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4.2.2 Window of tolerance
The “ window of tolerance ” is a therapeutic metaphor that is used to explain trauma reactions ( Daniel Siegel ). It centres on the idea that every person tolerates or is comfortable with a certain level of arousal or energy . Below , we provide information that will help children to understand their trauma reactions and help carers to understand the trauma reactions of the children in their care . The manual also provides tools and grounding techniques that can help children to stay within their window or return to their window when they lose control .
Overactivation : Fight / flight increased heart rate , faster breathing , blood to muscles
“ The ‘ window of tolerance ’”
HELP AND ACTION
ACTIVATION
Underactivation : freezing / submission Low heart rate , lower blood flow
The metaphor is very simple . The graphic shows the level of activation . All people have a zone ( between the two lines ) in which they are balanced – where the person is in a state of mind that permits him or her to be present in the situation , able to concentrate and learn . If a person is above the top line , we say that he or she is over-activated ( hyper-activated ). Their activation is too high . If the person is below the bottom line , we say that he or she is under-activated ( hypoactivated ). Their energy is too low .
Traumatic memories can trigger a flight / fight response . This is a hyper-active reaction , in which the body is highly activated because it is readying itself to flee or fight threats . When we are frightened by a threat , the body automatically shuts down certain activities and reinforces others . For example , the heart beats faster and we breathe more quickly ; more blood flows to the brain , arms and legs ; muscles prepare for fight or flight , while the brain shifts its activity from areas that help us think through complex problems to areas that help us to respond to danger .
If you cannot fight or flee ( because , for example , you are a small child ), your body will fall back on the most basic survival strategy we have : it will shut down . This mechanism can be observed in many small animals : they become totally inactive when they are attacked . This is a hypoactive reaction : activation falls to a minimum . The child becomes immobilised .
Most of us occasionally exceed our window of tolerance . When this happens , we need strategies that enable us to regulate ( return to a tolerable state of mind ).