The Nervous System Workbook: Practical Exercises to Ease Anxiety, Find Safety, and Come Home to Yourself Using Polyvagal Theory

A guide to understand and befriend your unique nervous system—and find your way back to safety and calm in times of stress

We live in stressful times. When we’re anxious and overwhelmed, our nervous systems—and our lives—suffer. We can’t eliminate all of life’s difficulties, but The Nervous System Workbook can teach you how to find more well-being amidst it all, starting inside your own body.

Deb Dana, a leading expert in Polyvagal Theory, shares incredibly effective tools for getting to know your system. She writes, “No two nervous systems are exactly alike, and getting to know how your nervous system works leads you along the path to becoming an active operator of your own system, no matter how it is wired.”

Step-by-step, Dana takes you through more than 50 short practices and exercises that teach you:

• How your personal nervous system responds—to what’s happening outside you, to what’s happening inside you, and how you communicate with others’ systems
• How to recognize when you’re in a state of distress
• What helps you feel calm and centered
• Why co-regulation—connecting with others—can support your sense of security
• Strategies to find more safety and ease within yourself

QR codes throughout the book point to bonus audio practices guided by Dana.

As Dana writes, “When you learn to befriend the nervous system, you’ll move through the world in a new way and experience the powerful benefits that come with finding your personal pathways to calm and freedom.”