Скачать или смотреть Navigating Social Anxiety Through Polyvagal Theory | Ep. 75

In this episode, Michael shares a deeply personal experience from his somatic therapy studies: feeling calm and articulate in small classes, yet anxious, self-critical, and dysregulated in larger group settings. Together with Nikolas, he explores this contrast through the lens of Polyvagal Theory, unpacking how the nervous system perceives safety, threat, and social connection.






The conversation moves beyond theory into lived experience—touching on fight-or-flight responses, faulty neuroception, self-regulation strategies, and why intellectual understanding alone often isn’t enough to calm the body. They discuss practical approaches such as breathing, leaving and re-entering situations, nervous system “priming,” vulnerability, co-regulation, and the limits of exposure-based methods.






A thoughtful, honest exploration of social anxiety, embodiment, and what it really takes to retrain the nervous system—especially when you already “know better,” but your body hasn’t caught up yet.






Timestamps


00:41 – Introduction and framing the episode


01:35 – Overview of Polyvagal Theory: ventral vagal, sympathetic, dorsal vagal


03:35 – Michael’s experience: small classes vs. large classes


05:35 – Nervous system threat perception and fight-or-flight in social settings


07:18 – Safety, self-monitoring, and why “just focusing outward” doesn’t work


09:54 – Breathing and self-regulation: what helps and what doesn’t


12:34 – Why self-soothing techniques can fail in high activation


14:53 – Leaving situations to reset the nervous system


16:50 – Priming before stressful situations (movement, yoga, routines)


19:39 – Hidden triggers: commuting stress and activating content before class


21:45 – Reducing shame through understanding nervous system patterns


23:35 – Designing an ideal program for social anxiety


25:22 – Exposure vs. skill deficits: where the real issue lies


27:04 – Does exposure actually teach safety to the nervous system?


28:38 – Relief after leaving situations and what the body learns


30:08 – Holding it together vs. genuine regulation


31:36 – Vulnerability as a way out of incongruence


34:22 – Acceptance vs. forceful self-regulation


35:55 – Co-regulation, empathy, and being seen in anxiety


37:02 – Behavioral therapy: when it helps and when it doesn’t


38:54 – Closing reflections and wrapping up