relaxation and repair.
Wear and Tear (Allostatic Load)
Repeated activation of the stress response system creates “wear and tear” on the body, leading to physical and emotional dysregulation. This can result in chronic inflammation, hormonal imbalances, and increased vulnerability to illness.
Shifts in Nervous System State
Chronic stress can cause the nervous system to oscillate between hyperarousal and hypoarousal, or can become stuck a particular state. These maladaptive patterns disrupt the body’s natural rhythms and impair resilience.
How Trauma Impacts the Nervous System
Activation of the Stress Response
During a traumatic event, the ANS detects danger and triggers the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) to prepare for fight or flight. If resolution or escape is not possible, the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) may activate a freeze or shutdown response.
Survival Energy Gets Trapped
Trauma can leave the body with unresolved survival energy (e.g., muscular tension or bracing, restlessness, hypervigilance) that was not able to be utilized to completion after the event. This unresolved neurochemical energy can manifest as chronic stress, emotional reactivity, or physical symptoms.
Persistent Dysregulation
Trauma can “rewire” the brain and nervous system to remain in hyperarousal (fight/flight) or hypoarousal (freeze/shutdown). Over time, this dysregulation impacts the ability to self-regulate and respond appropriately to new stressors.
Altered Perception of Safety
Trauma can create a heightened or chronic sense of threat, even when the person is no longer in danger. This leads to patterns like hypervigilance, anxiety, or emotional numbing as the system struggles to maintain balance.
Why Chronic Stress Leads to Dysregulation
Cortisol Dysregulation
Chronic stress can dysregulate cortisol production, leading to either an overactive or depleted stress response, which affects energy, mood, and immune function.
Loss of Nervous System Flexibility
The ANS thrives on flexibility, shifting seamlessly between sympathetic activation and parasympathetic recovery. Chronic stress diminishes this adaptability, leaving the system stuck in patterns that likely are not well-serving for long-periods of time.
Altered Perception of Safety
When stress persists, the nervous system begins to perceive even neutral or safe situations as a threat, maintaining a state of vigilance, shutdown and survival mode.
How Trauma & Dysregulation Are Connected
Neuroplasticity and Trauma
Trauma alters brain structures like the amygdala (fear processing), hippocampus (memory), and prefrontal cortex (decision-making). These changes perpetuate a dysregulated state by impairing the nervous system’s ability to distinguish between real and perceived threats.
Body-Memory Connection
Trauma often resides in the body as physical sensations, tension, or chronic conditions. The nervous system and tissues “remember” the trauma, even if the mind does not.
Autonomic Nervous System Imbalance
Trauma can lead to a dominance of sympathetic activation (hyperarousal) or dorsal shutdown (hypoarousal), making it difficult for the ANS to shift flexibly between states of rest and activation.
Healing often includes cultivating
felt-sense safety, bodymind awareness, and regulation
through tools like
somatic therapies, mindfulness, and restorative practices.
How to Support the Nervous System
Under Chronic Stress
Regulate the Stress Response through identifying arousal experiences and supportive aides to allow modulation.
Support Vagal Tone through practices like diaphragmatic breathing, humming, or gargling to stimulate the vagus nerve.
Create Predictable Routines to establish a greater sense of safety for the nervous system via consistency and predictability.
Engage in Somatic Practices like Somatic Experiencing® or somatic movement to help discharge survival stress patterns.
Prioritize Rest and Recovery with supportive sleep rituals and restorative activities to allow nervous system repair.
Address Underlying Stressors by identifying and managing external stressors; such as workload, relational of financial challenges to reduce the overall load on the system.
Chronic stress, left unaddressed, can perpetuate nervous system dysregulation, but with targeted interventions, it is possible to restore balance and build capacity.
Healing Nervous System Dysregulation
from Trauma
Engage in Somatic Pillars such as somatic movement, somatic bodywork or body-based dialogue, (eg. Somatic Experiencing®, to discharge bound survival energy and complete survival responses.
Trauma-Informed Therapy such as EMDR, trauma-focused CBT, or body-based therapies like Somatic Experiencing® or Nueroaffective Relational Model.
Support progressive nervous system stabilization through enhancing access to present-moment awareness, vestibular accuracy, proprioceptive awareness, and felt-sense body awareness (interoception) to increase regulation capacity.
Develop self & co-regulation skills to support emotional regulation and support healthy sense of self, as well as formulate nourishing, interdependent relationships.
Healing trauma requires patience and a focus on creating safety, both internally and externally, to restore balance to the nervous system.
