VIDEO: What Therapists Need to Know About Polyvagal Theory

Although many therapists are wary of it, using touch in therapy can have a huge impact on your clients' healing processes. Here, Deb Dana, author of The Polyvagal Theory in Therapy, talks about the science behind the power of touch in sessions, what this healing looks like in session, and what types of touch elicit which emotional responses.

Deb Dana, LCSW, is a clinician, coordinator of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium in the Kinsey Institute, and developer of the Rhythm of Regulation training series. She’s currently writing Polyvagal Exercises for Therapists and Clients: Shaping Your System Toward Safety and Connection.

"Biology, it turns out, is the prime mover of our relationship stories, before emotion ever gets involved," Dana writes in her Networker article, The Touch Taboo. "With a more comprehensive understanding of the body’s role in creating connection and disconnection—and a precise language to describe it—we have a better map to help guide our clients back to safety."

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Topic: Anxiety/Depression | Trauma

Tags: Anxiety | anxiety and depression | autonomic nervous system | coping with depression | nervous system | polyvagal theory | Trauma | trauma and recovery