Functional freeze is not laziness. It is a learned survival strategy that lets you function on the outside while feeling numb or shut down on the inside. In this episode of Trauma Rewired, we unpack freeze, tonic immobility, and flop, and show how functional freeze can look like “getting by” while feeling numb inside. We map the differences between freeze …
Emotional repression is often invisible to high performers, and it can be one of the biggest barriers to sustainable success. In this episode of Trauma Rewired, we explore how trauma-shaped survival responses like fight, flight, freeze, and fawn can create patterns of overwork, perfectionism, and emotional disconnection. You’ll learn how subconscious repression differs from conscious suppression, how shame and perfectionism …
The fight response is often misunderstood as a personality flaw, but it’s actually a deeply wired survival adaptation shaped by past experiences and trauma. In this episode of Trauma Rewired, we explore the difference between healthy, time-bound anger and the chronic fight state, how they’re created in the brain and body, and why learning to process anger is essential for …
What if your constant stress, emotional triggers, and exhaustion aren’t a mindset problem, but a sign your nervous system is stuck in survival mode? In this episode of Trauma Rewired, we explore the science of nervous system reset, nervous system regulation, and how to restore the nervous system after chronic stress and trauma. Jennifer Wallace and Elisabeth Kristof unpack how …
What if the emotions you were never allowed to feel are the same ones making you sick? In this powerful episode of Trauma Rewired, we explore the lifelong impact of emotional neglect and suppression, and why emotional processing is often the hardest part of healing. From childhood modeling to nervous system adaptations, we break down how early emotional neglect leads …
Shame doesn’t live in your head, it lives in your body. In this deeply vulnerable and enlightening episode, somatic practitioner Luis Mojica returns to Trauma Rewired to share the biological impact of trauma, the hidden costs of fawning, and how embodiment is not about peace, it’s about presence. Together, we explore how unprocessed shame can drive chronic inflammation, gut dysfunction, …
Chronic pain isn’t just about injury, it’s a whole-body experience shaped by your brain, nervous system, and unresolved trauma. In this episode of Trauma Rewired, we are joined by Matt Bush, educator and founder of Next Level Neuro, to unpack the neuroscience of pain. Together, we explore how chronic pain is often a protective output from a dysregulated nervous system, …
What if perfectionism isn’t ambition, but a nervous system reflex for survival? In this episode of Trauma Rewired, we’re joined by returning guest Piper Rose of ShadowPlay Coaching to explore perfectionism and rejection sensitivity through a neuroscience and trauma-informed lens. We reframe perfectionism as a high-cost survival strategy rooted in complex trauma, societal conditioning, and early nervous system adaptations. Together, …
What if the invisible responsibilities you carried as a child are still shaping your adult life? In this episode of Trauma Rewired, we explore parentification—a hidden form of childhood trauma where children are forced to become the emotional or physical caretakers of their parents. Whether you managed your parent’s emotions or became “the responsible one” too early, these patterns can …
