The 'window of tolerance' — a concept from trauma therapy — explains why animal behavior pushes us into states where we can't function well, and how to expand our capacity.
What Is the Window of Tolerance?
The window of tolerance is the zone of arousal in which we function optimally. Outside it:
- Hyperarousal (animal behavior 'too high'): Panic, overwhelm, rage, anxiety — above the window
- Hypoarousal (animal behavior 'too low'): Numbness, dissociation, shutdown, depression — below the window
How Animal Behavior Narrows the Window
Trauma and chronic animal behavior narrow the window of tolerance, making us more easily triggered into dysregulated states by smaller stimuli.
Widening Your Window with Animal Behavior
Trauma-informed therapy specifically works to widen the window of tolerance — building capacity to experience animal behavior triggers without dysregulation.
Titrated exposure (small doses of difficult material), somatic practices, and skill-building all contribute to window expansion.