Where does the Fawn Response actually come from?

Last week I wrote for the first time about this lesser-known reaction to STRESS . Today I would like to give you some background.

The term fawn response was first introduced by American therapist Pete Walker in 2013. He described pleasing as a fourth stress response, alongside fight, flight and freeze.

Where fight, flight or freeze are often visible, fawn is invisible.
You bend, seek harmony, set aside your own boundaries.
Not because you want to – but because you once learned that this was the safest option.

Walker saw the pattern in people who grew up in unsafe environments:

• With parents who were emotionally absent, critical or unpredictable,
  'being nice' became a way to avoid rejection.
• You develop a sensitivity to atmosphere, to other people's needs.
  And you forget what you yourself actually feel.

The fawn response is not born out of weakness, but is a powerful survival strategy .
As a child, you had no other option.
But now you are an adult.

And that gives new opportunities:
To recognize when you shoot in that reflex.
To bring awareness to automatic patterns.
And slowly, at your own pace, to choose something else.

Walker's work is also inspired by:
- ​​Trauma therapy (such as somatic experiencing)
- Attachment theory
- Inner child work

Although the term fawn is not yet widely used in mainstream psychology, it is alive and well within trauma-sensitive coaching and therapy.

Do you recognize this and want to know more? Look on YouTube but you can also make an appointment with me.

You are welcome,
always.