Polyvagal theory was developed by Stephen Porges, Ph.D. to describe our "flight or fight" response to stressful situations. When faced with trauma, some individuals react with anger, anxiousness, or ...

Before Porges’ (2011) polyvagal theory became widely known, it was commonly thought that the autonomous nervous system has only two branches: the sympathetic system which manages in times of stress, ...

On September 12, Dr. Amelia Barili begins her 10 week series : “Embodying Safety: A Certificate for Integrating Yoga, Giqong and Polyvagal Theory.” It teaches how to reset your nervous system for ...

I am an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and for the last 30 years, I’ve taught first-year college students and medical residents, child psychiatrists and educators. I love ...

How important is it to feel safe? Secure? Grounded? The answer is very important, as feeling safe within our bodies provides us with a sense of security and well-being that reduces anxiety, doubt, ...

Branded as the opposite of triggers, Deb Dana, LCSW, psychotherapist and author, coined the term glimmers and says that they’re tiny micro-moments of joy that allow us to feel calm and give us a sense ...

Note: What follows is a modified excerpt from the book Our Polyvagal World: How Safety and Trauma Change Us, by behavioral neuroscientist Stephen Porges, Ph.D. (who first proposed the Polyvagal Theory ...