Regulation
This month we are talking about regulation. Regulation is a big word and is thrown around like it is inevitably understood. However, it means different things to everyone: emotional regulation, temperature regulation, and behavioral regulation...
The truth is, they are all related.
Regulation, through a sensory lens, refers to the brainstem's ability to process information effectively. When the brainstem is processing information that comes in from the environment effectively, a child is (for the most part) regulated. This means that the child can learn, interact, and socialize consistently and independently.
What we tend to forget is that regulation is a spectrum.
Our children are not always regulated or dysregulated. Like us, they fluctuate between the two. The difficulty happens when a child spends some or most of their time in a dysregulated state because this prevents them from interacting, socializing, and learning as they would like to. In other words, dysregulation is a problem when a child is stuck in a dysregulated state so consistently that it impacts their daily life.
So, what is dysregulation?
Dysregulation is the opposite of regulation. It implies that the sympathetic nervous system is activated so that the child is entering or is in a flight, fight, fawn, or freeze state. In this state, as we can imagine, a child is more hypervigilant, hyperactive, and/or anxious; they may either avoid the stimulus in the environment (maybe by running away or covering their ears for example) before resorting to fighting their way out of the situation (maybe by screaming, yelling, punching, biting, scratching, or kicking) OR they may try to start new things and swirl around the environment looking to "wake up" their brainstem with new stimulus until they just give up and simply cannot do anything.
In these two states, because the brainstem has completely taken over, the child is unable to think and make rational decisions because there is no information processed farther up past the brainstem into the higher parts of the brain. You will also see physical signs that the child is dysregulated: sweating, dilated pupils, flushed cheeks, and red ears.
Now, remember that regulation and dysregulation is a spectrum. A child can be slightly dysregulated or extremely dysregulated or even very regulated. As adults, we do many things throughout the day to keep ourselves regulated (and many times we do not). These can be things like drinking coffee, taking naps, and exercising. Many children do not have these types of luxuries unfortunately, which makes it difficult for any child, especially a child who falls more on the dysregulated spectrum, to make choices throughout the day that actually support their regulation.
What we do know is that children fall into two categories when they are dysregulated as indicated above (and they always fall into these categories when there is a true difficulty with self-regulation): the overwhelmed brainstem (hiding and/or aggressive) and the underwhelmed brainstem (hyperactive and/or unmotivated). This is oversimplified, but it is helpful to know nonetheless.
So, what can you do?
First, spend some time thinking about what regulation pattern your child is in. Not just today, but from the beginning. To do this, think of the time before your child developed compensatory strategies that perhaps masked their true regulation. This would be around the ages of one through about five or six. Has your child always tended to prefer predictability and routine to the point where transitions and changes are VERY difficult? This might indicate that your child has the tendency of an overwhelmed brainstem. Or, has your child always tended to enjoy new activities and changes and wanted to be in everything at every moment? This might indicate that your child has the tendency of an underwhelmed brainstem.
Of course, this is quite surface-level. At the same time, it is an excellent starting point.
If you want to chat specifically about your child, reach out to book a consultation or click here.
As always, reach out with questions.
Talk soon,
Natalie
Some Questions to Think About
1. How do you describe regulation and dysregulation?
2. Do you know what your child's regulation pattern is?
3. Does your child fall more on the overwhelmed brainstem or the underwhelmed brainstem perspective?
