Trauma tip: bottom-up regulation
What is bottom-up regulation, and why does it matter?
Let’s back up. Regulation is a state of being where you feel centered, calm, connected, and curious.
Dys-regulation is the opposite. When you are dys-regulated, you are triggered, on edge, tense, and paranoid.
Brain development is like a staircase. The first step, your brainstem, deals with basic automatic functions like your heart rate, breathing, body temperature, digestion, etc. Your brainstem is responsible for regulation.
As you go up the stairs, other areas of the brain develop more “advanced” functions including talking, thinking, and reasoning. Your brainstem, unlike other areas of the brain, is preverbal and does not respond to written or spoken language.
Bottom-up regulation uses activities involving rhythmic and repetitive movement to soothe your brainstem. Examples of “bottom-up” activities are group exercise classes, yoga, dancing, swinging, swaying, hopping, skipping, walking, swimming, running, biking, and sitting in a rocking chair.
Bottom-up regulation also includes deep breathing exercises like diaphragmatic and square breathing.
Next time you are feeling stressed or upset, try any of the bottom- up techniques and see how they help you.
If you struggle with maintaining regulation, therapy will help. Visible Healing provides trauma therapy so you can learn how trauma impacts you. Contact Visible Healing to schedule your free consultation today.
If you can’t get enough of this topic or want to learn more click here. This blog post is for informational purposes only. This blog post is not a substitute for professional treatment. Blog post was written by Nikole Layton, LCSW.
