Balance Centre for Mental Health

Balance Centre for Mental Health At Balance Centre for Mental Health we pride ourselves on providing you with care and connection.

When we go through overwhelming experiences, especially in childhood, or repeatedly over time, our nervous system doesn’...
14/10/2025

When we go through overwhelming experiences, especially in childhood, or repeatedly over time, our nervous system doesn’t just respond in the moment. It stores patterns of survival.

This is called implicit memory. Unlike a visual flashback or specific event, these memories live in:
👎 Muscle tension
👎 Startle responses
👎 Emotional reactivity
👎 Gut discomfort or appetite changes
👎 Avoidance behaviours
👎 Shutdown or collapse

Even when life becomes objectively safe, the nervous system might still be on high alert, scanning for threat, interpreting neutral stimuli as dangerous, and keeping the body ready to fight, flee, or freeze.

You might not consciously remember what caused it. But your body does.

At Balance Centre for Mental Health, our approach is grounded in this science. We integrate therapies that address both the brain and the body, supporting clients to gradually restore regulation and connection. From evidence-based treatments like EMDR to body-informed practices that build interoceptive awareness, we create space for healing that respects your pace and experience.

You do not need to fight this disconnect alone. With the right support, it is possible to rebuild the bridge between mind and body, so that both can finally feel safe again.

The part of your brain that thinks—plans, reasons, reassures you—is the prefrontal cortex. This is the part that remembe...
12/10/2025

The part of your brain that thinks—plans, reasons, reassures you—is the prefrontal cortex. This is the part that remembers the facts: I’m not in danger. That happened a long time ago. I’m OK now.

But the part of your brain that reacts to threat—the amygdala, brainstem, vagus nerve, and other subcortical structures—doesn’t use logic. It uses neuroception: a subconscious scanning system that constantly asks, “Am I safe?”

If your nervous system detects even a hint of risk—based on past experience, sensation, or subtle environmental cues—it can override your rational thinking in an instant.

That’s why you can know everything is fine…
…while still feeling:
😣 A tight chest, racing heart, or shallow breath
🥶 Numb, frozen, or foggy
😤 Overwhelmed, agitated, or emotionally out of control
🧐 Suspicious or disconnected in relationships
🫨 A sense of impending doom or “something bad is about to happen”

This isn’t overreaction. It’s a nervous system doing its job: protecting you the way it learned to survive.

At Balance Centre for Mental Health, we support clients whose bodies are still holding onto past threat, even when their lives are calm. We understand the shame, confusion, and exhaustion that comes with feeling like your body has a mind of its own. You don’t need to explain away your symptoms. You don’t need to convince yourself you’re fine. You just need support that honours where you are right now.

Reconnecting with your body doesn’t have to mean sitting still and noticing every sensation right away. For many people,...
01/10/2025

Reconnecting with your body doesn’t have to mean sitting still and noticing every sensation right away. For many people, that’s overwhelming.

Our Tuning In Journal is designed with this in mind. With bite-sized check-in prompts, sensory signal trackers, and grounding exercises, it helps you build awareness gradually, without pressure, without shame, and always at your pace.

This is not a clinical assessment. It’s a gentle tool to help you understand your own patterns of hunger, rest, tension, emotion, and safety. Over time, these small moments of noticing can add up to a stronger brain-body connection.

👉 Download the journal from our resource library today and begin where you are.

Many people in trauma recovery find themselves stuck in a frustrating paradox. They know they’re safe. They understand t...
29/09/2025

Many people in trauma recovery find themselves stuck in a frustrating paradox. They know they’re safe. They understand that the threat is gone. They are told by loved ones, and maybe even themselves, that the past is over and that they should be able to move on. But inside, their body tells a different story.

This disconnect is not irrational. It is not a lack of effort or resilience. It is a neurobiological survival response. When the nervous system has been shaped by prolonged stress, trauma, or unpredictability, it often continues to operate as if danger is present, even in the absence of external threat. The body continues to respond with activation, shutdown, or hypervigilance, long after the actual event is over.

Understanding this pattern is not just validating for many trauma survivors. It also offers a roadmap for healing that goes beyond positive thinking or cognitive reframing. True safety must be experienced physiologically before it can be integrated psychologically.

Your body isn’t betraying you. It’s doing what it learned to do to keep you alive. In our latest blog, “My Mind Knows I’m Safe, But My Body Doesn’t,” we explore the neurobiology of trauma and why the body can keep reacting long after the danger is over. Understanding this connection can be the first step in finding a way back to safety.

📖 Read the full post on our website

Have you ever been told to “just breathe” or “just calm down” and felt even worse afterward? That’s not a sign of weakne...
27/09/2025

Have you ever been told to “just breathe” or “just calm down” and felt even worse afterward? That’s not a sign of weakness. It’s often a sign of disrupted interoception.

For people with trauma, chronic stress, or neurodivergent wiring, tuning into the body can sometimes make things harder. Instead of soothing, deep breathing or mindfulness may heighten anxiety, trigger dissociation, or leave you feeling trapped in a body that doesn’t feel safe.

This is called an interoceptive mismatch. Your brain and body are not working with the same map, and strategies that rely on body awareness can backfire.

At Balance Centre for Mental Health, we understand that safety has to be built slowly. Our clinicians use body-informed therapies that help you rebuild tolerance for sensations without overwhelm. It’s not about forcing calm, it’s about creating conditions where your nervous system feels safe enough to settle.

💡 If traditional calming tools don’t work for you, it doesn’t mean you’re broken. It means your nervous system needs a different approach.

You can tell yourself “I’m safe.” Your loved ones can remind you, too. But if your body is still in survival mode, logic...
25/09/2025

You can tell yourself “I’m safe.” Your loved ones can remind you, too. But if your body is still in survival mode, logic alone won’t calm the nervous system.

Safety has to be felt. That means the body needs to experience conditions where it no longer perceives danger. Only then can the brain and body integrate the message of safety fully.

This is why trauma recovery often requires body-based approaches. Talking therapy is valuable, but it may not reach the nervous system’s deeper patterns. Practices like Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, or trauma-informed yoga help the body gradually relearn what safety feels like from the inside out.

At Balance Centre, we know healing is not about pushing harder or trying to override your body. It’s about creating an environment where safety becomes a lived experience, not just an idea.

✨ Safety must be embodied before it can be believed.

Interoception isn’t a one-way street. Your brain doesn’t just receive signals from your body, it predicts them, compares...
23/09/2025

Interoception isn’t a one-way street. Your brain doesn’t just receive signals from your body, it predicts them, compares them to reality, and adjusts. This prediction system is known as the Embodied Predictive Interoception Coding (EPIC) model.

But trauma, stress, or neurodivergence can throw this off course. The brain may no longer trust the body, and the body may no longer trust the brain. That mismatch can lead to confusion, overwhelm, or feeling like you don’t know what you’re feeling at all.

This is why people sometimes swing between emotional shutdown and emotional flooding. The bridge between body and brain is damaged, and the nervous system struggles to keep signals accurate and safe.

The good news is that this bridge can be rebuilt. With therapies that respect pacing, capacity, and the nervous system’s protective role, it’s possible to restore clearer communication. At Balance Centre, we support clients to re-establish trust between body and brain, one step at a time.

Healing isn’t about silencing the body. It’s about repairing the bridge so both sides can work together again.

Address

6/34 Baynes Street
Margate, QLD
4019

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4pm
Tuesday 9am - 4pm
Wednesday 9am - 4pm
Friday 9am - 12pm

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Balance Centre for Mental Health posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Balance Centre for Mental Health:

Shortcuts

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn
Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share via Email
Share on WhatsApp Share on Instagram Share on Telegram

Category