12/20/2025
My assessments reveal that their hypersensitive nervous system is the primary driver of their pain.
Central Sensitization means that their nervous system is stuck in fight/flight/freeze/fawn/flop mode all the time.
These folks tell me that they….
-always feel tight, yet stretching doesn’t help
-have difficulty relating pain to a movement or activity
-never relax
-have constant pain in several areas of their body
-sleep poorly
-worry constantly, mostly on behalf of family and friends
-take a variety of medications for conditions related to stress (though no health professional has made the connection)
When the nervous system is the primary source of pain, treatments need to be directed to regulating the nervous system.
What does nervous system regulation mean?
The autonomic nervous system responds appropriately to the environment.
The response is subconscious and habitually responds based on all life experiences, positive and negative.
Most of my patients can see and feel the apparent external stressors.
It’s the subtle internal stressors that are more difficult to understand as the source of ongoing tension and pain, like…
-desire to please everyone and avoid harsh judgement
-harsh internal self-talk, criticism and judgement
-desire to be seen and heard
-fear of being seen and heard when that doesn’t meet others expectations
-bracing to suppress difficult emotions; their own and of others
And yes, some of the stressors are the thoughts and beliefs people have about pain, like:
Fear and avoidance of certain movements with the belief that they are risky or harmful
Belief that only vigorous exercise will benefit and since they can’t do that, then nothing will help
The body is solely responsible for the pain, and since they can’t change that only someone outside of them can offer a fix
The only way to help regulate the nervous system is to first provide a safe forum to explore the sources of both external and internal stressors and then coach behavioral change (cognitive and physical) that regulates the nervous system responses.
Nervous System Regulation
