Freeze, Shutdown and Dissociation.

Every time I teach about the nervous system to a new group, my heart aches. I hear the self-blame and shame people carry for how they responded to a traumatic event, adversity, or shock.

Why?

Because our conversations about the autonomic nervous system typically focus on "fight or flight" and the sympathetic nervous system's mobilizing responses.

We admire those who fight.

We understand those who flee.

But our society struggles to understand immobilisation and how it protects us.

This week I was fortunate enough to share my work in Wellbeing Magazine to spread the word that there are nervous system states beyond fight-or-fight.

The Misunderstood Protective Response

Instead of discussing why people freeze when threatened or overpowered, we hear harmful questions:

"If they were so scared, why didn't they leave?"

Or "Why didn't they say stop?"

Healthcare often misses the connection between dissociation, interoception, and chronic conditions like persistent pain, IBS, eating disorders, anxiety, and depression.

Most importantly, we're failing to support those in our communities who carry shame for freezing or shutting down in the face of a highly stressful event. This leads to ongoing suffering and drives dysregulation.

Understanding the Dorsal Vagal State

The other crucial protective response, also known as the third line of defence, is through the dorsal vagal complex: immobilisation.

The dorsal vagal state is an ancient survival mechanism that evolved long before fight-or-flight.

When facing overwhelming threat—particularly when fighting or fleeing isn't possible—our body instinctively shifts into this protective state.

Freeze Response

Freeze is characterised by a sudden stillness, like a deer caught in headlights. In this state:

• The body becomes motionless while remaining highly alert
• Muscles tense in preparation for potential action
• Time perception often distorts
• The person feels unable to move despite being consciously aware

This response happens automatically, beyond conscious control. It's not something you're choosing—it's your nervous system doing exactly what it evolved to do to protect you.

Shutdown Response

When threat continues or intensifies beyond what the system can manage, shutdown may occur:

• Energy conservation becomes the priority
• Heart rate, blood pressure, and metabolism decrease significantly
• Digestion slows or stops
• The person may feel heavy, exhausted, or numb
• A sense of disconnection from the environment emerges

This state mimics death to deter predators and conserve energy when escape seems impossible. It's an ingenious biological strategy, not a personal weakness.

Dissociation

Dissociation represents another protective aspect of the dorsal vagal response:

• Consciousness separates from overwhelming sensory experience
• The person feels detached from their body or surroundings
• Memory encoding may be fragmented or absent
• A sense of unreality or dreamlike perception takes over
• Emotional numbing occurs

Dissociation protects us from overwhelming pain or terror in the moment. It's your brain's way of creating distance from an unbearable situation when other options aren't available. 

Education as Regulation

This week in our first Nervous System Certification Course lecture, we explored how education transforms self-perception, leading to top-down regulation.

When practitioners and coaches deliver key nervous system concepts at the right moment, it literally changes someone's neurobiology—it's a vital step in recovering from dysregulation.

Our internal narratives shape our sense of self and how we view others. The way we make meaning of what we did (or didn't do) in the face of threat stays with us. 

A Call for Better Understanding

Our world needs more trauma-informed people.

It needs more nervous system-trained practitioners.

I deeply value opportunities to share knowledge about dissociation, freeze, and shutdown responses because they're so poorly understood. 

Special thanks to Dana Diamet from Wellbeing Magazine for this platform, and to Odette Barry for consistently championing my work, along with Emm Moss and Nicole Sergi.