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The body-mind organises itself primarily around energy and resource allocation. Plan A is to use energy as-and-when in the window of normal adaptation - within which we are a multidemensional, resilient and adaptive human/animal/spiritual being.
Plan A+ is fight-flight, the release of a surplus of energy. As a first response we throw energy at every potentially mortal threat to survival, be that physical danger, loss of critical support, excessive heat or cold, inadequate diet or toxicity, infection, dehydration, etc etc... This increased energy demand can only be met for relatively short length of time before
Plan A+ can be characterised simply as an adrenal-cortisol-sympathetic dominated hyperaroused state with sometimes big emotions (anger, fear), and pain/stiffness/rigidity of muscles (fight-flight requires movement via action of muscles), inflammatory, and most responses lead to moisture and salt depletion through sweat.
If plan A+ fails (Overwhelm) then we adopt the opposite strategy (Plan B+) - which is to conserve energy, moisture and nutrients, to submit and "play dead", turn inwards (the senses become less active) and switch off the lights one-by-one on a trajectory towards hibernation. The body-mind effectively drops further and further back throgh evolutionary survival options, as the more complex adaptations are perceived to fail, more primitive ones are invoked.
Plan B+ can be characterised simply as Plan A+ moderated by high levels of opiates and cannabinoids such that the biological / metabolic meaning of adrenaline-cortisol is changed. There are increasing levels of numb / blank / absent / empty experiences, that may sometimes be accomapanied by any combination of dissociations (including derealisation / depersonalisation), dizziness, lassitude (weakness), tiredness, exhaustion, inability to think, despairing and overwhelmed emotions and prolonged sleep.
Plan B+ is not functional in the "outside world" (because it prevents the release of energy for movement); and although it is metabolically closely related to profound healing states, as overwhelm it tends to prevent healing taking place.
Just as there is a well-organised evolved metabolic route into Plan A+ and Plan B+ survival adaptations, there is also a well-organised evolved metabolic route back out to normality. This route back out requires that information about the safety of the world and the viability of internal homeostasis has been received deeply enough in the organism. Once information gets to the correct place, the whole organism simply re-adapts to safety (or OK-enough-ness) - because that re-adaptation is the optimum survival response.
Plan B+ may simply dissolve subconsciously via micromovements, or may have to return via Plan A+. Then Plan A+ may require a lot of shaking to burn off excess adrenaline.
