Here’s How To THAW OUT When In A Freeze State

When we are faced with danger in our lives (whether that is real or simply perceived), our nervous system responds by entering into a stress response. Depending on our environment and our past experiences, this stress response can look very different for each person.

One of these ‘trigger’ responses is known as the freeze state, and is one that can often paralyze people in their lives, preventing them from being able to move forward or go after their goals. In today’s episode, we are covering in great length what exactly the ‘freeze’ state is, what this can look like for different people, and how to effectively move out of this state, should you find yourself here.

Biggest Takeaways

• The ‘freeze’ response is a trigger response that happens when your sympathetic nervous system becomes activated. This is a stress response that can cause someone to ‘freeze’ in their behaviours, actions, etc.- and can show up differently for each person.
• For some, freeze states can result in a person entering a depression-like state, where they are unable to ‘get up and get moving’. For others, this can be a ‘functional’ freeze state, where they can appear to have the energy to move through basic responsibilities or oligations, but end up crashing afterwards. And for some, a freeze state could also include disassociation.
• To move out of a freeze state effectively, you want to thaw gently, giving your nervous system time to catch up. Just as the freeze state can be dysregulating- so can the methods you take to move out of it. We discuss the top ways to do exactly this in the episode.

Let’s dive in, shall we?

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