The smoke alarm that wouldn’t stay silent

The smoke alarm

Imagine a smoke alarm in a cozy little house. When the house was first built, the alarm was perfectly calibrated. It knew the difference between danger and safety. It only went off if there was real smoke or fire—an actual threat. It was designed to protect, not panic.

But over time, things began to happen in that house. A candle left burning too long. Times when someone forgot to turn off the stove, or the wiring sparked in the walls. One day, a real fire broke out—it was terrifying, and it left a deep mark.

After that, the alarm changed. It became hypersensitive.

Toast too brown? Alarm activated.

A hot shower with steam? Alarm activated.

Lighting birthday candles? Alarm activated.

Even when there was no real danger, the alarm screamed. It wasn’t broken. It had simply learned. Learned that danger can come from the small, ordinary things. Learned that safety is unpredictable. And now, it was trying to protect at all costs.

The body

So now you may be wondering, what the heck does this have to do with trauma or my body?

Well, this is what happens inside of our bodies after experiencing a traumatic event. (Remember from last week, trauma isn’t the event itself, it is the body’s response to the event).

To understand how this plays out, let’s start with a key player in our internal safety system: the Vagus nerve.

The Vagus what?

The Vagus Nerve is one of the longest and most influential nerves in the body. (Not going to lie, I was SHOCKED when I first learned something as “small” as a nerve could completely through me into a tizzy).

Picture this – a nerve that originates at the bottom of your brain stem, and moves throughout your entire body, connecting your brain to many of your major organs such as; lungs, stomach, GI tract, heart and spleen.

Because the Vagus nerve’s primary vital role is to regulate our stress responses (aka to alert us if danger is near), when it’s functioning well, you feel calm, connected, and present. You can digest your food, take a full breath, and engage in meaningful connection with others.

When the Vagus nerve isn’t functioning optimally (think constant smoke alarm activation) —often due to trauma—it becomes harder to bounce back from stress. You might feel chronically anxious, disconnected, easily overwhelmed, or emotionally shut down. Even “normal” situations can feel unsafe because your body isn’t getting the message that it’s okay to relax.

This is where the “aha” moments arrive. I get it – I have been there! That’s your body remembering. That’s your smoke alarm doing its best.

The good news

Healing from trauma isn’t about shutting off the alarm completely. It’s about helping it recalibrate. Relearning or perhaps learning for the first time what safety feels like. (More to come later on the word, safety). Building trust with the body again, slowly and gently. Through supportive relationships, therapy, mindfulness, somatic work, and lots more, the alarm can learn that it doesn't have to go off all the time and what to do when it does go off.

The invitation is yours:

meet me back here next week for a deeper understanding of your internal smoke alarm

Next
Next

trauma is my jam