Micro Habits to Regulate Depression or Trauma (Shutdown Response)

Therapy in a Nutshell

Therapy in a Nutshell -Emma McAdam

Mental Health, Health & Fitness, Education, Health & Fitness:mental Health, Self-improvement

4.8 • 657 Ratings

🗓️ 8 May 2026

⏱️ 17 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Micro-habits to activate your nervous system and move out of dorsal vagal shutdown. Trauma-informed tools to reduce depression and climb the polyvagal ladder. If you’re feeling shut down, stuck in depression, or trapped in a trauma freeze response — this episode is for you. In this Therapy in a Nutshell episode, Emma McAdam, LMFT, teaches 9 tiny “micro-habits” you can use to activate your nervous system, move out of dorsal vagal shutdown, and climb the polyvagal ladder toward safety, connection, and motivation again. Learn the skills to Regulate your Emotions, including "Change your Brain" join the membership: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/membership Insomnia Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiUrrIiqidTWdplSnedICFAMlMN-8ikae Healing Beam of Light: https://youtu.be/iB5simoqvm8 Looking for affordable online counseling? My sponsor, BetterHelp, connects you to a licensed professional from the comfort of your own home. Try it now for 10% off your first month: https://betterhelp.com/therapyinanutshell FREE Mental Health Resources: https://courses.therapyinanutshell.com/free-resources Therapy in a Nutshell and the information provided by Emma McAdam are solely intended for informational and entertainment purposes and are not a substitute for advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding medical or mental health conditions. Although Emma McAdam is a licensed marriage and family therapist, the views expressed on this site or any related content should not be taken for medical or psychiatric advice. Always consult your physician before making any decisions related to your physical or mental health. In therapy I use a combination of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Systems Theory, positive psychology, and a bio-psycho-social approach to treating mental illness and other challenges we all face in life. The ideas from my videos are frequently adapted from multiple sources. Many of them come from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, especially the work of Steven Hayes, Jason Luoma, and Russ Harris. The sections on stress and the mind-body connection derive from the work of Stephen Porges (the Polyvagal theory), Peter Levine (Somatic Experiencing) Francine Shapiro (EMDR), and Bessel Van Der Kolk. I also rely heavily on the work of the Arbinger Institute for my overall understanding of our ability to choose our life's direction. And deeper than all of that, the Gospel of Jesus Christ orients my personal worldview and sense of security, peace, hope, and love https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe If you are in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org or 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or your local emergency services. Copyright Therapy in a Nutshell, LLC

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello friends, today we're going to explore nine more tiny things you can do today that can help you get unstuck from depression, freeze, or a shutdown trauma response.
0:10.0	You'll learn quick practices to feel safer and more energized.
0:14.0	Okay, quick refresher. Our nervous system has three general states.
0:18.0	Ventralvagal is where you feel safe and connected. You feel calm and capable
0:23.6	and you can generally adapt to problems. The sympathetic state is where you feel more activated,
0:30.6	alert, on guard, or anxious. And the dorsal vagal state is where things feel overwhelming,
0:36.6	or you feel powerless or helpless. Now, in dorsal vagal state is where things feel overwhelming or you feel powerless or helpless.
0:38.8	Now in dorsal vagal your nervous system triggers a parasympathetic response that can make you feel exhausted, heavy, or sluggish.
0:47.3	You may feel like withdrawing from people or staying in your bed, or you might be pushing through but feel dead inside.
0:55.0	Now, none of these states are bad. Having moments where you feel stressed out or where you feel like giving up and conserving energy can actually be really helpful and adaptive
1:05.0	because that's your nervous system's way of trying to help you survive. But it becomes problematic when we get stuck in one of these states.
1:12.6	Or like when we're anxious all the time, or when we're stuck in depression or shutdown.
1:18.6	So that's when the nervous system becomes less flexible and we get in a rut that's hard to get out of.
1:23.6	So what we need are some tiny habits that both restore your sense of safety and help you get more activated and regulated.
1:32.5	So let's jump in.
1:34.2	Welcome to the Therapy in a nutshell podcast.
1:36.4	I'm Emma McAdam, a licensed therapist.
1:38.8	I make mental health skills more accessible so that you can get better at healing.
1:43.3	Just a reminder, this is education, not therapy.
1:46.0	If you'd like to learn more free mental health skills,
1:48.0	check out our free courses at TherapyInan-a-Nuchel.com.
1:52.0	Okay, first thing I want you to do is blink your eyes.
	...

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