Affect Regulation
Affect Regulation Therapy
Being able to regulate emotions and emotional responses is a critical part of a well-balanced life. However, for many women, affect dysregulation is a side effect of things like chronic stress or unresolved trauma. Affect regulation therapy can provide the tools and resources women need to better manage emotions and emotional responses, leading to improved mood, resolved trauma, and a life full of purpose.
What is Affect Regulation?
Affect regulation refers to one's ability to manage emotions and appropriately respond to those emotions. When an individual can't do that, they struggle with affect dysregulation.
With regard to therapy, this refers specifically to an individual's ability to experience both positive and negative emotions or "affects" without letting those emotions become overwhelming or triggering strategies like dissociation, self-defense, or numbing with drugs and alcohol.
Women who struggle with underlying trauma are more likely to deal with deficits in their affect regulation and less likely to remain within what is called the "window of tolerance."
In the field of affect regulation, the "window of tolerance" refers to the window during which stress has an impact on the nervous system and can cause neurological or biological responses.
It is believed that there is an ideal level of emotional arousal that can help people process their experiences or emotions like pain and anxiety, but if one goes beyond that window, they can't process those emotions or experiences in a healthy fashion, and instead, they turn to things like coping mechanisms and other detrimental behaviors.
How Affect Regulation Works
affect regulation therapy can give you the skills to stay within your window of tolerance, allowing yourself to better process your experiences or difficult emotions without letting them take control.
Consider this:
Shannon was always told she was 'fine' whenever she came to her parents for help. If someone hurt her feelings at school, she didn't get on the softball team, or her brother was mean to her, her parents would tell her to "get over it" and "stop crying."
As Shannon grew up, she was unaware that this lack of emotional comfort or acknowledgment from her parents was a problem.
Instead, when she dealt with difficult situations, overwhelming emotions, and, at one point, a traumatic experience, she would bounce back and forth between hyperarousal and hyperarousal. One minute, she would feel stressed, anxious, and overwhelmed, and then instead of processing those feelings, she would very quickly start to feel depressed and numb.
Now consider this:
Shannon had a best friend whose parents would always step in when they were frustrated and tell them things like "It's okay to be overwhelmed" or "It does hurt when you don't make the soccer team."
Those parents would give their children a hug or a pat on the back to make them feel better. Shannon's best friend grew up being able to comfort themselves when they were overwhelmed or when they dealt with difficult emotions because they grew up feeling understood and accepted even when they were dealing with something challenging.
For Shannon, she never learned how to self-soothe, so when dealing with extreme emotions, either positive or negative, she would bounce back and forth between depression or anxiety, rage or dissociation. She used alcohol to numb her feelings and try to ignore them, thinking that if she ignored them, they wouldn't be real. Her best friend did not.
Eventually, women like Shannon are at risk of spiraling out of control in the face of difficult emotions, and this can have a negative impact on daily life, work, personal relationships, and mental health.
Thankfully, affect regulation can teach women like Shannon the skills they need to self soothe and regulate those emotional responses without being stuck at either end of the spectrum.
Who Needs Affect Regulation Therapy?
It can be challenging to recognize that you have a problem if you don't know what the signs or symptoms of that problem are. The same is true of the need for affect regulation therapy.
Who needs or can benefit from affect regulation therapy? Just about anyone, but in particular, women who:
If you identify with any of these symptoms, consider the ways in which affect regulation therapy can help you manage your emotions and learn how to cope.
How Affect Regulation Therapy Can Help: Working with Worthy Wellness Center
At Worthy Wellness Center, we apply holistic programs to help women reach their potential. With several levels of outpatient care including PHP, IOP, and traditional outpatient, we provide women with access to flexible scheduling to get the help they need.
Affect regulation therapy is one of the modalities we use in each of these levels of care to help clients develop skills needed to better regulate emotional responses, helping women in all areas of life, including:
- Staying present in the moment which can improve intimacy, listening, and mindfulness
- Remaining in the ‘window of tolerance’
- Improving close relationships
- Controlling emotions
- Boosting mental health and mood
Affect regulation therapy uses several approaches to teach clients emotional self-regulation. Many of these are body-focused.
Vagus Nerve Stimulation
At our facility one of the body focused approaches we use to help our clients is vagus nerve stimulation. The vagus nerve is responsible for controlling your parasympathetic nervous system, the ability of your body and brain to relax. The vagus nerve works in contrast to the fight or flight feelings brought about by the sympathetic nervous system.
As part of affect regulation, our clients can undergo Vagus nerve stimulation therapy to use a non-invasive way of electrically stimulating the nerves to help encourage relaxation. With improved relaxation, women can learn to step away from the fight or flight response in conjunction with things like somatic experiencing, and from there build toward better emotional regulation, mindfulness, and healthy mood.
Somatic Experiencing
Another approach includes somatic experiencing, helping to release compressed energy from trauma, chronic stress, and triggers so that women have enough energy to regulate emotions and build resilience.
What Worthy Wellness Means to Our Clients
Met the team here and toured the facility. The staff here are very caring and attentive. They have a well rounded staff that each have extensive experience in the treatment industry. The facility itself is warm and inviting. They’ve done an excellent job creating a safe environment for people to get vulnerable and get the help they desire.
We Accept Most Insurance Plans
Everyone deserves access to exceptional care, regardless of their financial situation. That’s why we’ve partnered with a wide range of insurance providers to ensure that our services are as accessible as possible. The admissions team at our drug rehab will work with you to navigate insurance claims and benefits so you can focus on what truly matters – your health and well-being. We accept all out of network insurance as well as cash pay and accept referrals from detox and residential facilities. Let us take care of the paperwork while you embark on your journey to wellness.
Discover Affect Regulation Therapy at Worthy Wellness Center
Make a choice for real change. Call our team today to find the treatment plan that is best suited to your needs.