The autonomic nervous system
The part of the nervous system that regulates heart, breath and digestion without your will — and your level of readiness for danger.
How it shows up
The sympathetic branch speeds things up and prepares for action; the parasympathetic settles and allows digestion, rest and contact. Under long-term stress the balance shifts and the body stays on alert even without a reason.
What we do with it in therapy
You have no direct access to this system by willing it, but you do have indirect access — through breath, movement, voice and contact with a calm person. That is why therapy isn’t only a conversation about thoughts.
See also
Interoception
Sensing internal bodily signals — heartbeat, hunger, tension, breathing.
Identity
The sense of who you are — made of roles, values and the story you tell about yourself.
Disappointment
A collision between expectation and reality — unavoidable in relationships and not necessarily a sign of a mistake.
