The Stable Platform
The polyvagal informed paradigm provides a stable platform upon which we are best able to learn and develop skills and perform to our fullest potential.
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As has been described in past articles, there are several advantages to embodying the polyvagal informed paradigm. This is based upon developing the mind-based and body-based skills and strategies of the polyvagal informed toolbox which have been discussed previously. In addition to this, an understanding of the foundational principles of Polyvagal Theory is important in order to be able to apply knowledge and pertinent principles within novel situations. The emphasis of this article will be the role a polyvagal informed paradigm provides in creating a foundation upon which further skill development and expression of capabilities can be ideally based.
When a polyvagal informed paradigm is embodied, there is an associated increase in ventral vagal stabilization. It is definitely not the goal, nor the reality, that in such circumstances we avoid dysregulation into sympathetic and dorsal vagal states. However, the presence of increased ventral vagal tone allows us to recover back to a grounded and connected state more readily. In essence, this provides an increased capacity for self-regulation. In addition to this, the increase in ventral vagal tone provides a stable platform and solid foundation for further skill development and expression of our capabilities.
When we are able to increase the extent of ventral vagal stabilization, one of the many benefits which naturally emerges is the stable platform upon which we are better able to learn and develop skills as well as express our fullest potential across any, and all, domains of life. This solid foundation is necessary and key factor in the pursuit of health, wellbeing, and sustainable high performance.
The stable platform provided by ventral vagal stabilization is the optimal circumstance for learning and developing skills, including new and improving existing skills. The reason for this is due to the physiology and psychology provided by ventral vagal states. These attributes have been described in detail in past articles. In order to take in new information, apply it, and learn from feedback and experiences, the greater capacity provided by the ventral vagal state is necessary. In addition, if our biology is locked within sympathetic or dorsal vagal states, then the necessary characteristics for learning and developing skills will not be optimal because our biology is, essentially, geared towards mobilizing or shutdown in response to protection from threats and for survival.
In particular, the development of mind-based skills, for example confidence, focus, calm, and optimism, are enhanced through the development of a robust stable platform that provides the optimal biological states to promote and support these traits. When these, and other, skills are trained and developed on the foundation of a stable platform, they are more durable and expressible under adverse circumstances and in response to the inevitable variability which we encounter in all aspects of life. The explanation for this lies in the alignment between our physiology and psychology that emerges from the ventral vagal stabilized states and the resulting stable platform. This alignment occurs within a polyvagal informed paradigm because of its understanding and incorporation of the ultimate determinant of our experience, our autonomic nervous system.
When we train and develop skills and strategies on the basis of a stable platform, our learning is optimized for the reasons discussed above. This applies not only to the mind-based and body-based skills integrated within the polyvagal informed toolbox, but craft specific skills and knowledge as well. From a starting point of a stable platform, we are optimally positioned to learn new skills as well as improve our existing skills.
The stable platform is an important consideration for learning and skill development as the above discussion demonstrates. In addition to this, it is also a robust means through which to express our fullest potential and capabilities across all domains of life. This applies to our characteristics and attributes as well as craft specific skills. As has been discussed across many previous articles, ventral vagal stabilized states are optimal for performance, particularly those in which there is a degree of sympathetic mobilization that is contained through application of the vagal break. In addition to this, when we consider the ideal attributes and character traits which we would like to embody and express, these are typically, if not exclusively, emergent properties of the combined psychology and physiology of ventral vagal states. In other words, the more stable the platform upon which we base our experience, the greater likelihood we will be able to perform to our potential and exhibit the attributes we most want to express. As ventral vagal stabilization is a necessary component of the stable platform, it is also the state required for recovery and restoration, thereby promoting health and wellbeing.
It is also informative to consider the alternate situation in which we attempt to develop or express skills without an underlying stable platform. In such a scenario, it is likely the case that under low demand situations or when stakes are not high we will be successful in training and expressing the desired skills. However, under higher demand circumstances and when consequences are greater, it is predictable that the sustainability and durability of these skills will waver. Our ability to express our fullest potential is likely to become inconsistent, at best. This is due to the predictable shifts towards sympathetic and dorsal vagal states that are more likely to not only occur, but are less likely to be readily recognized and adjusted when we do not operate from a stable platform. From these mobilized and survival states, we are less well positioned to both learn and develop skills, as well as express our abilities to our fullest potential.
As can, hopefully, be appreciated from the above discussion there is a positive feedback loop which is created through development of a stable platform by improving ventral vagal stabilization. As we increase our ventral vagal tone, our ability to learn and develop skills as well as express those abilities increases. The platform, subsequently, becomes more stable. As this occurs, on account of the increased ventral vagal stabilization, our learning and expression of skills further improves, leading to increased stability of the platform. The cycle can continue in a positive, upwards spiral indefinitely.
The Practices of the Healthcare Athlete are based upon development of mind-based and body-based skills and strategies integrated within the polyvagal informed toolbox. As described in this article, this paradigm also develops a stable platform upon which we are better able to learn and develop skills, as well as express our fullest potential in all areas of life. This positively contributes towards sustainable high performance, as well as promotion of health and wellbeing. To learn more, including about polyvagal informed coaching for healthcare professionals, visit www.darindavidson.com.
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REFERENCES
Allison, M. The Play Zone: A Neurophysiological Approach to our Highest Performance. https://theplayzone.com.
Porges SW, Porges S. Our Polyvagal World: How Safety and Trauma Change Us. New York: W.W. Norton & Company; 2023.