This chapter is a toolbox. Photograph these pages. Memorize what matters.
Your Body’s Alarm System
Fight: Muscles tense, ready to confront.
Flight: Heart races, every cell screams RUN.
Freeze: Still. Blank. Cannot move.
Fawn: Agreeable. Smiling. Trying to please the threat.
None are choices. If you froze, you did not fail.
Grounding Techniques
5-4-3-2-1
▸ 5 things you see. 4 you touch. 3 you hear. 2 you smell. 1 you taste.
Box Breathing
▸ In 4. Hold 4. Out 4. Hold 4. Repeat.
Cold Water Reset
Splash cold water on your face. This triggers the body’s dive reflex, which quickly slows your heart rate. (Skip breath-holds if you feel dizzy.)
Building a Safety Plan
▸ Safe People: three names you trust.
▸ Safe Places: addresses you can reach quickly.
▸ Go-Bag: phone, charger, ID, medications.
▸ Exits: in every space, know where the doors are.
▸ One Sentence: “I need help. I’m not safe.” Practice it.
Your Rights
You have the right to feel safe in your own body.
You have the right to say no.
You have the right to leave.
You have the right to tell someone.
You have the right to ask for help without shame.
You have the right to heal at your own pace.
You have the right to a future different from your past.
These rights were given by the One who made you. They cannot be taken by anyone. They are yours. Permanently.