Episode 38- Big Feelings, Small Bodies: What Emotional Dysregulation Really Looks Like

Big Feelings, Small Bodies: What Emotional Dysregulation Is Really Telling Us | Ep. 38When a child explodes, shuts down, bolts from the room, or cries at everything, what is their nervous system actually communicating?In this episode, Kylie Ellison breaks down the neuroscience of emotional dysregulation in children, unpacking the four key presentations play therapists and caregivers see most: the fight response, the flight response, emotional flooding, and the freeze shutdown. Kylie explores what each behaviour is communicating at a nervous system level, why consequences and logical reasoning fail when the thinking brain is offline, and how child-centred play therapy is designed by its very nature to meet these unmet needs.This episode connects the nervous system content from last week's episode into a practical, science-backed framework for understanding children's big behaviours — and responding in a way that actually works.In this episode:Why dysregulation is not a choice, and why it's not misbehaviourThe four dysregulation expressions and what each one is communicatingWhat children need in each state (and what makes it worse)Why the CCPT playroom is a regulation environment before anything elsePractical takeaways for play therapists, parents, and caregiversWhether you're in the playroom, the classroom, or the living room, this one is for anyone who wants to understand what children's big feelings are really trying to say.Play Therapy Circle is hosted by Kylie Ellison, play therapist and clinical trainer at Kylie Ellison Therapy & Training. New episodes drop weekly.