Everyone has a unique window of tolerance. A window of tolerance can be thought of as an optimal zone of arousal in which an individual feels present, calm, and safe. Essentially, when you are within your window of tolerance, you are able to function most effectively and your emotions can be regulated in a healthy way. You might feel most like yourself in this state, as you are in total control of how you think and behave. It is normal to be pushed outside your window of tolerance from time to time, and the important focus is finding your way back to a grounded state. This can sometimes be more challenging for those who have experienced trauma, as experience of trauma can narrow one’s window of tolerance, causing feelings of overwhelm or distress when emotional material is activated (Briere, 2015). Learning more about your unique window of tolerance and bringing awareness to signs or cues when you might be outside of it can be the first step in transforming your emotional regulation and working towards alternate responses to stress.

Outside the Window

When pushed outside one’s window of tolerance, a person might find themselves in a dysregulated state, a hyperarousal state, or a hypoarousal state. When dysregulated, uncomfortable feelings start to increase, but you are still within control. Dysregulation is thought of as an in-between of the two extremes of hyperarousal or hypoarousal. Hyperarousal is characterized by feelings of anxiousness or panic, feeling overwhelmed or out of control, and wanting to fight or run away. On the other hand, hypoarousal is characterized by feeling disconnected, zoned out, numb, frozen, lethargic, or low energy. If we visualize a window, hyperarousal is commonly associated with being pushed up above our optimal zone of and hypoarousal is commonly associated with being pushed down below our optimal zone. You may experience one state more commonly than another, or even fluctuate between any of them.

Applications in Therapy

The window of tolerance can be a very useful tool in therapy to increase emotional awareness and understanding about our nervous system responses. You may have heard of fight, flight, or freeze responses before. These are primal nervous system states that protected our species from danger historically in the past, but when applied to everyday stressors in current times are not always adaptive. For this reason, the goal with window of tolerance work can be to increase psychological flexibility. This can be worked towards by focus on both expanding one’s window of tolerance and finding ways to get back to it when we are inevitably pushed outside from time to time.

Common practices that can expand your window of tolerance in general are mindfulness techniques, grounding exercises, gratitude, positive self-talk, deep breathing, or somatic exercises.

If you can recognize cues of dysregulation, you may be better prepared to bring yourself back into your window. To do so:

Become curious about signs that indicate you are feeling dysregulated
Pay attention to these signs and notice when they are present
Label the experience
Identify what you need in the here and now to feel more grounded

To shift back from a hyperaroused (fight or flight) state, it is important to breathe, pause, and slow down to bring increased awareness to your thoughts, body sensations, and external environmental. To shift back from a hypoaroused (freeze) state, it is important to activate the body through physical movement, to stimulate your senses, and reach out to make connection with others. It can be empowering to feel a sense of control over your own outcomes and emotional experience. Always mindful that window of tolerance work involves learning skills and increased awareness that comes with time and practice. Its practical applications should always go hand in hand with self-compassion and realistic expectations for ourselves!

References

Briere, J. N., & Scott, C. (2015). Principles of trauma therapy: A guide to symptoms, evaluation, and treatment (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

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