The fight trauma response includes seeking power and control in an unsafe environment to protect yourself from threat or danger.
This can often manifest in the following ways:
1. Being written off as “controlling” or demanding
2. Being judged as defensive, reactive and argumentative
3. Not flexible
4. Holding tension in the body
The fight trauma response (like all trauma responses) is highly protective.
Below are some brain based perspectives on the fight response:
1. Control – Seeking control is often a way you can create stability, which is an essential need by the nervous system. When we are able to control things like our schedule, our food, how we exercise etc. we feel a sense of calm. In many cases, we might notice our control tendencies increase when our life feels more chaotic and less predictable.
2. Defensiveness – The tendency to be defensive or argumentative is often a response to protect ourselves from more vulnerable feelings like shame, hurt, or sadness. So we armor in anger and react to situations as a means of self protection.
3. Details – fight responders find comfort in knowing the details and being brought into a process. When details are not shared and things feel too ambiguous, fight responders can often feel more uneasy and anxious.
As a result, seek to control things like their body, food, exercise etc. If you relate to being a fight responder, you can best support your brain and body by asking questions to learn details, making sure you’re surrounded by people who can hold space for your opinions, thoughts and that you create as much predictability in your life as possible (routines, schedules, plans for the weekend etc.).
Please feel free to click the link below to access a quick 60 video on the Fight Response:
