Getting Unstuck—Retraining Your Brain Out of Freeze Response – Episode 33

Resilience … is our ability to bounce back … but what if  you can’t bounce back and seem to remain stuck?

Have you ever experienced the feeling of procrastination, feeling stuck, or like you just can’t move forward in an area of your life? 

I’m sure at some point most people have felt this way if even on a small scale.

What if you really want to move forward though? Is it broken willpower? Does it mean you’re broken? Does it mean you “just can’t do it”?

I’d like to propose one possibility: what IF it’s actually related to the freeze response?

What is the freeze response?

When the brain, or nervous system, perceives that we’re in danger, we enter into a Fight Flight or Freeze response to keep us safe. 

So the freeze response gives us a feeling of being frozen or stuck in place takes place. 

This usually happens when a load of stress and overwhelm has built up too much OR there’s a certain trigger that overloads our system.

If this is a default pattern for you, you’re OK, you’re not alone, and this is actually a good and protective wiring for you to have. It says that your protective systems are working.

But what if the freeze response is working when you don’t want them to? 

For example, you want to freeze when a bear is around because running (Flight mode) would only ensure that you’re a threat to the bear and you don’t have capacity to run from a bear unless you’re super human.

But if you have a goal you’re pursing such as a health goal, or a work goal, or say someone in your family asks you to do something for them, you are more than likely not under threat. 

Tune in to discover more and unlock several helpful techniques you can use right away.