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  • Befriending Your Nervous System

  • Looking Through the Lens of Polyvagal Theory
  • Written by: Deborah Dana LCSW
  • Narrated by: Deborah Dana LCSW
  • Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (29 ratings)

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Befriending Your Nervous System

Written by: Deborah Dana LCSW
Narrated by: Deborah Dana LCSW
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Publisher's Summary

Harness the power of your nervous system to support healthy relationships and personal well-being.

Why is it that when you have a tense conversation with a boss, coworker, or partner, you feel like you’re staring down a charging rhinoceros? How is it that both situations cause a fight-or-flight response - and what can you learn from it?

As it turns out, the same neurological processes that cause unwanted stress can also be harnessed to summon relaxation, spaciousness, and equanimity. In Befriending Your Nervous System, clinician Deb Dana presents a simple, hopeful message: When you approach these subconscious processes with openness, mindful attention, and - above all - curiosity, you can gain the understanding necessary to shape their outcomes. Dana draws from the recent explosion of research in polyvagal theory, which posits that our most hardwired survival responses are regulated by the vagus nerve and can be consciously regulated through repeated exercises.

Here, you will learn:

  • How to interpret the subtle language of the nervous system
  • Present-moment awareness and the mechanics of choice
  • Your personal “protection-connection” equation
  • How to cultivate and savor positive nervous states
  • Why it’s paramount that you examine your internalized stories about the world
  • How to discover the stillness available in every moment
  • What actually nourishes your autonomic nervous system
  • The continuum of resilience
  • T­­he process of reciprocity, rupture, and repair
  • How to recognize physical cues of both safety and danger

Dana teaches how to work with the body’s innate ability to pick up social signals and cultivate “micro-moments” of safety, retraining your automatic responses to stress, conflict, and hardship. Including in-depth practices such as guided imagery, meditation, and ongoing self-inquiry, Befriending Your Nervous System offers a practical user’s manual for anyone seeking greater wellness, self-awareness, and emotional resilience.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2020 Deborah Dana, LCSW (P)2020 Sounds True

What listeners say about Befriending Your Nervous System

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Complex system using simplistic language

Deb’s voice allows the nervous system to relax and open up wonder rather than evaluation.
We all are in a vehicle; we need to learn how to drive in.
Biology will always trump intellect.
We are feeling bodies that think.
Thank you, Sound True, Deb, and Steve, for this wonderful experience with sharing knowledge and tools.

Highly recommend!!!!!

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Guide for becoming your own friend

Loved it, the how to for doing some much needed relationship building with ourselves that has a basis and grounding in biology and psychology is refreshing, educational, and thought provoking. the approach is conversational and exploratory in this audible format and is done very effectively as a tutorial and lecture with easy take away workshop like tasks or exercises.

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Sleepy, not meant to be listened to in the car

A lot of breathing, reflecting, pausing to write your thoughts. Shifting weight on your feet as you reflect - nearly impossible things to do while driving. Waste of money if you want car friendly books. I was hoping for it to be a bit more educational but it’s really a self-help book.

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