Understanding My Window of Tolerance
What to do:
Your “window of tolerance” can be thought of as the range in which you are generally able to think, communicate, feel and respond while remaining reasonably connected to yourself and what is happening around you.
Begin by describing what being regulated feels like for you. How do you think, speak, move and interact when you feel relatively settled?
Next, explore the signs that tell you that you are becoming overwhelmed or highly activated. You might experience racing thoughts, agitation, panic, anger, restlessness or physical tension.
Then consider what happens when you move towards shutdown or disconnection. You may feel numb, exhausted, withdrawn, unable to communicate or as though everything has become too much.
Identify what helps you in each state. What supports you when you are highly activated may be different from what helps when you are shut down.
The aim is not to stay inside your window at all times. Instead, it is to recognise your patterns earlier and build a personalised collection of things that help you return to a more manageable place.
