Why You’re Stuck In Survival Mode

Being stuck in survival mode, or a fight flight freeze or fawn response, can cause you unnecessary anxiety and lead to overwhelming thoughts. This survival mode response can cause you and your body unnecessary stress and anxiety. Many of us learn to live in constant fight or flight due to societal pressures or perhaps childhood trauma or emotional neglect. Living with this trauma can lead us to feeling overwhelmed, anxious or stressed constantly, or perhaps your anxiety and stress can be easily triggered by small or large events that bring up a trauma response. The good news is that there are therapeutic approaches and therapy types that can help to work on this. But we must first recognize what it is, if we're doing it, why we're doing it, so that we can determine what type of help we need to stop living with constant anxiety and stress. Do you relate to this? Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

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[charlesmartel]

I'M stuck in survival mode all time. I'm nervous all the time. A lot of times I feel anxious. Alcohol solves everything, next day anxiety hits me even harder. I have depressions and had a severe burn-out. I can't stand loud noices, violence on television, problems.

[Qwx]

I know a person who was suffering from being stuck in survival mode. She was constantly anxious, panic attacks, gaining weight. Nobody had a working solution, until accidentally they found a tumor in her adrenal gland during a CAT scan. It was dumping cortisol and making her stressed. And even then, the recommendation was to keep to tumor in. So she found a surgeon in Florida, who was an adrenal expert. Based on his advice they removed the tumor and all the horror of excess stress and panic attacks went away.

Apparently this was Cushing's syndrome, even if nobody diagnosed it.

If you're suffering from high levels of anxiety, there might be a physiological cause, that you can't treat with meditation, therapy etc. Check your adrenals, please! ♥

[baja_Texas]

The 5 F's: Fight, Flight, Freeze, Fawn, Fantasy.

[HopefulTribe]

Best to all of you who are still stuck in survival mode. There is hope... After 24 years of therapy, a deep spiritual practice, and restorative relationships, I can say now that I am truly happy, joyous & free!

[JKDVIPER]

That really is a huge adult problem. Because you can have everything you need, be blessed with loved ones, and have opportunities knocking, and just feel stuck. So don’t be so hard on yourself. That’s what I take from the video. 💯👈🏻

[skellener]

I’m stuck in survival mode - freeze. I can’t do anything when I have an attack. I have ALL the symptoms, anxiety, depression, stress, ptsd, can’t concentrate, I fall apart and cry and can’t stop. I can’t live like this. It’s been two and a half years since I lost Leesa. 😢 That’s when it all started. I’ve never been like this before in my life. I have trouble falling asleep, sleeping and waking up. I hate this. I just want to be normal again. I’m so lost. I can’t function.😢

[KATIELOL]

Gosh I feel like I’m stuck in survival mode all the time!! Every small tasks feels like a marathon, I can’t remember anything, noises from tv or people talking makes me panic and irritable! I can’t relax ever, I will find things to clean or something to organize. But even then I start cleaning and I get so overwhelmed I can’t even complete it! I dissociate all the time and have such a hard time keeping up with work! Where to even start to heal?

[jacqueslee]

Narcissist in the workplace will always accuse others of being narcissists when the narcissist is exposed.

[Enbybear]

So true, I had to explain to someone that I had stress induced ibs and they said I’m so sorry you have been stressed. I realised I am always stressed and others aren’t

[EyesOfByes]

Trying to pay the bills. But literally freeze and cant open the post box.

[arthurpenfield]

Oh God, I have been in survival mode for 18 years straight ever since Mom died. She didn't have a will or anything. She became the city's property because we lived in poverty. I couldn't even have a funeral for her. She was only 44 and I was 17. The city took her body and I never saw her again.

[Alex-jslg]

I think it's worth acknowledging that sometimes we *can* accurately anticipate what's coming. If the person who asked the fourth question is informed on current events, societal trends, and history, I'd argue the feeling that something bad is coming is entirely warranted. I know that "fortune telling" is a cognitive distortion, but pattern recognition is a genuine skill that some people are quite good at.

"History doesn't repeat itself, but it often rhymes."

[stefaniasmanio]

❤❤❤❤ pure gold… 5 out of 5… 😔 I call it the “trench soldier’s status”. Thank you for sharing. Very very useful.

[CelticSongbird]

To get myself out of survival mode, I joined a theater group. That said, I was in survival mode going in, flight to be exact. But by the end of my first day, I felt secure with everyone. I even told the director and the assistant director that I have PTSD the second week.

[ajwillustratorauthor]

Yesterday I was cleaning up a little (cleaning up can be overwhelming for me sometimes) and bumped into the fridge with a plate. Without thinking I hit the fridge with the plate and smashed it. Then I calmly swept it up and thought “that’s not a normal response.” I didn’t even feel angry. Usually I’ll feel angry and 8/10 times I’ll stop myself before doing something reckless (that usual involves throwing or breaking my own things). I don’t even know wtf that was.

[cherict]

I have become so depressed from "survival" mode - I don't care anymore

[matikramer]

Thank you very much, Kati
The last half a year I have tried to get myself out of survival mode knowing about it almost nothing, but that almost half of my life I was functioning in that mode. Since I moved to other country to live..I'm 64 now. Tried to climb down from high tree as I called it and dial down from stress..
Your video was extremely informative to me, I wish I had found it half year ago
All of scenarios are familiar, two last also present though in very masked form.. Never would have guessed that me, wondering if I have narcissistic traits are related to stress, and not because I had an ex with now diagnosed with full blown NPD...
I got material to work with..
Thank you very much
Very grateful

[nelva]

I work In healthcare. I’ve noticed the patient population, even In the last few years, has become a lot sicker. While nutrition, genetics, lifestyle, environmental factors and other aspects of life play a role in our health. I whole heartedly believe stress is the number one reason for our health declining. I experience every example you mentionEd daily. I’m sorry to say I’ve been in therapy for over a decade and it just doesn’t help, if anything in more recent years it’s been unbearable. I feel that there is nothing I can do to fix any of this. I dot. Have help. Everyone else around me is in survival mode too. It’s great I can recognize it but medication is a bandaid and all the alternatives feel like temporary fixes that lead to more stress and anxiety and a perpetual spiral of threats.

[lisariordan]

I related to 3 of the signs. This was very helpful. It was comforting to see that there is nothing wrong with me. I can now go about dealing with the real/ underlying issues. The first step to correcting a problem is to see it.
The body and mind are amazing instruments. Fear can be crippling both literally and figuratively.

Thank you for this video.

[kerryfaden]

Kati
I feel this as a caregiver
My inner child is triggered by theirs and am exhausted
They may also have narcissism
Great
Will watch more!