Podcast Summary
Understanding Self-Regulating Behaviors for Social Anxiety: Self-regulating behaviors like alcohol use can provide temporary relief from social anxiety, but their long-term consequences can be harmful, leading to dissociation, binge eating, or substance abuse. Explore healthier coping mechanisms to promote healing and growth.
Social anxiety is a common experience for many individuals, and it can manifest in various ways, including the use of self-regulating behaviors or substances like alcohol to cope with uncomfortable social situations. These behaviors, though often unconscious, serve to help individuals manage their physiological response to social threats. However, the reliance on these mechanisms can lead to negative consequences, such as dissociation, binge eating, or substance abuse, which can further exacerbate feelings of anxiety and disconnection. A personal story shared by the guest illustrates this phenomenon, where the absence of alcohol as a coping mechanism led to a need for connection and the subsequent use of food as a way to self-soothe after social engagements. Overall, it's essential to understand the underlying physiological responses to social anxiety and explore healthier coping mechanisms to promote healing and growth.
Fear of instability and unsafe people triggers hypervigilance in Complex PTSD: People with Complex PTSD have intense fear of instability and unsafe people, leading to constant hypervigilance, fear of abandonment, and inner critic voice to protect them.
Individuals with Complex PTSD experience intense hypervigilance due to a deep-rooted belief of people being unstable and unsafe. This hypervigilance stems from both a fear of physical threat and emotional threat. As children, they may have developed around caregivers who were dysregulated and under a lot of stress, leading to a need to keep everyone else regulated and safe. Additionally, an inner critic voice constantly judges and tries to protect the individual from abandonment and neglect. All these factors combined create a significant amount of stress and can make social situations challenging to navigate.
Managing social anxiety and stress for Complex PTSD: Understanding the physiological response to stress and practicing self-care can help individuals with Complex PTSD manage social anxiety and prevent harmful coping mechanisms, such as excessive alcohol use, which can lead to chronic stress and damage to internal systems.
For individuals with Complex PTSD, managing social anxiety and regulating stress levels is crucial to prevent maladaptive behaviors or dangerous health conditions. The pressure to numb out with substances like alcohol, which is socially acceptable, can be tempting when dealing with extreme emotions and stress. However, taking away this coping mechanism and practicing self-care, such as removing oneself from overwhelming situations and using regulation tools, is essential to prevent a dangerous state of chronic stress. This state can lead to damage to internal systems, including elevated heart rate, cortisol levels, and muscle tension. The amygdala, the body's alarm system, plays a significant role in this response, triggering the sympathetic nervous system and preparing the body for action. By understanding this physiological response and practicing self-care, individuals with Complex PTSD can better manage social anxiety and prevent harmful coping mechanisms.
Amygdala hijacking: Brain's survival response to social threats: Individuals with a history of complex trauma can experience heightened perception of threat due to overactive amygdala, impairing rational thinking and appropriate responses in social situations
The amygdala, a part of the brain responsible for detecting threats, can become overactive in individuals with a history of complex trauma, leading to heightened perception of threat in social situations. This phenomenon, known as amygdala hijacking, occurs when the amygdala responds to stress and disables the frontal lobe, impairing our ability to think rationally and respond appropriately. Our past experiences significantly influence how we perceive threats, and our brain's primary focus on survival can cause us to react instinctively, even if those reactions are detrimental to our long-term wellbeing. The brain's survival mechanisms prioritize immediate safety, and in high-stress situations, such as social anxiety, certain behaviors may be driven by the brain's attempt to regulate the nervous system and bring the body back to a state of safety.
Self-regulating behaviors can lead to complex PTSD symptoms: Excessive alcohol, binge eating, and overtraining can dysregulate the nervous system, leading to toxic shame, isolation, and complex PTSD symptoms. Develop new skills and awareness to find healthy ways to regulate and cultivate safe relationships.
Engaging in self-regulating behaviors, such as excessive alcohol consumption, binge eating, or overtraining, can create a vicious cycle that further dysregulates the nervous system and leads to complex PTSD symptoms like toxic shame and isolation. These behaviors can rob us of present moment experiences, human connection, and optimal health. It's essential to develop new skills and awareness to find healthy ways to regulate ourselves and cultivate safe relationships. A daily supplement like Athletic Greens can be an effective tool to support overall health and well-being, providing essential nutrients and gut health support. Remember, as social animals, human connection is vital for optimal health and well-being, so finding ways to engage in safe and healthy interactions is crucial.
Understanding Introversion vs. Social Anxiety: Introverts recharge alone, while social anxiety is a fear response preventing connection. Distinguish rest, recharge, isolation, and loneliness. Check body for anxiety levels before social interactions.
It's essential to recognize the difference between being an introvert and experiencing social anxiety. While introverts recharge by spending time alone, social anxiety is a fear response that prevents us from connecting with others. It's possible to appear confident and extroverted while dealing with social anxiety internally. Moreover, understanding the distinction between rest and recharge, isolation, and loneliness is crucial for self-awareness. Lastly, checking in with our bodies can help us identify anxiety levels and regulate ourselves before social interactions become overwhelming.
Prioritize self-care and understand your limits: Self-care is crucial for managing anxiety and social situations. Listen to your body, plan ahead, and have self-care tools on hand to make social situations more manageable. Prioritize yourself, it's not a luxury but a necessity.
Prioritizing self-care and understanding your limits is crucial in managing anxiety and social situations. It's essential to listen to your body and nervous system, allowing yourself to honor your commitments to yourself. If you're unable to attend a social event or fulfill a commitment due to anxiety, it's okay. People may not be affected as much as you think, and taking care of yourself should be a priority. Additionally, planning ahead and having self-care tools on hand can help make social situations more manageable. Remember, self-care is not a luxury but a necessity.
Interrupting the stress response with simple tools: Regularly practicing tools to regulate the nervous system before, during, and after events can help prevent continuous loops of anxiety and stress, leading to improved overall well-being.
Managing stress and anxiety involves more than just recognizing triggers and employing coping mechanisms. It requires a consistent practice of using tools to regulate the nervous system before, during, and after events to prevent the reoccurrence of heightened stress responses. These responses can lead to a continuous loop of anxiety and stress, which, if not managed, can result in a constant state of anxiety and potential meltdowns. Anxiety is a physiological response, characterized by a high heart rate, rapid breathing, and palm sweating, among other symptoms. Children, too, can experience these symptoms and meltdowns when their nervous systems are overwhelmed. By interrupting the stress response with simple tools and creating new experiences of connection and enjoyment, individuals can gradually reduce the threat of social situations and improve their overall well-being.
Complex PTSD: Beyond Visual Triggers: Complex PTSD involves more than just visual triggers, including auditory and other sensory stimuli. Social situations can be particularly challenging and may trigger emotional flashbacks involving all five senses. A multifaceted approach, including therapy, healing modalities, and self-care practices, is essential for managing symptoms.
Complex PTSD is a multifaceted condition that goes beyond just visual triggers, but also includes auditory and other sensory stimuli. Social situations, which are often rich in sensory information and complex relational dynamics, can be particularly challenging and may trigger emotional flashbacks. These flashbacks can involve all five senses and can be debilitating, making it essential to have patience, compassion, and a range of support systems, including therapy, healing modalities, and self-care practices. These practices can include working with the nervous system, spending time in nature, and developing presence with the environment. It's important to remember that complex PTSD is a complex condition, and dealing with it requires a multifaceted approach.
Healing from complex trauma requires understanding and working with the nervous system: Invest time and effort in understanding and working with your nervous system for significant healing progress. Seek support and learn self-regulation tools.
Understanding and working with your nervous system is crucial for healing from complex trauma. Reading books by authors like Pete Walker, Gabor Mate, and Judith Herman can deepen your understanding. Healing techniques are important, but neglecting your nervous system can hinder progress. Patience, compassion, and learning self-regulation tools are essential. Healing in isolation is not recommended, so seek support from professionals or communities. The series will continue next week with a focus on self-abandonment. Remember, the foundation of healing lies in the nervous system, and investing time and effort into it will yield significant results. The books' links are provided in the show notes. Stay tuned for more insights next week.