How a Polyvagal Approach Improves Chronic Pain (Rochester Edition)

CHRONIC PAIN

Chronic pain isn’t just pain that sticks around longer than we’d like. It’s pain that actually changes how our nervous system works. When pain lingers for months or years, our brain, spinal cord, and nerves don’t keep sending the same signals. They adapt, rewire, and sometimes become overly sensitive, so even harmless sensations can trigger intense pain.

Over time, the nervous system can start to misinterpret signals. Pain messages fire when they shouldn’t, normal sensations feel threatening, and the brain stays stuck in “danger mode.” This is how chronic pain can gradually reshape the central nervous system itself.

OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM

When our nervous system is healthy, pain is the alarm that goes off when something is wrong, which is a good thing. The alarm alerts our brain to injury or danger, but quiets down once the injury is healed or the danger is removed. Chronic pain overrides the “off switch” of the alarm, allowing pain signals to keep firing even when there is no injury or danger.

When alarms continue for long periods, they can cause structural and functional changes in our brain, especially in areas involved in sensation, emotion, and decision-making. Our spinal cord also becomes more reactive, amplifying pain signals before they even reach our brain. As chronic pain persists, the nervous system doesn’t just keep reacting; it starts anticipating pain. This heightened state of vigilance is meant to protect us, but over time, it can backfire, causing the system to respond too aggressively to normal input.

OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM + CHRONIC PAIN

When chronic pain continues unchecked, our nervous system doesn’t just stay sensitive; it can get stuck in protection mode. The brain and spinal cord begin to react as if danger were always present, even when the body is no longer being harmed. Chronic pain can also keep the body’s fight/flight/freeze/fawn response switched on, further amplifying pain signals and making rest/reset/recovery that much harder.

Chronic pain doesn’t mean our body is failing us (even though it feels like it). It just means our nervous system has learned a pattern that once made sense but no longer serves us. When pain is viewed through this lens, treatment shifts from simply “chasing symptoms” to calming, retraining, and supporting the nervous system as a whole.

 

HOW CAN A POLYVAGAL APPROACH IMPROVE CHRONIC PAIN?

 

POLYVAGAL THEORY

Polyvagal theory (PVT) is a neurobiological theory that explains the physiological responses that humans experience in response to injury or danger. It can improve chronic pain by helping the nervous system shift out of a constant state of threat or defense and into a state of safety and regulation. This calming process reduces stress chemicals, lowers body inflammation, and lowers how intensely our brain feels pain. A polyvagal approach improves chronic pain by helping our nervous system move out of a constant “survival-threat” state and back into a calm, safe state.

 

OUR VAGUS NERVE + OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM

The role of the Vagus nerve: Vagus means “wandering” in Latin; the nerve “wanders” throughout our body. It is the longest cranial nerve and oversees a range of functions, especially the communication of sensory information, which we learned earlier is an important factor in the nervous system’s relationship to chronic pain.

The nervous system can exist in three states:

Ventral Vagal: safe + regulated (This is what we’re striving for!)
Sympathetic: Mobilized in fight/fight/freeze/fawn
Dorsal Vagal: Shut down + disconnected

 

HEALING TECHNIQUES

Practical healing techniques that can trigger a physical relaxation response by stimulating our Vagus nerve include:

Intentional breathing: There are many breathing techniques (box, 4-7-8, belly, pursed lips), and finding the one that works for us is important. Regardless of the type of breathing exercise we choose, key factors for us to include are:

• we inhale through our nose

• we exhale through our mouth

• make sure we exhale longer than we inhale

Vocal toning: Humming, singing, or loud gargling stimulates our Vagus nerve through throat vibrations.

Social connection: Safe, supportive interactions or co-regulation with others or pets can signal physical safety.

SOMATIC TECHNIQUES + ART THERAPY IN PITTSFORD

In a typical session with me, I like to include mindfulness practices (intentional breathing and/or vocal toning) with artmaking. We can use our creative side in many ways while being mindful, including:

• Journaling: Prompted or freestyle
• Collage: Using precut images or finding your own images
• Blackout Poetry: I have books for you to use, or you can bring in your own
• Coloring: I always have books, markers, and colored pencils, or you can bring in yours

These art directives provide a creative outlet, while still allowing for the ability and energy to focus on the mindfulness practice at the same time. Co-regulation through social connections, like building rapport and camaraderie through simply inhabiting the same space together, can feel more comfortable than simply making art on your own or in silence. By having something to do with our hands (making art) while engaging our minds (breathe/vocal work), in a safe space (social connection), we can marry somatic practices (mind-body techniques) with the creative arts and facilitate healing in an interactive and non-threatening way.

If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, feel free to reach out to me at our Pittsford office, just outside Bushnell’s Basin! As a part of this community (I live just down the road in Fairport), I particularly enjoy working with teens and adults using somatic practices alongside art therapy.

Or, continue the healing process using somatic therapies with me in an art-based, group setting! Pre-registration is open for a class I will be teaching, Somatic Art Group for Trauma and Chronic Pain.

Registration is also open for a fun fall-themed ceramic workshop here at Spotted Rabbit Studio that I will be teaching also! Join us for our Mabon Celebration & Gratitude Workshop (Saturday, September 19th, 2026 from 10 AM - 1:30 PM). This Autumnal Equinox retreat offers an opportunity to step away from the busyness of everyday life and create with intention, honoring gratitude, balance, and the quiet wisdom that comes with changing seasons. Through clay, mindfulness, and creative exploration, you'll craft a ceramic altar that serves as a meaningful reminder of what grounds and sustains you. Store little knick-knacks or other meaningful pieces you cherish. Spots are limited, so claim yours before they sell out!