Tools for Stress Resilience Series: #3 Awareness – How Our Physiology Conditions Our Feelings and Actions

If you’re feeling a constant level of stress, join the “Tools for Stress Resilience” series. It is hosted by Interintellect host Mariya Hoffman, a somatic mindfulness instructor with a specialty in Focusing and Polyvagal Theory.

We all get knocked down by life at some point. A serious health issue might impact us or someone we love. People and pets we care about pass away. Financial setbacks, work-related challenges, or difficulties in relationships can chip away at our sense of security. In those moments, we might yearn for certainty — some sign that things will eventually be okay. Perhaps it is the pinnacle of the phrase “life’s unfair” to acknowledge: life is full of uncertainty, whether or not we feel equipped to deal with it.

In this salon series, we will explore the VAST toolkit for stress resilience: Values, Awareness, Spotlight, and Taking the Long View. Rather than rigidly fighting for how things “should” be, the tools help us foster psychological flexibility. This allows us to flexibly navigate obstacles, cope with difficult circumstances, and make space for recovery.

This framework is a blend of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (a psychotherapy that teaches psychological flexibility by accepting inner experiences), Polyvagal Theory (which proposes, among other things, that the way we subconsciously perceive danger and safety influences our thoughts, emotions, and behavior), and parts psychology (the idea that our psyches are a complex system of parts that can either work together or get stuck in stressful interactions).

Come and explore tools designed to help you tame some of life’s chaos. The goal of this series is to equip participants with the confidence and tools needed to regain balance when life goes off the rails.

The topic for our third session is Awareness: How Our Physiology Conditions Our Feelings and Actions:

~ Polyvagal Theory describes how our autonomic nervous system has its own detection mechanism for cues of safety and danger. It picks up on these cues and impacts our emotions and actions before we have a chance to even think about what’s happening (just think about how scary it feels to jump back from something falling on your head, only to realize it’s a small stick).

~ We’ll explore how our nervous system works, and how better awareness can help us feel more in control of what happens in our body and mind.

This is a bi-monthly series, occurring on the first and last Saturday of each month. You can join the entire series, or explore individual tools that resonate with you.

Recommended sources:

• Polyvagal Theory Explained Simply

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