Drive, Threat and Soothe
Learn more about a model of the three states our brains and bodies can be in
6/3/20263 min read
I love this model of the different states our brains, and also therefore our bodies can be in!
The model highlights three main modes our brains can be in; drive, threat and soothe.
Drive Mode
Drive mode is when we are doing, achieving, getting things done, thinking, planning etc. It's a mode we are quite often in as it's the mode we adopt at work, when we are getting through our to do lists, doing household tasks and generally being busy! Interestingly it's also the mode we are in when we are planning things in advance, thinking things through, making decisions, or replaying or analysing things that have already happened.
So as you can see it's a mode we spend a lot of time in! It's a really useful mode, doing back a few tens of thousands of years it's what drove us to find food, build shelter, look after our families and communities. It's still a useful mode today, but it also has it's downside mentally and physically when we spend more and more of our time in this brain mode. Things like scrolling on our phones, watching action packed TV or playing sports can also be drive mode activities so we need to balance our activities that put us in drive with Soothe Mode
Threat Mode
Threat mode, historically, would have been triggered in life or death situations. Our brain scans for threats and then reacts quickly and primes our body with adrenaline and cortisol to prime us for action to protect ourselves (and those we care for). People often know this as the fight, flight or freeze respond; very deep/old layers of our brain take over and react instinctively to protect our safety as a priority.
Again, this is a really useful mode going back a few hundred years; see a wolf and you need to react quickly and instinctively (without pausing to consider options!) to the threat. These days though the threat system is triggered at a low, or higher, level much more of the time that our bodies and brains are designed to deal with. the 24 hour news cycle, increasingly outrageous views and content posted online to get more clicks, and the increase in a sense of separation from other individuals or groups of humans means that threat system is activated more often. A stressful job, home or health situation can also push us into threat more of the time. The problem is we aren't designed to be in the state so much of the time; it's bad for our mental and physical health; it's linked to higher rates of mental health conditions as well as physical health conditions like heart disease and some types of cancer.
Soothe Mode
I think, and worry, that Soothe mode is really undervalued in modern society... In the past it's a mode we'd naturally have spent much more time in; when there was no direct threat to us and all the tasks for the day had been done that was it, we could sit around the fire, talk, dance, sing, and relax and unwind our bodies and brains!
These days most people spend the vast majority of their time in Drive and Threat and get very little Soothe time; and this is strongly linked to stress, overwhelm as well as mental and physical health issues.
So how do we get more Soothe time in our lives? One great way is mindfulness! Mindfulness practice is soothe time in itself. Mindfulness also helps us to build awareness of our own bodies and brains, what state they are in, and gives us the space to make choices to better support ourselves going forwards. And the really brilliant news is that, with time, we can re-wire our brains so that Soothe state, and therefore a calmer and more relaxed brain and body, can become more of our default again!