Polyvagal Theory: The Science of feeling safe
How the Polyvagal Theory explains the science of feeling safe
Polyvagal Theory, often referred to as the ‘science of feeling safe’ is a key scientific finding that helps us understand our internal challenges and how to unlock them in non-invasive ways.
Developed by world-renowned researcher and Unyte-iLs Chief Scientific Advisor Dr Stephen Porges, Polyvagal Theory focuses on what is happening in the body and the nervous system, and explains how our sense of safety, or danger or threat, can impact our behaviour. Understanding Polyvagal Theory gives us a scientific framework that can be applied through physiological, or “bottom-up” therapies, to help change and improve how we feel, think and connect with others.
What is the Vagus nerve?
The mind and body are connected through the vagus nerve, which is the longest nerve in the autonomic nervous system, stretching from the brainstem to the colon. It is our internal control center, allowing the brain to monitor and receive information about many of our bodily functions.
The vagus nerve helps to regulate many critical aspects of human physiology, including the heart rate, blood pressure, sweating, digestion, and even speaking. As the body takes in information automatically through neuroception, the vagus nerve processes the signals and cues from the world around us and, in turn, determines how we react through three physiological states:
Parasympathetic / Ventral Vagal state — our centered “true self” state, where all social interaction, connection and cognition occurs
Sympathetic state — feeling of threat or danger, and feeling the need to either “fight” or “flee” from a situation to seek safety
Dorsal Vagal state — our “freeze” state, when we feel our lives are so immediately threatened that we become immobilised
How to self-regulate.
We all process cues and signals from the world around us differently. Some of us may naturally feel calm and spend more time in a ventral vagal state, while others, due to genetic makeup and life experience, may feel threatened or endangered and default to a sympathetic or dorsal vagal state. This is especially true of those who experience the effects of trauma, or with conditions such as anxiety, ADHD, autism or PTSD.
Stimulating the vagus nerve and providing cues of safety can enable our nervous system to reset and change our physiological state — helping us to more easily access our ventral vagal state and to more consistently feel safe and calm.
This article was shared with kind permission from iLS Unyte.
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