My guest this week is Rebecca Ward, author of the book The Paper Tiger Syndrome: How to Liberate Yourself from the Illusion of Fear (affiliate link). Rebecca has a lot of expertise in effective stress management, and we explored the somatic-based approach she uses to help people regulate their body in order to manage stress. We also discussed the vagus nerve, which plays a central role in how we deal with stress, and it’s of special interest to me based on some of my own health challenges. Toward the end of the conversation we talked about ways to develop more adaptive survival strategies for dealing with life’s many challenges.

Topics we discussed together included:

• Why fear is often a “paper tiger” based on old, primitive wiring
• Counterproductive effects of an overactive stress response
• Signs we’re in a chronically hyperactivated state
  • Dry mouth
  • Speaking fast
  • Moving quickly
  • Anxiety
  • Tension in center of chest
• Being outside the “window of resilience”
• Why regulating the body is so important for managing stress
• Gravitation toward things that are safe
• Learning to distinguish between real and imagined threats
• How to regulate the body when it’s overstimulated
  • Noticing the body and how it’s reacting
  • Using the breath to keep attention in the body
  • Giving the mind a respite from thoughts
• Why the vagus nerve is so important in dealing with stress
• Signs of stress in the voice
• Exploring our relationship with expressing healthy anger
• The quality of voice that activates the vagus nerve
• Developing more adaptive adult survival strategies
• The role of a spiritual practice in dealing with stress
• Shifting from what we don’t have to what we do have
• Resmaa Menakem’s idea of the vagus nerve as “the soul nerve”
• Reconnecting with the deepest part of ourselves
• Becoming the fullest and most wholehearted version of yourself

Rebecca A. Ward is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist with specializations in grief & loss, trauma, stress reduction, and the psychological symptoms associated with chronic and terminal illness.

Her work is informed by somatic-based practices, including as a Somatic Experiencing® Practitioner (SEP), and she serves as a training assistant for the Somatic Experiencing Trauma Institute (SETI).

Rebecca is also certified in Interactive Guided Imagery and the Integrative Enneagram and has received 20+ years of training in numerous relational, grief, ritual, and spiritual modalities.

As an ICF Professional Certified Coach (PCC) and Certified Integral Coach, her work as a management consultant includes nearly 30 years of combined experience in executive coaching and management consulting.

She works with leaders across all levels to repair connections and build cohesion and is an expert in leadership presence and embodiment—connecting the work of somatics with the use of language and communication.

Find Rebecca online at her website where you can schedule to work with her in therapy or coaching.