Why Nervous System Support Might Be the Missing Piece—Even If You Haven’t Been Through Trauma
I’m Amy Hagerstrom, LCSW, a licensed somatic therapist serving adults online across Florida and Illinois. I help thoughtful, driven people—often in midlife—who feel stuck in patterns of reactivity, shutdown, or physical symptoms that don’t make sense on the surface. Through body-based therapy that supports the nervous system, I help people have more capacity and connection.
Most health and wellness approaches focus only on thoughts and feelings. But stress and overwhelm live in your body, too—and if your nervous system hasn’t had the chance to reset, it can keep you stuck, even when everything else looks fine.
You may be dealing with chronic stress that’s sucked the joy out of daily tasks and activities. Maybe you have big goals and you’re worried that’s all they’ll ever be because you can’t seem to make any progress. Whenever you think about getting started, your body and mind seem to be working against you.
You might not experience anything like that, but you feel like there’s a disconnect somewhere. And it’s stopping you from living the life you want to live, day in and day out.
These are signs your nervous system may be stuck in survival mode—and could use support shifting out of it.
I’m Amy Hagerstrom, LCSW, a licensed somatic therapist offering online therapy across Florida and Illinois. I work with adults—often in midlife—who are ready to understand the stress in their bodies, stop the cycles of overwhelm or shutdown, and build lasting resilience through body-based therapy.
How to Tell If Your Nervous System Is Stuck in Survival Mode
You might need more nervous system support if you often feel stuck in survival mode. It can show up in different ways for different people—sometimes loud and reactive, sometimes quiet and withdrawn.
You might lash out, or you might shut down. It’s not always extreme. Some people feel tension, fatigue, or digestive issues with no clear explanation. Others just feel off—disconnected from themselves, their work, or the people they care about.
These patterns often stem from a lack of felt safety.
When your body feels safe, your sympathetic and parasympathetic systems work together to help you move through stress and settle again. But when your system detects danger—real or not—it shifts into defense mode.
Your brain is constantly scanning for threats. The part responsible for that is the amygdala, your brain’s built-in alarm system. When the nervous system is dysregulated, the amygdala can go into overdrive, sending alarm signals even when the situation isn’t actually dangerous. That might be because of old trauma, prolonged stress, or a system that hasn’t had time to recover.
These false alarms send your body into fight, flight, freeze, or collapse—even when you’re safe.
What Does Your Autonomic Nervous System Do?
Your autonomic nervous system (ANS) has two main branches:
The sympathetic nervous system (SNS)
The parasympathetic nervous system (PNS)
The SNS is responsible for your fight or flight responses.
It helps your body prepare for action by increasing energy and alertness—especially when facing a challenge or potential danger.
The PNS is in charge of your rest and digest functions.
It helps your body slow down, recover, and restore—ideally becoming dominant when you’re in low-stress situations.
But it’s not always that simple.
A highly reactive nervous system can stay stuck in sympathetic activation, even when you’re not in danger. And while the parasympathetic system is usually linked with calm, certain types of parasympathetic responses—like collapse—can also show up when the system is overwhelmed.
Understanding how these responses work can help explain why your body reacts the way it does, especially when the intensity doesn’t seem to match the moment.
The Nervous System Stress Responses
We don’t get to choose which stress response shows up—or when. These reactions happen fast, often before we realize what’s going on. It’s your brain’s way of trying to keep you safe. The amygdala, your brain’s threat detector, doesn’t register time or place. So when it senses a reminder of something stressful or traumatic, it can act like the threat is happening again—even if it’s not.
That’s why you might find yourself reacting in ways that don’t make sense for the situation. These responses are automatic. You may not have control over them right now, but that doesn’t mean you’re stuck with them forever.
Stress responses like fight, flight, freeze, or collapse are all normal. But if they’re happening often or intensely, it can take a toll on your health. Chronic stress affects your immune system and can lead to physical and emotional symptoms like fatigue, pain, anxiety, or depression. When your nervous system is stuck in these protective states, it may need support to come back into balance.
That’s where somatic therapy comes in. It helps your nervous system respond more appropriately to what’s actually happening in the moment—not what it’s bracing for.
Let’s look at these nervous system states and how they show up in real life.
Fight
Fight is a sympathetic nervous system response to a real or perceived threat. It involves a surge of adrenaline and oxygen to your organs, giving you energy and strength to take action. This might show up as an urge to yell, push, lash out, or speak harshly—especially if you feel emotionally cornered or your boundaries are crossed.
The fight response can range from frustration or irritation to anger or rage. As the intensity increases, it often becomes harder to stay grounded and in control.
This response isn’t bad—it’s part of how your body protects you. Sometimes, it's necessary. But when your nervous system gets stuck in fight mode, it can interfere with relationships, work, and your overall well-being. Over time, it can leave you feeling drained and disconnected from the version of yourself you want to be.
Through somatic therapy, we work to regulate your nervous system so you can shift out of these patterns, regain control, and respond in ways that reflect who you truly are—not just how your body is reacting.
Flight
Flight is another sympathetic response, designed to help you escape a perceived threat. It also mobilizes adrenaline, often creating a surge of energy in the lower body—like your legs want to move before your mind catches up. The experience might range from mild worry to full-blown panic.
Like fight, this response is useful when danger is real. But if your system is constantly revving in flight mode, you might feel jittery, avoidant, anxious, or unable to relax.
When my clients are stuck in this pattern, we focus on helping their nervous systems come back to safety—so they can engage with life instead of running from it. If anxiety or avoidance is getting in the way of conversations, decisions, or the life you want to build, somatic therapy can help.
Collapse
Collapse is a parasympathetic response, activated when your system believes there’s no way to fight or flee. It’s the body’s way of conserving energy when overwhelm is too high.
In this state, you might feel numb, hopeless, or emotionally shut down. Your heart rate slows, your energy drops, and it may feel hard to connect with anything—yourself, others, or the world around you.
While collapse is protective in certain situations, staying stuck here can make everyday functioning feel impossible. You may find yourself dissociating, struggling to follow through on tasks, or feeling invisible in your own life.
In our work together, we gently build capacity in the nervous system so that moments of collapse don’t take over—and you can start to feel more alive, engaged, and present.
Freeze
Freeze is a mix of both sympathetic (fight/flight) and parasympathetic (collapse) responses—like pressing the gas and brake at the same time. Your system is activated and ready to respond, but movement feels impossible.
This can feel confusing: your body is buzzing, your thoughts may be racing or totally blank, and you might feel paralyzed, unable to speak or act.
While collapse and freeze are often grouped together, I find it helpful to separate them. Freeze holds tension, alertness, and indecision. It’s a state of overwhelm where your system can’t figure out what’s safe or what to do next.
Through somatic therapy, we learn to recognize and gently shift out of this state—so your system doesn’t have to stay stuck deciding whether to fight, flee, or shut down.
Experience These States More Often Through Nervous System Regulation
Not all nervous system states are about stress or defense. Some are about connection, creativity, and feeling like yourself again. These are the states we want to experience more often—because they help you feel steady, capable, and present.
Ventral Vagal (Safe and Social)
This parasympathetic state is when your nervous system recognizes that you're safe. Your body isn’t preparing for defense—it’s supporting connection, engagement, and ease.
In this state, your’e more likely to feel:
Comfortable around others
Grounded and aware
Curious, creative, and clear-headed
You’re able to think, feel, and connect with less effort—and more confidence.
Ventral + Sympathetic (Engaged and Motivated)
The ventral state doesn’t mean you're always calm or still. You also need some sympathetic energy to get through your day—especially when you're working, creating, moving, or meeting deadlines.
This is healthy activation.
When you’re regulated, this sympathetic charge works with your ventral system. You can take action without feeling overwhelmed. You're energized, but steady. You're focused, but not on edge.
This state supports things like:
Playing a sport or game
Tackling a challenging project
Meeting a deadline while staying clear and composed
It’s about being active without getting hijacked by stress.
Ventral + Dorsal (Restful Stillness)
This blend allows for quiet, still moments—without shutdown. You’re present, even in stillness. It’s the nervous system state that allows you to nap peacefully, cuddle with a loved one, or sit with someone without needing to talk.
This is the state you need for:
Deep rest
Sleep
Bonding in quiet connection
If you’re struggling with sleep, restlessness, or being still without feeling discomfort, this state might be harder to access. That’s something we can work on in sessions.
How Does Nervous System Regulation Work in Somatic Therapy?
There are many ways to support your nervous system—but if dysregulation is affecting your daily life, deeper support is often needed.
You may have already tried things like:
Yoga or meditation
Exercise or breathwork
Acupuncture or reducing caffeine
These can all be supportive, but if your system is stuck in survival mode—or quick to go into it—you might need something more tailored, body-based, and consistent.
That’s where somatic therapy comes in.
Somatic Therapy: Regulating Your Nervous System from the Inside Out
As a licensed somatic therapist, I help clients work directly with their nervous system—not just their thoughts or emotions. We focus on how your body responds to stress, and we build your ability to feel safe, steady, and more in control.
Depending on your needs, our work together might include:
Somatic Experiencing (SE)
A gentle, body-based approach that helps release stored stress and trauma from your nervous system. SE supports you in:
Noticing and understanding your body’s signals
Processing activation in small, manageable steps (called titration)
Returning to a state of balance without overwhelm
It’s not about rehashing your story. It’s about what your body is feeling right now, and building capacity from there.
Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP)
Filtered music designed to help your nervous system recognize safety—especially when it’s been hard to feel safe or connected. SSP is helpful if:
You feel anxious or emotionally shut down
You’ve struggled to relax, connect, or be present
You need support that doesn’t require a lot of talking
I guide SSP carefully and include email support for those listening outside of sessions, so your system feels supported every step of the way.
Rest and Restore Protocol (RRP)
Structured music listening that supports deep rest, especially if your body has been stuck in go-go-go mode. RRP helps:
Settle a hyperactive or depleted system
Reconnect with your body’s natural rhythms
Cultivate space to hear what your body truly needs
RRP can be especially helpful if you’re feeling burnt out, disconnected, or like you’ve been running on fumes.
Finding the Right Fit for Your Nervous System
No two nervous systems are the same. What works for someone else might not be what your body needs—and that’s okay.
That’s why our work together is always collaborative. We tune in, track your body’s cues, and adjust the process based on how your system responds.
Some clients also work with a talk therapist at the same time, while others choose to focus solely on somatic therapy. I work with adults in Florida and Illinois through fully online sessions—and this work can be just as powerful through the screen.
If you're tired of pushing through symptoms, feeling stuck, or managing stress that never seems to let up, somatic therapy can help you reconnect with your body’s ability to regulate, recover, and feel like yourself again.
You can learn more at www.amyhagerstrom.com.