The freeze response

• Card 1

  Freeze happens when fight or flight don't feel possible — when a threat seems inescapable, the nervous system can shut things down instead. This can range from a brief pause to a much deeper sense of shutdown, sometimes described as feeling frozen, foggy, or far away from your own body.

• Card 2

  This can look like

  • Going blank or 'spacing out' during stress or conflict
  • Feeling unable to speak, move or make a decision in the moment
  • A sense of heaviness, numbness or disconnection from the body
  • Difficulty remembering what happened during a stressful event
  • Feeling stuck, even when you logically know what you 'should' do

  Freeze is closely linked to dissociation. If this pattern feels frequent or distressing, our Dissociation guide covers it in more depth.

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