DailyOM: Welcome, Dr. Janine. Could you tell us more about your background and experience with the nervous system?
Dr. Janine: Absolutely! For seven years following my clinical psychology doctorate studies, I worked exclusively with veterans. The main issue I was treating was intense trauma. Yet ironically, the "evidence-based" treatments I was taught tended to be more focused on the client either writing or speaking about the trauma over and over again to desensitize themselves to it. I intuitively felt off about these treatments and often saw clients struggling to heal through these modalities. I found myself feeling less and less aligned with traditional clinical psychology and constrained to use only these specific modalities.
I could no longer ignore the calling of my soul and dove headfirst into all sorts of alternative modalities, including the nervous system, energetics, and somatics. Finally, things started to make sense. I left my job to work for myself, so I could coach clients and facilitate true healing. Teaching folks about the nervous system is usually my first stop in their healing and transformational journey, whether they are working on healing from chronic illness or mastering their mental performance for a lifelong goal. The nervous system affects absolutely everything — your ability to communicate clearly, to take actions on your dreams, and to manage your overall health and well-being.
DailyOM: For those of us who are new to the concept, could you explain what polyvagal theory is?
Dr. Janine: The polyvagal theory is essentially a more advanced way of explaining the nervous system and how to heal from trauma compared to conventional medicine. Your vagus nerve runs from your brain stem to nearly all major systems in the body, and it impacts things like heart rate, breathing, and digestion. So, the vagus nerve is constantly informing the body and its systems whether or not you are safe — this process is called neuroception. Now, this doesn't mean actual safety. This is perceived safety. When someone has been through trauma, it's almost as if they have a faulty fire alarm that goes off where there is merely steam from cooking.
Polyvagal theory also explains multiple stress states, as in the fight and flight state, which resides in the sympathetic nervous system state. And when people have exhausted that response, they collapse further into what's known as dorsal vagal or their freeze and shutdown response. By understanding these different responses, individuals have a better awareness of their stress states.
DailyOM: Why is polyvagal theory the leading modality in nervous system regulation?
Dr. Janine: Conventional medicine simply cites that we are either in one of two states: parasympathetic or sympathetic — rest and digest or fight and flight. Now we know that we can experience varying levels of stress that are not specified in this traditional model. The limitations of the old model left people in the dark if they wanted to truly understand the differing states of the nervous system.
Polyvagal theory has been instrumental in giving people more awareness in how they function and handle stress in their daily lives. The theory also provided language to understand when the nervous system becomes mobilized for action, such as fight and flight. You can think of this as similar to leaving a car on all the time — it will eventually break down. Our bodies simply cannot sustain the mobilization for too long. Eventually, we end up immobilized in freeze or shut down.
Polyvagal theory also emphasizes tools that help us regulate, depending on which state we are in at any given time. Ultimately, the theory helped nervous system work become common verbiage in the online space when seeking to heal and transform.
DailyOM: What happens when we don't pay attention to the health of the nervous system?
Dr. Janine: Nervous system work is the most valuable player in healing and transformation in my opinion. It affects everything in the body and, in turn, how you experience reality. Think about it this way — you are energy to your core, a radio receiver if you will. You are constantly emitting frequencies or vibrations and receiving them. You have a baseline frequency that is largely informed by your nervous system, and your nervous system is constantly responding to your perception of your environment via your conscious and subconscious beliefs. Depending on your beliefs, your nervous system could quite literally stop you from taking action.
For example, let's say as a child, you had a highly critical parent. You got in trouble for not performing exceptionally all the time. This causes you to become hypervigilant and worry that you are never good enough. Now in adulthood, you struggle with doubting yourself, imposter syndrome and not taking bold action toward your dreams. Maybe you also deal with chronic digestion issues like irritable bowel syndrome. Why? Your focus on your self-judgment activates the nervous system for too long, which often leads to freeze and shutdown states paralyzing you in moving forward. Your body simply cannot sustain chronic levels of stress, which can lead to symptoms of chronic illness. So anytime you are seeking to break through another ceiling or edge, you will have to calibrate your beliefs and, in turn, your nervous system to adapt to feeling safe in the expansion.
DailyOM: What can students expect to learn in your course? What tools and practices do you provide?
Dr. Janine: Students will gain a foundational understanding of polyvagal theory and why it is much more effective than talk therapy. They will learn how to apply it easily to daily life and gain clarity on which nervous system state they are in at any given time. Students also will learn their specific physical, behavioral, mental, and emotional cues to clarify each state.
They will understand what trauma really is. The word trauma is certainly having an "it girl" moment online, which means many untrained people are sharing it in a way that is not entirely accurate. I am here to clear that up. After creating a strong awareness and foundational knowledge of the nervous system, they will examine which tools to use for which state they are currently in. The course includes multiple guided breathworks and step-by-step guidance on how to somatically release trauma responses from the body.
I also review nervous system hygiene. Keep in mind, this is not a one-time deal. Nervous system work is a lifestyle choice. And it is essential for everyone to incorporate it into daily life for healing from chronic illness and improving mental performance. Lastly, students will discover how to spot and stop self-sabotage and learn the No. 1 thing that activates the nervous system that no one else is talking about. By learning how to reprogram the root, the entire process becomes much easier to regulate. I'm so excited to have partnered with DailyOM on this course, and I know the students are going to have massive transformations!
DailyOM: Thank you so much for taking the time to delve into the nervous system with us. This course can be a game-changer for people to heal their trauma or chronic illness. Get started today! Until next time, be well.
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