In this video, we’ll explore the fight-flight response, starting with how the sympathetic nervous system activates when we feel threatened, walking you through the stages of freeze, flight, fight, fawn, flop. I'll give examples of how these can show up in modern behaviours such as escaping into our phones, people-pleasing, or depression and feeling stuck. 

We’ll also dive into the physiological effects—how adrenaline, glucose, and cortisol are released, how the prefrontal cortex shuts down, and the physical impacts like nausea, digestive issues, immune suppression, and pelvic floor tightening. While these responses are inconvenient, they’re natural and meant to protect us. We'll explore how fighting the response or getting frustrated only intensifies it. I discuss how this can show up in couples, resulting in the couple triggering each other into a negative cycle.