Hypervigilance vs. Intuition: How to Trust Your Gut After Trauma
Struggling to tell the difference between hypervigilance and intuition? Learn how to distinguish the two from a somatic perspective supported by neuroscience. Discover how Embodied Wellness and Recovery can help you reclaim peace and trust your body’s wisdom.
How to Tell the Difference Between Hypervigilance and Intuition from a Somatic Perspective
Do you ever feel a sense of unease but aren't sure whether it's a gut feeling warning you of danger or just anxiety speaking? How often do you ask yourself, “Am I listening to my intuition, or is this hypervigilance taking over again?” If you’ve experienced trauma, it can be incredibly difficult to tell the difference.
Many trauma survivors grapple with this question daily. Hypervigilance—being constantly on guard, expecting danger around every corner—can mimic intuition so closely that it becomes hard to trust your instincts. From a somatic perspective, understanding the distinction between hypervigilance and intuition is key to reconnecting with your body and reclaiming your sense of safety.
What Is Hypervigilance?
Hypervigilance is a heightened state of awareness that often develops as a result of trauma. It’s your body’s natural fight-or-flight response that has become stuck in the "on" position, even when there’s no immediate threat. Neuroscientifically, hypervigilance involves the amygdala, the brain's fear center, being over-activated and constantly scanning for danger.
In this state, your body remains tense, your senses heightened, and your mind races to interpret every minor stimulus as a potential threat. While this response was once useful for survival, it becomes maladaptive when you continue to live in an environment where these dangers no longer exist.
What Is Intuition?
Intuition, on the other hand, is a deeper sense of knowing. It’s the inner wisdom we all possess, often described as a "gut feeling" that guides us without conscious reasoning. Intuition comes from the prefrontal cortex, the brain’s decision-making center, in collaboration with the vagus nerve, which carries signals from the gut to the brain.
Unlike hypervigilance, intuition is grounded and calm. It doesn’t spike anxiety or cause panic; it’s a subtle whisper rather than a scream. Intuition is a signal that something needs attention, but it isn’t necessarily an alarm.
Confusing Hypervigilance with Intuition
If you’ve experienced trauma, you may find yourself living in a near-constant state of hypervigilance. But how can you tell if what you’re feeling is your body’s wisdom guiding you or your anxiety amplifying unnecessary fear? When your nervous system has been overwhelmed by trauma, these lines can blur. You might find yourself reacting to every situation as if it were life-threatening, even when your intuition is quiet.
This can lead to feelings of self-doubt and confusion. How can you trust yourself when you don’t know whether the signals from your body are real or a product of your trauma?
A Somatic Perspective: Listening to Your Body’s Signals
From a somatic therapy standpoint, the body holds the key to distinguishing between hypervigilance and intuition. Somatic Experiencing, a therapeutic approach focusing on the body’s responses to trauma, helps individuals reconnect with their physical sensations and emotions to understand where these feelings originate.
By learning to recognize and regulate the body’s responses, you can start to discern when you're in a state of hypervigilance versus when you're experiencing a genuine intuitive signal. Here are some ways to begin understanding the difference:
1. Identify Physical Sensations
Hypervigilance often feels like tightness in the chest, shallow breathing, and a sense of urgency. There’s a readiness to act or flee, even when it isn’t necessary.
Intuition tends to feel calm and centered. It’s not accompanied by racing thoughts or physical tension. Instead, it’s a soft nudge, often experienced as a gut feeling or a sense of clarity.
2. Track Patterns
Hypervigilance is often reactive. It comes on quickly and feels overwhelming, triggered by external stimuli. This response may be repetitive and often leads to feelings of fear or unease.
Intuition is more gradual and steady. It doesn’t make you panic but instead offers a sense of guidance without immediate alarm.
3. Practice Grounding Techniques
To step out of hypervigilance, grounding exercises are crucial. Techniques like deep breathing, body scanning, and progressive muscle relaxation help bring you back to the present moment and soothe your nervous system.
Grounding can help you tap into intuition by creating a calm internal environment where your mind and body can work together to provide insight.
4. Recognize the Source
Hypervigilance typically stems from unresolved trauma and is a defense mechanism. Intuition comes from a place of inner wisdom. As you become more familiar with your body’s responses through somatic therapy, you’ll begin to differentiate between these sources.
Neuroscience Behind Trauma and Intuition
Understanding the neuroscience of trauma can help clarify how hypervigilance and intuition operate in the brain. Hypervigilance is driven by an overactive amygdala and an under-functioning prefrontal cortex, which impairs your ability to assess whether danger is real or imagined. Intuition, however, involves the prefrontal cortex and interoception (the brain’s ability to sense internal bodily signals), which leads to calm, informed decision-making.
By addressing these patterns through somatic therapy and neuroscience-based trauma treatments like EMDR and Somatic Experiencing, you can start to quiet the noise of hypervigilance and reconnect with your intuitive self.
Healing at Embodied Wellness and Recovery
At Embodied Wellness and Recovery, we specialize in helping individuals differentiate between hypervigilance and intuition through trauma-informed somatic therapy. Our skilled therapists offer EMDR, Somatic Experiencing, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to help clients heal their nervous systems, regain trust in their bodies, and cultivate a sense of inner peace. You can read more about the services we offer HERE.
Are you ready to learn how to trust your intuition again? Let us guide you through a personalized therapeutic journey that addresses your trauma from a holistic perspective. REACH OUT today and take the first step toward healing. You can also schedule a free 20-minute consultation with one of our compassionate therapists HERE to discuss your needs and determine whether we could be a good fit.
References
Levine, P. A. (2010). In an unspoken voice: How the body releases trauma and restores goodness. North Atlantic Books.
Porges, S. W. (2011). The polyvagal theory: Neurophysiological foundations of emotions, attachment, communication, and self-regulation. W. W. Norton & Company.
Ogden, P., Minton, K., & Pain, C. (2006). Trauma and the body: A sensorimotor approach to psychotherapy. W. W. Norton & Company.
Shapiro, F. (2001). Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), basic principles, protocols and procedures (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
