Defend Your Nervous System & Your Democracy

by

On April 5th, I joined more than 3 million Americans around the world for the Hands Off! protest.

We peacefully protested the Trump regime’s illegal executive orders, terrifying tariffs, imprisonment of people without due process, and gutting of federal services we depend on.

People gathered in 1,300 small towns and big cities across the United States, U.S. territories and abroad.

  • 100,000 people in D.C.
  • 7,000 in Nevada
  • 100,000 in Boston
  • 30,000 in Atlanta

And countless others gathered in places like Dubuque, Iowa; Helena, Montana; Topeka, Kansas; Louisville, Kentucky; and Amarillo, Texas; as well as in London, Paris, Lisbon, Berlin and Canada.

Our message was clear: “HANDS OFF!” Hands off our veterans. Hands off our schools. Hands off our national parks, our social security, our private data, our bodies, our health care, our retirement, our First Amendment, our civil rights …

The list goes on.

We chanted, “Hey hey! Ho ho! Donald Trump has got to go!”

When the chants around me died down, I yelled: “Tell me what democracy looks like!” and the crowd yelled back, “THIS is what democracy looks like!”

Many people carried creative signs. Here are some of my favorites from around the country:

  • “But wasn’t it born the Gulf of Mexico?”
  • “Stop Truth Decay!”
  • “Too Much Rage for One Sign”
  • “Thanks Trump. You turned me into an activist”
  • “Hate Doesn’t Make America Great”

And lots and lots of signs that simply said, “Fuck Musk.”

Here in Vegas, my friend dressed as Elvis and held a sign that said, “America already has a King, baby!”

Why I Protested

I made a two-sided sign with an American flag flying above it. On one side it said, “Liberty and Justice for ALL.”

On the other side it said, “VETERANS DESERVE BETTER.”

I’m a military brat. My father served in the Army. I grew up moving to wherever Dad got stationed — 11 moves during my childhood. Military families serve this country too.

So I’m passionate about veterans rights and by extension, military families. If we ask someone to put their life on the line like my father did in Vietnam … if we ask someone to dedicate their life to military service like my father did for almost 20 years … if we ask a family to worry about their soldier’s safety and uproot themselves every two years like we did … the least we can do is keep our promise to veterans.

There were two protests here in Vegas on April 5. We attended the one downtown with about one thousand other people. We slowly walked a 1-mile loop past local businesses, restaurants, apartments, and vacationing tourists.

We got lots of enthusiastic honks from passing cars. Lots of fists raised in solidarity out car windows. One guy in a Tesla pulled over and shouted, “Thank you for doing this! I’m sorry about my car! I bought it before he went crazy!”

We all laughed and waved at him. One old lady shouted back, “It’s okay, honey!”

Two young Latina women wore their birth country’s flags as capes. One held a sign that said, “Why would you piss of the ‘Toxic Latinas?!’”

An old guy in a Semper Fi hat tapped me on the shoulder. “Thank you for your sign,” he said. I squeezed his arm and said, “Thank you for your service.”

The vibe was beautiful. Energizing. Hopeful. It felt good to be with people.

Planting Seeds of Hope

Whenever I saw a pickup truck, I flipped my sign to the “VETERANS DESERVE BETTER” side and held it out toward the truck. Not to be inflammatory. I did it because I hoped that on this issue they’d agree with me.

And if we can agree on one issue, maybe there’s hope we’ll come together on other issues as well.

At one point a gold Ford 350 rolled up, stuck in traffic, waiting for the light to change.

The driver, a man, stared straight ahead, hands on the wheel, ignoring us. His passenger, a woman, leaned around him to read my sign. Then she started yelling. I could barely hear her over the chanting and honking. I think she said, “You don’t love your country!”

I wanted to yell back, “I wouldn’t be out here if I didn’t love my country!”

Instead, as march organizers instructed us, I did not engage. I stood calmly and quietly. I touched the camouflage Army hat on my head, my father’s, with his rank star pinned to the front.

She kept yelling. I kept standing. And then, for reasons I cannot explain, I placed my hand over my heart. She stopped yelling and placed her hand over her heart. I nodded at her. She nodded back. The truck drove away.

I doubt I changed her mind. But maybe, just maybe, I planted a seed.

Why Haven’t We Heard More?

My story of the April 5 protest is one of at least 3 million stories from that day.

I wanted you to hear it because you might not otherwise.

Traditional media ignores — or discounts — peaceful protests. I hate to sound like MAGA, but we can’t trust legacy media’s coverage — of protests, anyway.

In my years of activism I’ve noticed mainstream media tend to downplay how many people attend a protest — unless there’s violence. Peaceful protests, following in the footsteps of civil rights movements, get little coverage.

I’ll give you three examples and then explain why protesting is important.

2004 March for Women in D.C.

In 2004 my husband, Mike, and I joined friends in D.C. for the Women’s March. It was the largest march in the history of the United States at the time. Our home paper back in California didn’t even mention the march. Big media like the Washington Post said that “hundreds of thousands of people converged on the Mall.” Try 1 million people, bitch!

2025 Bernie Sanders’ Fight Oligarchy in North Las Vegas

Last month we went to Bernie Sanders’ “Fight Oligarchy” tour stop in North Las Vegas. People were packed into the park like sardines in a can. One local media outlet said there were “100s of people.” Try 3,000, bitch!

2025 Hands Off! protest in downtown Las Vegas

The day after the nationwide protests April 5th, my local newspaper said, “hundreds gathered” in Las Vegas. Try 3,000, bitch! One of the local TV channels said, “dozens” of protests happened around the country. Try 1,300, bitch!

And media like The Hill said, “thousands protested” across the nation. Try 3 million, bitch!

And while we’re at it, hey Governor Lombardo, I heard your little speech about the protests. And no, we were not paid to be there. We showed up voluntarily BECAUSE WE ARE MAD AS HELL! Instead of calling Nevadans like me “stupid” and “ridiculous,” you could show a little respect to our service members, veterans, and their families.

Damn I’m pissed. Okay, okay. Take a breath, Dorothea. Stay focused.

[sigh breath]

Why Protesting Matters

Did you know people have been resisting since Trump took office in January by marching and protesting and boycotting and calling representatives and organizing meetups and attending town halls and fact-checking social media posts and writing and speaking and making political art?

Diverse people all across this great nation have been resisting in one form or another every fucking day for THREE FUCKING MONTHS.

Just because you don’t hear about it doesn’t mean it’s not happening.

Resisting matters. Protesting matters. Boycotting matters. Speaking out matters.

Why do you think this newsletter’s tagline is “Calm the fuck down so you can STAND the fuck up?”

BECAUSE IT MATTERS!

Resisting sends a message to ….

  • the world that we vehemently disagree with the Trump regime;
  • the people in power that we the people have the power;
  • our community that we will not stand quietly by while our rights are taken away;
  • politicians that we will not obey in advance;
  • vulnerable people that we’re standing up for them; and
  • people passing by that they are not alone.

As one Canadian posted, “We… need more from you all. Protest, vote, go out and do something! Otherwise, it is just hollow words.”

Prof. Barbara F. Walter, a modern civil wars expert and former CIA advisor, said in a recent MSNBC interview:

“I increasingly believe that the way forward has to come from the bottom up, that American citizens have to want and love and defend their democracy on their own. One of the things we also know from decades of really great scholarship is that protest and peaceful resistance works. … The second thing —we’re seeing this now in real time — is don’t voluntarily comply with orders that are illegal. Don’t help Donald Trump implement his agenda. … Don’t preemptively comply.”

And as my favorite historian, Heather Cox Richardson, said:

“The reason protesting matters, the reason speaking up matters, is because in our country the power of the government quite literally comes from us. Our Constitution literally begins, ‘We the People …’ When we demonstrate that the government doesn’t have the support of the people, that government is not legitimate. It is not legitimately expressing the will of the American people.”

Why am I harping on activism in a newsletter about resilience? Because action is the antidote to the anxiety and fear you feel.

Action = Antidote to Anxiety & Fear

Right now we don’t feel safe. That’s by design. The Trump regime wants us to feel overwhelmed and powerless. It wants us to give up without a fight. It wants to traumatize us into submission.

It turns out that taking action is good for your nervous system — and for our democracy.

What happens when we marinate in our fear and worry and despair and anger and anxiety?

Our nervous system gets amped up — AHHHHHHHHHH! 😱

Or clamped down — uhhhhhhhh.😮‍💨

That’s dysregulation. What happens when we’re dysregulated? We can’t think clearly, strategically or critically.

And friends, now is not the time to turn your brain off!

So the first step in defending our democracy is defending your nervous system.

When you’re regulated, you’re in what I call the Window of Kindness. It’s a state of inner safety, or equanimity. From that place you can decide how to channel all that anger and despair in healthy, productive ways — not outward at loved ones, and not inward at yourself.

Let’s dive in!

This Week's Trauma Tip

Practices for Resilience — Defend Your Nervous System

Humans survived because our bodies evolved survival strategies, sometimes called stress responses. I call them the “4 F’s”: Fight, Flight, Freeze or Fawn. (There’s a 5th F — Faint, which is total collapse.)

In Fight or Flight, our body screams, “DO SOMETHING!”

In Freeze or Fawn, our body screams, “DON’T MOVE!”

Since I don’t know which response you’re stuck in right now, I’m going to give you one practice for each F. They take less than 5 minutes each, so try all of them and see which one makes you feel better. (Hint: It’ll be the OPPOSITE of what you feel like doing.)

Amped up in FIGHT?

Outrage is addicting. It’s exciting. It feels good. It makes us feel alive, like we’re actually doing something. Defensive outrage, though, is different than constructive rage.

Outrage is mindless reaction. Rage is focused action.

When we’re in Fight, sitting still and breathing quietly feels impossible. I get it. The following practice is active and a great way to release some of that pent-up energy.

Move Your Body

Get your heart rate up — any movement helps. Set a timer for 5 minutes and do one of these:

  • Jump Up & Down — listen to an upbeat song with jumping jacks, jumping rope, jumping on a trampoline, jumping hoops, jumping over a pillow
  • Pump Limbs — move the big muscles in your body with Dr. Zach Bush’s 4-minute workout (NODs)
  • Shake it Out — do 8-Shakes with me and be sure to call out the numbers while you follow along. If you do this with a group of people you’ll end up laughing too, which is another way to calm your nervous system!

Freaked out in FLIGHT?

I myself default to Flight. In the past, I’d literally flee — get up and leave a conversation, break off a relationship, quit a job, or move to another state. It’s impulsive avoidance.

These days my Flight response manifests differently: I get antsy, make piles of clutter everywhere, find it hard to focus, spend hours reading and watching news and frantically copy-pasting passages so I feel like I’m doing something.

When we’re in Flight, sitting down and focusing on the task at hand feels impossible, suffocating even. I feel like I’m trapped and about to die. Maybe that’s why this newsletter started off 40 pages long and took weeks to write — I just couldn’t keep my mental shit together!

But as Rep. Jasmine Crockett said, “We can’t allow the distractions to get us lost in the sauce.”

The following practice helps you break through the resistance and is a great way to build back some focus.

Tackle a Tiny Task

  1. Pick a thing that has to get done
  2. Break the task down into sub-tasks you could do in 3 minutes or less
  3. Set a timer for 3 minutes
  4. Do the first tiny task on your list
  5. Celebrate — dance to your favorite upbeat song, or try one of these:*Don’t skip this step! We’re rewiring your brain to associate joy with taking small actions.

Clamped down in FREEZE?

When we’re in Freeze, everything feels hopeless. Getting off the couch feels physically impossible. There’s just no giddy in our giddy-up-and-go. Our body aches. Just thinking about moving exhausts us.

I get it. The stress is overwhelming, so you shut down. The following practice is a gentle way to get the blood and oxygen flowing to your brain again.

Swing into Action

If you have access to a swing set at your local park, swing for three minutes instead.

  1. Stand up and make sure there’s enough space around you to swing your arms out
  2. Set timer for 1 minute — twist at the waist, letting your arms swing around and slap your body until timer goes off
  3. Set timer 1 minute — swing your arms up over your head and then back to your side until timer goes off
  4. Set timer 1 minute — stick your butt out and bend your knees into a squat while swinging your arms to the floor, then stand up and swing your arms overhead until timer goes off. Pretend you’re flinging confetti!

People-pleasing in FAWN?

When we’re in Fawn, we find it hard to say no to others and tend to put others’ needs ahead of our own. We don’t like conflict. We don’t want to cause a scene or upset people, so we stay small and quiet. I get it.

We pay a price, though. We end up feeling ashamed for our silence, for not standing up for what we believe in, for not speaking up for ourselves. We feel disconnected. Disconnected from our bodies, our needs, and our truth. We may even struggle with chronic pain.

This practice activates the inner rage you might be suppressing, giving it a healthy outlet so you can start saying no. You have a right to be on your own side.

Say (Fuck) No

You’ll need a big pillow or yoga bolster for this, and some wall space (or a closed door) to lean against

  1. Set a timer for 3 minutes
  2. Rest your back against the wall and bend your knees as you slide down the wall into a sitting position. Sit down as low as you can go. Make sure you can see your toes in front of your knees. (When it feels too hard, slide up the wall an inch or two. When it feels too easier, slide down the wall an inch or two.)
  3. Push yourself off the wall when the timer goes off
  4. Set timer for 30 to 60 seconds
  5. Stick your butt out behind you, bend your knees and squat down
  6. Pick up the pillow/bolster off the floor and raise it over your head
  7. Slam pillow/bolster into the ground and scream, “FUCK YOU!” (or “FUCK NO!”or “FUCK OFF!” or just plain “NO!”)

BONUS! For all 4 Fs (aka, for everyone)

In all of the 4 Fs, the feeling we think we’re feeling is actually masking a feeling beneath it. A feeling that is so uncomfortable we default to the easier (for us) feeling.

Here’s my best guess at what’s beneath each of the survival responses:

Fight = Anger — covers up Sorrow &/or Fear &/or Shame

Flight = Fear — covers up Joy (yep, some of us are terrified of joy) &/or Shame

Freeze = Sorrow — covers up Fear &/or Anger &/or Shame

Fawn = Joy – covers up Anger &/or Fear &/or Shame

That’s a whole lotta shame! See what comes up for you when you do this practice.

Embody Your Feelings

You’ll need privacy for this, so find a time when no one’s home or go into a room and close the door. Wear headphones if you can.

  1. Play this song: The Silence (Manchester Orchestra)
  2. Move your body to the music in whatever way it wants to move. Follow your body’s impulses.
  3. Allow the feelings to bubble up to the surface. If you feel the urge to cry, let yourself cry. If you want to kick and scream, let yourself.
  4. When the song ends, take a moment to reflect on what came up for you. Just notice — no judgment needed. We’re practicing getting in touch with our emotions hidden beneath the surface so they don’t run our lives.
    • Did you discover an emotion you weren’t expecting?
    • Did you feel silly and self-conscious?
    • Did you feel like crying?
    • Did you feel like punching the wall?
    • Did you feel nothing at all?

Activism for Resilience — Defend Your Democracy

The Trump regime wants us to feel traumatized and afraid. Powerless and hopeless.

What happens if we resist the Trump regime’s campaign of trauma? If we stand up to the people in power and remind them power comes from the people?

We build our own resilience. We build our collective resilience.

As Sen. Raphael Warnock (D–GA) told Stephen Colbert on the Late Night show:

“There are those who are trying to weaponize despair. They’re flooding the zone and they’re hoping you won’t fight. You need to prove them wrong.”

The following activism practices not only defend our democracy, they defend your nervous system too. I suggest you do both of these practices no matter which “F” you default to. They work well together.

Fill the Streets with Your Voice and Body

✅ Protest! Protest! Protest!

Hopefully I’ve convinced you that protesting matters. Here’s my final appeal:

  • The insults we’re getting from MAGA politicians show it’s working!
  • The 71% drop in Tesla’s profits shows it’s working!
  • The coverage we’re getting from international media shows it’s working!
  • The Red State folks joining us shows it’s working!

So get out in the streets, people!

If you’re a Freezer or Fawner and you’ve been sitting on the sidelines, it’s time you get involved. Do the charging up practice I gave you, and then attend a public event. You’ll feel engaged and connected.

The next national day of action is May Day — May 1st.

Check out these links for other upcoming rallies, town halls and protests in your area. If you don’t see one in your town, Indivisible will help you set one up.

The movement is still coalescing, so if you don’t find something in your area at one of the above links, look at the other ones. Weekly events are happening in most cities across the nation.

✅ Join Veterans’ D-Day Protest — June 6th

If you’re a veteran, veteran’s family, or care about veterans, join veterans for the D-Day Anniversary protest June 6th. Our veterans didn’t fight fascism abroad just to watch our country succumb to fascism. We need to hear from veterans — and so do active duty service members.

Send the Government Some Gratitude

Listen, we’ve all complained about the bureaucracy at one time or another. It’s true it could use some overhauling. But co-president Musk’s chaotic and cruel gutting of our federal programs is NOT the answer.

The practice below will help us remember all the ways the pre-Trump government made our lives better. And how we took it for granted when it worked, and why we’re fighting for it now.

Plus, feeling gratitude calms our nervous system and connects us to something greater than ourselves. It’s a win-win!

✅ Write a thank you letter to the Federal Government
People need to hear how the government — when functioning as intended — improves our lives.

1) Think of all the feds have done for you throughout your life:

  • clean air
  • drinkable water
  • advances in medicine
  • consumer protection
  • public lands and national parks
  • social security
  • food inspection and safety
  • college financial aid
  • public libraries and museums
  • veterans benefits
  • bridge and road infrastructure
  • transportation safety
  • job creation and training
  • Medicaid for hospice care
  • national defense
  • natural disaster aid
  • etc., etc., etc.

2) Write a “Dear Federal Government” love letter and list all the ways you personally have benefited from government services.

3) Notice what emotions come up while you’re writing — love, appreciation, grief, anger? Where in your body do you feel those emotions — your throat, chest, belly?

4) Share your letter far and wide!

  • Post it to social media.
  • Send it to your local newspaper as a letter to the editor.
  • Publish it on your blog.
  • Submit it to a local magazine.
  • Send it to your state legislators, representatives and senators.

If you’re a Fighter or Flighter and you’ve been out in the streets already, keep it up! Also do the calming down practice I gave you, and then write this thank you letter. You’ll feel more peaceful and focused. You’ll reconnect with why you’re out there protesting.

To Wrap Up …

The national April 5th protests energized the public. Two weeks later, we gathered for another national protest on April 19. That time people from small towns and rural areas in Red States joined us.

Momentum is building. And we’re just getting started.

As The Guardian’s investigative journalist Carole Cadwalladr said:

“They want us to feel powerless. That’s the plan. We have more power than we think. … We can’t win every battle. But we definitely won’t win if we don’t fight.”

Until next time …. I’ll be fighting right alongside you.

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