SPF Counselling Service
Strategies To Help Students Trapped In The
Freeze Response
Just like fight or flight, freezing is an automatic
involuntary response to a threat. In a split second,
the brain decides that freezing (rather than fighting or
running away) is the best way to survive what's
happening. When someone freezes, their body is
trying to protect them. Freezing is an evolutionary
survival tactic, similar to when an animal plays dead.
It’s not a conscious decision but something that is out
of anyone's control.
When you go into freeze mode your brain goes off line- it’s as if the person is no
longer here in a sense. This makes it
really difficult to connect to them so that
they are able to come out of their
frozen state. It is so important therefore
we focus on using a gentle melodic
rhythm to our voice to help calm them
down and try to help them to mobilise
their body again rather than focusing
on any cognitive strategies. Cognitive
strategies won't work whilst
they are frozen as their brain is in shut
down mode.
Here is a suggested plan to help someone unfreeze:
1. Use grounding language
Rather than empathise with how you imagine they might be feeling (this can
sometimes be triggering to someone in a frozen state), use grounding
language. You can say things like:
“Stay with me here”
“Feel your feet on the ground”
2. See if they can nod their head
Ask: “Can you nod your head for yes and shake your head for no?”
Someone who is frozen often can’t move their body and will also lose their
power to speak. Nodding and shaking your head is a preverbal body
communication that we learn by 6 months old and it is so ingrained that even
in the frozen state we can usually access this form of communication. This is
then really helpful as it means we can ask yes or no questions.
3. Acknowledge their feelings
Ask: “Are you feeling a lot of fear?”
There can be a lot of shame attached to being stuck in the frozen state, so
asking this, acknowledges that you understand how terrifying this might be for
them. This can be really comforting to know you understand how it might be
and will also help to take away some of the shame.
4. Eye Movements
Although their body will often be frozen still, they should still be able to move
their eyes.
Ask: “Would you be willing to see if you can move your eyes as far to the right
as possible?”
Often when we move our eyes like this our head wants to turn a little bit. This
will then help to start unlocking the frozen state. You can repeat this by
asking them to look all the way to the left as well.
5. Micro Movements
After you have completed the eye movements and maybe a little head turn,
next start to ask to see if they can do little micro movements. It’s important
not to rush and go slowly. You could try things like:
“Can you see if you can blink for me?”
“Would you be able to try and move your little finger?”
“Can you push your tongue onto the roof of your mouth?”
6. Grounding techniques
Ask them next if they can look around the room and pick out 3 things and
describe them to you in as much detail as they can. If they are in a familiar
room to them you can ask, “What are the three things you most like to look at
in my office? Can you describe them to me?”. When you know the objects
they like, you can use these as anchors to help them unfreeze a little quicker
the next time.
7. Breathing
Slow breathing is really important for activating the parasympathetic nervous
system which is needed in order to help the body relax and to let go of the
tension the frozen person will be holding in their bodies.
Say, “It’s looking like your breathing is still a little fast- let's take some deep
breaths together.. Can you do it with me?”
Do a simple breathing technique such as in for 5 secs out for 5 secs until their
breathing is regulated.
8. Movement
Once they have slowed their breathing down and they are feeling a bit more
“back in the room”, see if they can walk/move
to help shift the remainder of the frozeness. Perhaps walk them to the nurse
or somewhere they can be quiet for a little bit if they need some time before
returning to class.
Checklist:
What to do:
Imagine they are a wild wounded animal that
if you move too fast or speak too
quickly/loudly you might terrify them more.
Always:
● Talk in a gentle/soft voice
● Use a melodic tone
● Move and talk slowly
What NOT to do:
When in a frozen state, remember they are shut down and immobilised so
they can’t defend themselves or speak out if they don’t want you to do
something. This can be very frightening. It is so important therefore we:
● Always ask permission before doing something
● Don’t get too close
● Don’t touch (unless absolutely necessary and you have been given
permission by them)