**\#️⃣ Tags:** #Guide #Psychotherapy ![[Working with Our Window of Tolerance.png]] - [[Working With Our Window of Tolerance#Understanding the Window]|Understanding the Window]] - [[Working With Our Window of Tolerance#Understanding the Window]|Individual Differences and Trauma]] - [[Working With Our Window of Tolerance#Understanding the Window]|Noticing When We're at Our Edges]] - [[Working With Our Window of Tolerance#Understanding the Window]|Working at the Edge]] - [[Working With Our Window of Tolerance#Understanding the Window]|Expanding Our Window of Tolerance]] --- # Understanding the Window of Tolerance We all have a zone where we feel relaxed, at ease and able to take on life stressors that may come our way. This zone is part of a framework that psychiatrist Dan Siegel calls "the window of tolerance" (also known as the window of [[Presence]]—which is what we'll call it from hereon), which helps us understand our [[Nervous System]] response to stress and emotional or external stimuli. When we're within our window of Presence our nervous system isn't too stimulated (hyperarousal) nor is it too subdued (hypoarousal). In this space we're flexible, adaptive, energised and stable, and this allows us to think clearly, connect with others and respond appropriately to what's happening around us. If we encounter triggers or overwhelming stress, we might move out of our window of Presence and into one of two edges, which is where our nervous system starts to become dysregulated: 1. **High Arousal** — the zone which represents an activated fight or flight response, controlled primarily by our sympathetic nervous system. 2. **Low Arousal** — the zone which represents a freeze or shutdown response, controlled predominantly by our parasympathetic nervous system. ![[The Window of Presence by Elizabeth Dennison.pdf]][^1] # Individual Differences and Trauma Everyone's window of Presence is entirely unique to them and can even vary a lot depending on the situation or context. What triggers one person into dysregulation might not do the same for another, so it's really influenced by our personal backgrounds, [[Trauma]] histories, personal disposition and biological makeup. For those of us with [[Developmental Trauma]] or C-PTSD, this window is a lot narrower than it otherwise would be because our nervous systems have been wired to be hypervigilant to threat. This heightened sensitivity can lead to more occasions where we step out of our window of Presence and into hyperarousal or hypoarousal, so it's super important (maybe even essential) we develop the awareness around what our own regulation windows are across different situations and contexts. # Noticing When We're at Our Edges If we want to work with and expand our window of Presence, we first need to become skilled at knowing when we are approaching our regulatory edges, before we become too dysregulated. As Dennison notes, "At the regulatory edges the brain loses oxygen and cannot stay online and integrated. Dysregulation creeps in. Our awareness starts to fragment". The quicker we notice we're at our edges, the better chance we have for an intervention that can bring us back into regulation. ## Signs How to notice we might be approaching our edges: **The High Arousal Edge** 1. Feeling more irritable, frustrated or emotionally reactive (our Proactive Protector Parts come out). 2. Noticing more urgency or impulsivity in decisions or actions (our Reactive Protector Parts come out). 3. Restlessness or anxiety starts to creep into the body. 4. Breathing starts to become quicker, more shallow or noticeably constricted. 5. Noticing an increase in muscle tension or body temperature. **The Low Arousal Edge** 1. Feeling emotionally detatched with a sense of numbness or disconnection beginning to emerge (our Proactive Protector Parts come out). 2. Being overcome by sudden fatigue or exhaustion (our Reactive Protector Parts come out). 3. Finding it harder to access thoughts or form clear and coherent sentences—brain fog. 4. Lack of motivation or capacity to take action. 5. A sense of heaviness or weighted feeling in the body. # Working at the Edge As Dennison explains, "The complex process of regulating the ANS develops primarily in relationship. However, competent adult regulation depends on both solo and interactive strategies. Learning to reregulate quickly and effectively avoids dysregulation, which wastes energy, stresses the system, and leads to health and relationship problems." Expansion happens at the edges of our window, right before we become too dysregulated. We work at this edge by experiencing manageable amounts of activations whilst still maintaining our ability to regulate and when we do this, we gradually teach our [[Nervous System]] that it is safe for us to handle more intensity. This takes consistent practice over time, so the key is to [[Meet yourself exactly where you're at]], go slow, and be kind to yourself. # Expanding Our Window of Tolerance Working with our window of Presence involves both returning to regulation when we've moved past the edges and gradually expanding the boundaries of our window over time. Both of these processes require patience, practice, and an understanding of our unique nervous system patterns. When our window of Presence expands, we become more flexible and resilient. The triggers that used to dysregulate us before start to become tolerable, and we begin to be able to feel deeply without becoming overwhelmed or shutdown. The process of expanding our window isn't linear either. There will be days when we feel like we've made massive progress and are leaps and bounds better than we were yesterday, and there will be days when it feels like we've just undone multiple months of dedicated healing work. This isn't a sign that something is wrong, rather it is a sign that everything is normal. ## Co-Regulation When we work with others (like a coach or therapist) in a therapeutic container, we can practice returning to and expanding our window of Presence through: 1. Practicing co-regulation with supportive people whose [[Presence]] creates a safe [[Holding Environment]]. 2. [[Healing happens as we gently move between comfort and discomfort|Resourcing, pendulating and titrating]] when working through overwhelming experiences or processing [[Trauma]]. 3. Building interoceptive awareness through developing a nuanced connection with the bodily [[The way we experience ourselves is through the Felt Sense|Felt Sense]]. ## Self-Regulation We can also protect, self-regulate and expand our window of Presence by ourselves through: 1. [[Breathwork]] techniques like [[Regulating with Cyclic Sighing|Cyclic Sighing]] which help to calm us down and activate the parasympathetic nervous system. 2. Movement practices like [[Locker/Reference/Bioenergetics]] and [[Trauma Release Exercise (TRE)]] that release tension and work to complete stress responses. 3. Social connection with safe and regulated people. 4. Knowing what our [[Boundaries]] are and protecting our emotional resources. 5. Mindfulness or meditation practices that builds the capacity to observe and be with thoughts and emotions without immediately reacting. [^1]: [[The Window of Presence by Elizabeth Dennison]]