My brother and I are both trying to break family patterns of explosive anger using polyvagal principles, but when one of us gets activated the other either tries to 'fix' it with breathing techniques or just shuts down completely. We can talk about the theory but we can't seem to actually co-regulate when it matters and our old patterns feel stronger than our new understanding.
More people experience this than they realize.
Intellectual knowledge of nervous system regulation cannot easily override deeply embedded relational patterns activated in family systems.
“Where Are You with Polyvagal theory in practice?”
If this sounds familiar, the Library can help you find the bigger picture.