Heal Trauma & Addiction with Nervous System Regulation

Free yourself from trauma and addiction through nervous system regulation

I’d been practicing Vipassana meditation, vinyasa yoga, Tibetan Buddhism and Jungian psychoanalysis for years before enrolling in Acupuncture school. What called me to Chinese Medicine was: 1) the understanding that the body-mind is an inveterate whole; 2) energy or Qi comprises all of life - the seen and unseen, from the Tao to Yin Yang to the proliferation of the “ten thousand things”;  and 3) healing at the level of Qi benefits every aspect of the body-mind-spirit aka the whole shebang. 

In school, the curriculum emphasized embodiment through Ancient Qi Gong forms, present-moment-awareness through Jon Kabat Zin’s Mindfulness, and emotional healing through Eugene Gendlin’s Focusing - a body-based psychotherapeutic method that helps individuals locate emotions as felt senses in the body. I’m grateful to have grown these practices in both my personal and professional life since earning a Masters in Acupuncture Chinese Medicine fifteen years ago. As my work unfolds, I continuously weave-in different therapeutic approaches like somatic experiencing, bilateral stimulation a la EMDR, heart math, and vagal toning. The past five years, intentional nervous system regulation exercises have become some of the most important tools that I use with clients.

Serendipitously, I recently stumbled upon Jan Winhall’s Felt Sense Polyvagal Model (FSPM) and realized that through my work with clients, I’ve developed a very similar framework for understanding and helping people catalyze true transformation and growth.

FSPM’s body-centered approach goes a bit further, specifically focusing on healing trauma and addiction by integrating Stephen Porges’ Polyvagal Theory with Eugene Gendlin’s Felt Sense Focusing. The model reinterprets trauma and addiction not as pathologies but as adaptive responses to dysregulated autonomic states. I love this so much. Not only because vagal toning, bilateral stimulation and other Nervous System Regulation techniques are essential to most of my in-person and online healing sessions, but because stigmatizing assumptions around addiction have been very harmful to individuals and their families. A more nuanced and compassionate understanding of addiction frees people to get the actual help they need and deserve. 

Thankfully, the field of addiction recovery has evolved and there are many great programs and tools available for people and their loved ones - especially effective are those with a spiritual bent. There’s also been a sea change from false suppositions around addiction as a moral failing or criminal act to the more compassionate “disease” model, and now, most experts posit that addiction is an ongoing brain-based phenomenon with deep-seated autonomic nervous system (ANS) dysregulation. ANS imbalances are often at the heart of - or at least significantly influence - many maladaptive behaviors and self-defeating coping strategies. It's not that people don’t want to change or that they don’t try, it’s that it is nearly impossible to release trauma wounding and set aside addictive substances or processes without proper understanding, physiological support and intentional rewiring of the neural pathways. 

I’ve been a part of the 12 Step movement for almost 20 years - in and out of the rooms as needed, for different isms and issues. My brother died of a drug overdose, my dad struggled with alcoholism and prescription meds, addiction looms heavy on both my maternal and paternal lines. Many of my relatives did not choose recovery and addiction has taken most of my extended family. It’s one of the major reasons why I studied psychology at a young age, earned masters degrees in counseling, and have pursued a lifelong career in the healing arts. I want - I need - to be a part of the solution. 

When I see resources like FSPM - models that focus on the neurological as well as social underpinnings of addiction and trauma recovery - I get excited. When I get excited, I want to share. So here’s a little more about the model: 

FSPM affirms that addictive behaviors are the body's attempts to self-regulate in response to (often trauma-induced) autonomic dysregulation. Instead of viewing these behaviors as diseases, the model sees them as survival strategies that can be transformed through embodied awareness and self-compassion. Key Components of the model draw on: Polyvagal Theory - understanding how the autonomic nervous system (ANS) responds to safety and threat, which influences behavior and emotional regulation. Felt Sense - helping people cultivate an internal bodily awareness to access implicit inner wisdom and emotional insight. Embodied Practices - teaches exercises that promote autonomic regulation and foster a sense of safety and connection. 

Drawing on two decades of intuitive coaching and Winhall’s wonderful book 20 Embodied Practices for Healing Trauma and Addiction, I selected 8 that are particularly accessible and adaptable:

8 Embodied Practices for Healing Trauma and Addiction

Felt Sense Focusing - helps you develop a nuanced awareness of internal bodily sensations, which facilitates emotional/energetic processing. Useful when we feel overwhelmed or disconnected; helps us learn to identify and express complex emotions. I find it especially helpful to utilize vagal toning exercises before Focusing and gentle bilateral stimulation during a felt sense session (if sensations or emotions are intense and breaks are needed). 

Four Circles Mapping – helps you explore your behaviors without judgment. You learn to simply organize your most common behaviors into four concentric zones: grounding behaviors, defensive behaviors, addictive behaviors, and core self behaviors. The outer circle includes life-enhancing practices like walking in nature or connecting with a loved one. The next layer reflects stress responses such as anxiety, freeze, or shutdown—states that often precede addictive behaviors. The inner circle names high-risk or harmful behaviors that you eventually want to shift. At the center is the “core self,” a place of healing and wholeness. Mapping behaviors this way helps you foster awareness, identify “triggers,” strengthen self-compassion, and helps you grow capacity to choose differently in the moment (pause & take contrary action).

Autonomic State Mapping – tracks how your nervous system is responding to the world in real time. By identifying whether you're in fight, flight, freeze, fawn, hyper/anxious or in a grounded state, you learn to slow down and increase your ability to choose a response rather than knee-jerk react. For instance, if you notice shallow breathing and your chest is tight, you may be in a flight state. Recognizing this helps you apply a regulating practice, like paced breathing or a Presence Practice. This tool is especially useful in coaching sessions to help you name what's happening beneath the surface.

Grounding Techniques – bring your awareness back to the body and present moment. This is essential when feeling anxious or dissociated. I love the Presence Practices and Nervous System Regulation exercises I outlined in previous posts. Other common grounding tools include noticing the sensation of your feet on the floor, naming five things you see, or holding a warm cup of tea and focusing on its aroma and temperature. Simple sensory cues help reset the nervous system and create a feeling of security.

Co-Regulation Practices – You can use a safe, attuned connection with another person to regulate your nervous system. This can be as simple as eye contact with a friend, synchronized breathing with your fave coach, or a heartfelt conversation with someone who sees you clearly. Human beings are wired for connection—when someone is calm and present with us, our system starts to settle. Co-regulation builds emotional resilience and trust.

Embodiment and Movement – Releases tension and reconnects us with the body’s wisdom. Gentle practices like gentle stretching, yoga, shaking (tremoring, trembling or TRE), and dance allow stored stress and emotion to discharge and dissolve. For someone stuck in a freeze response, even slow arm movements or foot tapping can begin to thaw immobility and restore vitality and flow.

Imagery and Visualization – you can invite the mind to create inner experiences that promote healing. You might imagine a glowing light in your heart, a forest sanctuary, or a trusted guide sitting beside you. For trauma survivors, visualization offers a way to reclaim a sense of agency and safety. Over time, imagined experiences can help build new neural pathways of calm, trust and resilience.

Journaling and Reflective Writing – turn abstract feelings into words, making the inner world visible and more manageable. Whether it's free-writing emotions, dialoguing with an inner part (like the inner teen or inner child), or reflecting on a difficult interaction, writing supports clarity and integration. It’s a powerful way to track patterns, witness growth, and process insights from other healing practices.

I hope some of this was helpful. If you have any questions or if you know someone who is struggling with addiction and/or trauma recovery, please forward this along. I’m here in-person in Tucson AZ as an intuitive life coach offering acupuncture Chinese Medicine, reiki, and craniosacral therapy, specializing in deep healing and transformation. Virtually, I’m available online via Zoom, FaceTime and phone for intuitive and transformational life coach sessions and distance energy healing. 

Xx

Britta

Licensed Acupuncturist, Online Holistic Life Coach, Intuitive, Healer, Energy Medicine Practitioner

📞 917-519-2432

📧 britta@intuitivehealthhealing.com