Ventral Vagal State

Body of Knowledge of Psychotraumatology

Polyvagal Theory

Polyvagal Theory, developed by neuroscientist Stephen Porges, has significantly transformed contemporary understandings of trauma, emphasizing the critical role of the autonomic nervous system in trauma responses and healing (Porges, 2011). At its core, Polyvagal Theory provides a biological framework for understanding safety, danger, and life-threatening states, fundamentally reshaping how clinicians conceptualize and address trauma. Foundations

Evidence-Based Trauma Therapies and Models

Neurofeedback and Biofeedback

Neurofeedback and biofeedback are physiologically targeted interventions that train regulation of the nervous system by providing real-time feedback on brain or body signals. In psychotraumatology, they are used to restore autonomic flexibility, dampen hyperarousal, reduce dissociation, and improve attention/affect regulation—capacities often eroded by trauma. Foundational principles Operant conditioning of physiology: clients learn to increase desirable

Evidence-Based Trauma Therapies and Models

Polyvagal Theory–Informed Therapies

Polyvagal Theory–Informed Therapies (PVTT) are trauma treatment approaches based on the polyvagal theory developed by Stephen Porges (2011, 2017). They integrate an understanding of the autonomic nervous system’s hierarchical responses to threat and safety into therapeutic interventions, aiming to restore nervous system flexibility, emotional regulation, and a sense of safety. Foundational Principles Polyvagal theory posits

Evidence-Based Trauma Therapies and Models

Psychodrama for Trauma (Moreno), PBSP Psychomotor (Albert Pesso), and Contemporary Uses (van der Kolk)

Overview Psychodrama and PBSP (Pesso Boyden System Psychomotor) are experiential, enactment-based therapies that use role play, embodied movement, and structured scenes to repair attachment ruptures, rework traumatic memories, and restore agency. Bessel van der Kolk has highlighted these modalities—especially PBSP “structures”—as powerful for trauma integration when cognitive talk therapy stalls. Foundational principles Action + Embodiment:

Evidence-Based Trauma Therapies and Models

Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TSY) / Trauma-Informed Yoga

Overview Trauma-Sensitive Yoga (TSY) is an evidence-supported, body-based intervention adapted specifically for trauma survivors. Originating at the Trauma Center in Brookline, MA (Bessel van der Kolk, David Emerson, Jenn Turner), TSY is rooted in hatha yoga but modified to prioritize choice, safety, and interoceptive awareness over performance or achievement. It is now practiced globally in

Neurobiology of Trauma

Applying Neurobiology Principles to Trauma Treatment

Rationale for Neurobiologically-Informed Therapy Understanding trauma as a neurobiological condition offers profound implications for therapeutic practice. First, it allows clinicians to reframe trauma-related symptoms not as signs of character pathology or weakness, but as predictable consequences of disrupted brain-body systems (van der Kolk, 2014). This reframing is inherently validating: survivors can begin to understand that

Neurobiology of Trauma

Autonomic Nervous System and Polyvagal Theory

Another crucial physiological component in trauma is the autonomic nervous system (ANS), which governs involuntary bodily functions and modulates states of arousal and rest. The ANS is divided into two primary branches: the sympathetic nervous system (associated with fight-or-flight responses) and the parasympathetic nervous system (linked to rest, digestion, and repair). Trauma causes profound dysregulation