I Feel Trapped in My Body: Why This Happens and How to Get Unstuck
“Sometimes, in the stillness, the heart speaks loudest.”
You know you’re safe, yet your body doesn’t seem to believe it. Your limbs feel heavy, motivation disappears, and it’s as though you’re moving through molasses. You want to act, but can’t. Maybe you find yourself staring at the screen, endlessly scrolling, or feeling both tired and restless at the same time…a strange mix of being wired but unable to move.
If you’ve ever thought, “I feel trapped in my body,” you are truly not alone. Many people experience this confusing state where the mind says “you’re fine,” but the body feels stuck, frozen, or shut down. This is more than emotional exhaustion or burnout. It’s a physiological response called the freeze state, when the nervous system slows down to protect you from greater overwhelm or perceived threat.
The good news? Your body isn’t too far gone, and you’re not lazy or unmotivated. In fact, your body is doing exactly what it was designed to do given what it’s likely been through. And with understanding, nervous system care, and gentle reconnection, you can help it move again, from frozen to flowing, from stuck to safe. Let’s explore exactly how to do this.
What It Means to Feel “Trapped”
The sense of being trapped or immobilized often comes with:
Jelly-like limbs or heavy arms
Low motivation or fatigue, even after rest
Difficulty focusing or starting tasks
Numbness or emotional disconnection
Anxiety that feels paralyzing rather than activating
These symptoms point to the freeze response, one branch of the body’s survival system (Roelofs, 2017). When the body perceives danger, it can fight, flee, or (if neither is possible) freeze.
The Science Behind Feeling Frozen
The body’s survival hierarchy
Our autonomic nervous system (ANS) is constantly regulating between states of safety and defense. Stephen Porges’ Polyvagal Theory explains that when we sense threat, we first try to mobilize - through fight or flight. But if that fails or seems unsafe, the body triggers dorsal vagal shutdown, the physiological basis of freeze (Porges, 2001).
In this state, heart rate slows, digestion pauses, and movement feels nearly impossible. Emotionally, we might feel foggy or detached. It’s the body’s way of “playing dead” to protect us.
Neuroception: the unconscious safety detector
Your brain isn’t the only part of you deciding if you’re safe. Your nervous system constantly scans for cues of safety or threat, a process called neuroception (Porges, 2001).
Sometimes, neuroception gets it wrong. For example:
A harsh tone might remind your body of past danger.
Overwhelm or fatigue might be read as a threat signal.
Even certain sounds or environments may unconsciously activate your defense system.
This means you can feel frozen even when nothing is wrong, because your body’s alarm system is in a mode of overprotection.
Why Trauma + Anxiety Make You Feel Stuck
When we experience chronic stress, trauma, or complex trauma, our body learns that being immobilized is safer than acting. This adaptation can persist long after the danger is gone (Roelofs, 2017).
That’s why people with trauma histories may:
Feel detached in moments of conflict
Shut down when overwhelmed
Struggle to “get going” even with rest or support
Freeze is your body saying, “Let’s stay still until it’s safe.” Unfortunately, it doesn’t always update when life actually becomes safer (Hashemi et al., 2021).
The Paradox of Anxiety + Freeze
Many people think anxiety always looks like racing thoughts, panic, or restlessness, but anxiety can also feel like the complete opposite: stillness, exhaustion, and collapse. This paradox occurs because even when the body appears shut down, anxiety is still active beneath the surface. In this state, your nervous system detects potential danger and decides that immobility is the safest way to survive. Instead of fight or flight, the body moves into freeze or shutdown, slowing everything down to conserve energy and stay safe. You might notice that your mind feels wired or on alert, but your body feels heavy, numb, or frozen, a phenomenon sometimes described as “high-anxiety immobility” (Hashemi et al., 2021). From the outside, it looks like calm or fatigue; on the inside, your body is quietly bracing for impact.
Body Based Therapy Helps You “Unfreeze”
“I am rooted, but I flow.”
Although the impulse may be to force movement, this will only drive the body further away from regulation. Instead, the goal is about helping your nervous system feel safe enough to move naturally again. Therapies that focus on the body and relationships, like Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP), Somatic Experiencing, or Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, are especially effective (Fosha, 2000). This somatic type of approach is our focus at Amanda Neves Therapy. We’d be happy to connect you to a therapist on our team who offers this exact support.
AEDP’s approach to thawing freeze
In AEDP, the therapist helps clients gently reconnect with sensation, emotion, and safety through:
Co-regulation: The therapist’s calm, attuned presence helps your body downshift from defense.
Tracking body sensations: Learning to notice “what’s happening inside” without judgment.
Tiny movements of agency: Small physical or emotional expressions (like taking a breath or making eye contact) restore movement and vitality.
Processing emotion safely: Once safety returns, the energy behind freeze (such as fear, grief, or anger) can be felt and released.
This process helps rewire the nervous system so it no longer confuses stillness with safety.
Practical Ways to Gently Get Unstuck
While therapy provides deep change, there are everyday ways to signal safety to your body:
1. Ground through your senses
Name three things you see, two things you feel, and one thing you hear. Orienting to the present moment reminds your nervous system that you are safe now. Our favourite is looking out a window, and bringing attention to the wind through the leaves, the way sunlight hits the surroundings, or the birds as they fly and chirp.
2. Move gently
Did you know?
Your body learns safety through motion. Even wiggling your toes or rolling your wrists can start to melt a freeze state.
Subtle motion (rolling your shoulders, stretching your neck, shaking out your hands) tells your body, “It’s safe to move.” The importance here is starting small, and not forcing your way to “calm” or “more energy”. Gentle yoga, walking, or dancing can be powerful over time, once you regain more capacity.
3. Breathe for safety
Try slow exhales longer than your inhales. For example, inhale for four counts, exhale for six. This stimulates the ventral vagus nerve, which supports calm and connection. Another favourite is pursing your lips as you exhale, pretending you are blowing out a candle. This method of exhaling ensures you are taking long, slow, and paced breaths, which also stimulates the vagus nerve.
4. Break tasks into micro-actions
Freeze often makes big tasks feel impossible. “Chunking” is a helpful technique here. Put simply, try one tiny action: open your laptop, reply to one message, or fill one glass of water. After each act, pause, and really spend the time to notice the way your energy may slightly shift. Every moment here reactivates a sense of agency.
5. Use warmth and touch
What the research says
Research shows that physical warmth activates the same brain regions as social connection, which is why holding a warm mug can actually make you feel more emotionally safe (Williams & Bargh, 2008).
This is another favourite of ours! Wrap yourself in a blanket, hold a warm mug, or place your hand on your chest, face, or stomach. Warmth is another signal of safety to the body and can help thaw the nervous system to a place of calm.
When to Seek Professional Help
If your sense of being trapped persists for weeks or months, or if you experience dissociation, numbness, or shutdownthat impacts daily life, it’s worth reaching out to a trauma-informed therapist.
You deserve to live in a body that feels like home, not a place of tension or fear. With the right support from our curated, somatic-focused team, your nervous system can learn that safety isn’t the same as stillness, but connection, movement, and vitality instead.
The Hope: Your Body Wants to Move Again
“I take refuge in the small movements that remind me I am alive.”
It can be easy to feel frustrated when your body won’t “cooperate,” but remember, freeze is your body’s way of protecting you. It’s not a malfunction. It’s an old safety strategy that can be gently rewritten.
Through compassionate awareness, gentle movement, and the support of therapy, you can help your body thaw, reawaken, and move again. Over time, moments of being “trapped” become signals to pause, not prisons to stay in.
Your body’s story doesn’t end in stillness. It’s always been deserving of being playfully in motion, abundant aliveness, and sincere connection.
References
Fosha, D. (2000). The transforming power of affect: A model for accelerated change. Basic Books.
Hashemi, M. M., et al. (2021). Human defensive freezing: Associations with trauma and stress responses. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 15, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2021.713548
Porges, S. W. (2001). The polyvagal theory: Phylogenetic substrates of a social nervous system. International Journal of Psychophysiology, 42(2), 123–146. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-8760(01)00162-3
Roelofs, K. (2017). Freeze for action: Neurobiological mechanisms in animal and human freezing. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 11, 213. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2017.00213
Trainer, N. (2024). Dorsal vagal shutdown: Recognizing when your body freezes. Neurodivergent Insights. https://neurodivergentinsights.com/dorsal-vagal-shutdown/