Polyvagal Under Fire?

Tesia Bryski, M.Ed., RP

You might have heard that Stephen Porges’ Polyvagal Theory is being criticized lately. Some scientists even said it doesn’t fully work as a theory. So it’s fair to wonder: should we still be using it?

The short answer: yes, however, here is a deeper dive into the research beef that we keep hearing about.

Trauma Therapists 🤝 Polyvagal Theory

Polyvagal Theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, gave us all and incredibly important finding: a way to understand what’s happening in our body when we feel overwhelmed.

Before this, anyone who felt panicked, frozen, or completely numb, were often told things like:

• Just calm down

• You’re overreacting

• You’re too sensitive

  
  

Given the findings of the Polyvagal Theory, we now know those reactions aren’t just in our head, they’re actually deeply embeded nervous system responses to a real or perceived threat in our environment. Essentially, this threat detection system is your body’s built-in safety system, triggered by your autonomic nervous system sussing out a potentially dangerous vibe.

Polyvagal Theory helped explain that the fight (anger), flight (anxiety), freeze (shutdown/numbness), and fawn (people pleasing) are not within our conscious control, they are old survival responses that helped humans stay alive.

So instead of thinking:

• What’s wrong with me?

We aim to shift it to:

• My body is trying to protect me.

  
  

& that shift can feel really, really powerful for a trauma survivor. That shift helps move through shame, and helps us understand our stress response as being adaptive as a source of wellness, rather than something deeply flawed within us. In other words, we are not fundamentally flawed, we just need a software update.

This theory also reminded therapists (and everyone else) that healing isn’t just about thinking differently, it’s mostly about learning how to feel safe in our bodies and in our relationships. Both within and between.

It highlighted things like:

• Safe relationships help calm our bodies,

• tone of voice and facial expressions really matter in the context of safety, and

• we can “borrow” calm from other people (this is called co-regulation).

For many people, this changed everything.It helped them feel less broken and more understood.

🧠 What’s the Beef?

First of all, it’s important to note that the level of drama experienced in a cliquy highschool girl group pales in comparison to the drama experienced in academia. Researchers make careers out of disproving the work of their peers. In this context, a group of psychophysiologists (biological researchers in a medical field, not clinicians) have raised concerns about whether the biological underpinnings which are at the root of Polyvagal Theory, are fully accurate.

Here’s the simple version of their points:

• Some parts of the theory may oversimplify how the nervous system works,

• Scientists are debating whether certain measurements (like heart rate changes) really show what the theory says they show,

• There are questions about whether certain systems in the body are as separate as the theory suggests.

That said, here is the take away for anyone working in a clinical setting supporting trauma survivors and facilitating healing in any capacity:

👉 Even the critics agree that the main ideas, like safety, connection, and secure relationships, are still undeniably important.

Those ideas existed before Polyvagal Theory and don’t depend on the biology being 100% correct.

🧠 To My Fellow Clinicians

Rather than:

Is this theory completely true or completely false?

It’s more helpful to ask:

Is this a useful way to understand experience?

Polyvagal Theory is like a blueprint, and blueprints don’t have to be perfect to create a practical map. When applying Polyvagal Theory to clinical practice, it helps to distill complex neurobiology into an accessible framework. While the human brain is infinitely nuanced, this model serves as a practical map for the nervous system, allowing clients to:

• Identify their internal state in real-time.

• Articulate experiences that often feel beyond words.

• Navigate toward a state of physiological balance (safety).

In the therapeutic space, the clinical accuracy of the model is secondary to its utility; what matters most is providing clients with the tools to understand and regulate their own lived experience.

🧠 So What Matters, Clinically?

When applying Polyvagal Theory to clinical practice, it helps to distill complex neurobiology into an accessible framework. While the human brain is infinitely nuanced, this model serves as a practical map for the nervous system, allowing clients to:

• Identify their internal state in real-time.

• Articulate experiences that often feel beyond words.

• Navigate toward a state of physiological balance.

In the therapeutic space, the clinical accuracy of the model is secondary to its utility; what matters most is providing clients with the tools to understand and regulate their own lived experience.

• Social Engagement: A sense of safety and connection that serves as the foundation for all deep healing. (Ventral Vagal)

• Mobilization: An anxious or “activated” state triggered by the perception of threat (Sympathetic Nervous System).

• Immobilization: A “shut down” or dissociative response when the system feels overwhelmed (Dorsal Vagal).

• Fawning (Appeasing): A complex survival response where one defaults to people-pleasing or mirroring others to diffuse conflict and ensure safety. (Note: while fawning wasn't part of Stephen Porges’ original three-state model, many clinicians now include it to describe a "social-bypass" survival strategy in which we appease the threat to stay safe.)

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By simplifying the “why” behind their reactions, we can empower our clients to move from judgment to curiosity. Ultimately, the goal isn’t to master the science; it’s to master the self.

🧠 A Simplified Guide

If you’re a therapist (or just someone learning about this), here are three simple ways to hold this idea:

• The Polyvagal Theory is a guide, not a rule. It's a way to explore feelings, not a perfect explanation of the brain.

• Remember, the body is complex. Our nervous system is the highway of connection between the brain and the body, and governs every single function of being human. Besides, our immune system, our hormones, our past experiences (long-term memory), and our relationships also guide our emotional experience. Polyvagal Theory is one piece of the puzzle.

• Focusing on safety, connection, and understanding your body without judgement or shame is still a vital practice, no matter what.

  
  

🧠 The Bottom Line

Science is always growing and changing. It’s okay for theories to be questioned, but something can still be helpful even if it’s not perfect. But hey, maybe that’s why we chose a career in helping people, not digging deeper into science to play the game of “who’s more right”. (Mad love to my research friends though, we couldn’t do what we do without you).

Many people, including myself as a therapist and a client of therapy, have used this framework to:

• understand themselves better,

• feel less ashamed about how they respond unconsciously,

• bring conscious awareness through those responses to create more agency and choice, and ultimately,

• build more safety and security in their lives.

These points should never be ignored in the context of healing. In the end, the real value isn’t just in the science, it’s in helping people relate to themselves with more curiosity and less shame.

fin ☀️

References

Grossman, P. et al. (2026). Why the polyvagal theory is untenable: An international expert evaluation of the polyvagal theory and commentary upon Porges, S. W. (2025). Clinical Neuropsychiatry, 23(1), 100–112. https://doi.org/10.36131/cnfioritieditore20260110

Porges, S. W. (2026). When a critique becomes untenable: A scholarly response to Grossman et al.’s evaluation of polyvagal theory. Clinical Neuropsychiatry, 23(1), 113–128. https://doi.org/10.36131/cnfioritieditore20260111