Flight, Fight and Freeze Responses

It can be difficult to know why, or how our bodies made decisions during the abuse experiences and subsequently.

We can tell ourselves ‘we should have’ done this or that at the time of the abuse.

We can tell ourselves ‘we should be able to stop this reaction now' if we are triggered by something linked to the earlier abuse experience.

The reality is that our body, our mind made a decision based on what it determined was the safest thing for us at that time. It also means that if a defence reaction helped at the time of the abuse, the mind will often choose that approach again and again, even if the original danger is now past.

So, how does the brain make the decision?  This video might help make it clearer:  Brain Model of PTSD  Psychoeducation Video