Grounded

My breathing is regular, and I can breathe deeply from my abdomen

He says that, if we are with a child whose nervous system is dysregulated - which is another way of saying highly activated, because they don’t feel safe - then their brain won’t be functioning fully.

And yet, sure enough, should anything happen to make them feel unsafe, their nervous system will respond instantly.

After I got our room ready, and before I collected Ben, I would check in with my body again, and use my own grounding toolkit to get myself and my nervous system safe for his.

have had the privilege of helping many parents discover their own story as a major piece in the puzzle of their child’s behaviour.

These children are not being naughty, evasive or rude. They genuinely can’t hear properly. It is not likely that their hearing needs support, but rather that their nervous system needs help to find safety again.

There are three possible options, and the behaviours that come with each are significantly different. Each phase is actually driven by a different neurophysiological ‘system’ or ‘set-up’ in the brain and body. We

I can make eye contact

Learning to release tension, be able to relax muscles and slow down breathing and heart rate is important for children and adults alike.