Thread by @TracyWesterman

1/A trauma response explainer
Flight/fight/freeze are common responses to trauma. The ability to activate all 3 mechanisms is why people both survive & heal from traumatic events. Part of this is genetic (30%) & biological (ie. what we inherit as a stress response mechanism).

2/The rest is environment-ie. what is modelled; trauma history; the nature of the trauma-personal or sexual assaults increase trauma likelihood; how long the trauma goes on & if you know your perpetrator this increases the odds of developing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

3/Post trauma occurs when cognitions become so altered the brain tells the body to see threat everywhere(imagined rather than real). Essentially there is a “misfiring”; ensuring the flight/fight response is activated regardless of threat.Over time this response becomes normalised

4/Freeze has dissociative elements which has the outcome of forcing the heart rate down. This enables access to the higher level thinking part of your brain. This is critical to survival as it ensures higher level problem solving is possible to ensure survival or planned escape.

5/The flight/fight response is the body in hyperarousal. The brain tells the body to “arm itself” to enable either physical escape (flight) or to defend itself (fight)
It makes sense that flight/fight/freeze are all needed in order to survive” traumatic events.

6/Survivors of l/term violence & abuse speak of “emotionally” breaking from their bodies-this is dissociation. Women tend to activate dissociation more effectively than men. It enables survival, but post survival dissociation when emotions feel intolerable can become normalised