TRAUMA/PTSD/CPTSD/ANXIETY

The Brain in Defense Mode: How Dissociation Helps Us Survive

According to Ross and Halpern (2011), there are several definitions of dissociation.

Five Common Misconceptions About Trauma

Every survivor I spoke with believed in the beginning that the trauma had destroyed their life forever, and that they would never be happy again. Read more...

Understanding How Anxiety Might Be Different For Men

Men and anxiety. New studies show that men don’t experience or express anxiety in the same way as women. Read more...

The 8 Key Elements of Resilience

Resilience is defined as the psychological capacity to adapt to stressful circumstances and to bounce back from adverse events. Read more...

VAGUS NERVE

6 Ways to Instantly Stimulate Your Vagus Nerve

First of all, the vagus nerve is the longest nerve in the body which originates in the

brain as cranial nerve ten, travels down the from go the neck and then passes around the digestive system, liver, spleen...Read more...

The Vagus Nerve May Carry Serotonin Along the Gut-Brain Axis

When Prozac was introduced in 1987, it made a big splash as the first selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant for the treatment of major depressive disorder. Read more...

I Now Suspect the Vagus Nerve Is the Key to Well-being

Have you ever read something a million times only to one day, for no apparent reason, think “Wait, what is that?” This happened to me the other day for “the vagus nerve.” Read more...

If There Was Ever a Time to Activate Your Vagus Nerve, It Is Now

If you experience a racing heartbeat or tightness in your chest when you read a news story about the pandemic, it’s because of your sympathetic nervous system. Read more...

SLEEP

5 Steps to Wind Down and Fall

Asleep

As someone who works every day with patients struggling with insomnia, the most common thing I hear is once the head hits the pillow, the brain doesn’t stop. Read more...

Getting Rid Of Repeating Nightmares to Wind Down and Fall Asleep

One of the most dramatic, butt-kicking examples of an effective new treatment tool for posttraumatic stress is a simple protocol called Nightmare Reprocessing. Read more...

YOGA/MINDFULNESS

Put Down that Painkiller, Pick Up a Yoga Mat

In the middle of a prescription painkiller overdose crisis in the United States, a San Diego VA study finds that veterans with chronic pain would be well-served to put down the pills and pick up a yoga mat. Read more...

5 Reasons You’re Having a Hard

Time Being Mindful

Every time I talk about mindfulness, I hear: “My brain is way too busy to be mindful.” “My ADD is so bad; I just can’t focus.” “The last thing I need is another item on my to-do list.” I understand. I really do. Read more...