01 — 06
You have heard of fight, flight and freeze
But there are
two more
that almost nobody talks about.
And they might be the most revealing of all.
02 — 06
Complete shutdown
When the threat feels so overwhelming the nervous system does not fight, flee or freeze.
It collapses.
Loss of control. Blacking out. Disorientation. The muscles literally give way. For the nervous system that experienced something truly unsurvivable,
it was the only option left.
03 — 06
Fawn is when you appease. When you make yourself agreeable — not because you want to, but because conflict feels dangerous.
04 — 06
Chronic people pleasing. Never being able to say no.
Putting everyone else's needs so far ahead of your own that you lose track of what you even want.
No boundaries. Shrinking yourself to keep the peace.
Caring so desperately about what others think that you stop being yourself entirely.
05 — 06
When you could not control what happened, you learned to control
how people felt about you.
Keeping everyone happy kept you safe.
So the nervous system made it automatic.
And now even when perfectly safe — you are still performing. Still fawning.
06 — 06
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