02/07/2026
🩵 understanding nervous system responses 🩵
I made this graphic for The Nervous System Study Group (in 2022) and I'm going to be explaining it in much more detail in my upcoming set of workshops on ND Chronic Illness.
The Cell Danger Response is a fairly recent discovery which offers a new paradigm of chronic illness or disease. This is a biologically normal response that sometimes gets stuck because of stress or trauma. The Cell Danger Response causes our cellular mitochondria to change roles from energy production to protection. A large number of chronic illnesses are caused by cells becoming stuck in this protective response.
This understanding of chronic disease does not remove the need for symptom management with a medical doctor, but it does offer solutions that go a step beyond managing symptoms. Experiencing danger is what signals our cells to stay in the protective response. We can encourage cells to shift out of the Cell Danger Response by creating safety in the environment and by stimulating the ventral vagus nerve.
This is not a comprehensive list. There are over 100 conditions that are influenced by the Cell Danger Response. I tried to list ones that are the most common. (I accidentally left an invitation for edits in this post, but I finalized this image in 2022.)
I have tried to list the most common illnesses associated with the cell danger response for the purpose of providing examples. There are many many more conditions that could be branches on this image. For a more comprehensive list, check out the article below from Veronique Mead's chronic illness trauma studies website.
For anyone looking for research about this topic, I have a list of links at the end of this post!
✨ If it feels good to you, please support the continuation of this work by sharing images from this page to friends, family, or groups. Shares are always welcome - no need to ask permission.
🦎I'm hosting a set of workshops on ND Chronic Illness July 13 & 15 at 3pm EST. We’ll be learning about the biomechanism behind most chronic illnesses, why the medical field often fails us, and what people do to manage when there's no professional help available. This is for both ND people and professionals. My classes are a unique space where we get to interact as peers without hierarchy. Recordings are shared the next day. Early Bird rate is $50 (ends tomorrow).
Details here: https://traumageek.thinkific.com/courses/workshop-series-chronic-illness
💛 My year long-course, 50 Vagus Exercises in a Year, is still open for enrollment. We're exploring natural vagus nerve stimulation while honoring individual pacing and considering neurodivergent differences. The exercises are taught through short videos, with a monthly Q&A session on zoom, and several more ways to learn with me. We started last month and there’s currently 8 short videos and 2 Q+A recordings if you want to catch up with us.
Details here: https://traumageek.thinkific.com/courses/50-vagus-exercises-in-a-year-two
👇 CELL DANGER RESPONSE RESEARCH AND EDUCATION 👇
- Cell danger response Biology—The new science that connects environmental health with mitochondria and the rising tide of chronic illness https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1567724919302922
- The Cell Danger Response: The New Disease Paradigm (100 Chronic Illnesses such as Diabetes, ME/CFS, Autoimmune Diseases and more) https://chronicillnesstraumastudies.com/cell-danger-response-disease/
- New model suggests natural healing cycle becomes blocked by cellular miscommunication, allowing conditions like cancer, diabetes and some neurological disorders to persist
https://health.ucsd.edu/news/releases/Pages/2018-09-07-chronic-diseases-driven-by-metabolic-dysfunction.aspx
- The role of Cell Danger Response in chronic illness: what are the emerging solutions? https://www.gutsygreen.com/blog/how-mitochondrial-dysfunction-and-cell-danger-response-lead-to-chronic-illness
🧠 Have you seen my collection of free infographics about the nervous system? You can find them here: Linktr.ee/TraumaGeek The set about chronic illness addresses this topic.
