Behaviours of concern are often framed as deliberate or oppositional, when they are more accurately understood as responses to cumulative stress, sensory overload, and nervous system dysregulation.

This workshop reframes behaviour as communication as not something to control or correct, but something to understand. Low Arousal is not about stepping back or lowering expectations; it is a deliberate, evidence-informed approach that reduces stress, prevents escalation, and protects dignity. The focus is on recognising what drives behaviour and responding in ways that support regulation rather than increase pressure.

Alongside this, the workshop addresses the realities of supporter stress, burnout, and organisational pressure. It highlights how calmer teams, clearer thinking, and more supportive systems lead to safer, more consistent outcomes. Through a mix of teaching, real-world examples, and practical application, you’ll build strategies you can use with confidence straight away.

Cutting through the myths

We challenge assumptions about intent, control, and “challenging behaviour,” replacing them with a stress-and-regulation lens that shifts how situations are understood and responded to.

Real-world scenarios

Explore how cumulative stress and dysregulation show up in everyday settings, including families, classrooms, and services, and how Low Arousal responses can reduce escalation and risk.

Practical strategies you can actually teach others

Learn simple, effective techniques around stance, voice, timing, pacing, and environment that reduce stimulation, shorten high-risk interactions, and support regulation without coercion.

Restrictive practice reduction

Understand how Low Arousal interrupts escalation cycles, strengthens proactive and reactive strategies, and supports least restrictive, person-centred approaches.

Building staff capability

See how individual practice connects to team culture, supervision, and organisational systems—and how reducing supporter stress improves consistency, safety, and outcomes.

What you’ll take away

A clear understanding of cumulative stress and nervous system dysregulation as key drivers of behaviour
The ability to recognise early signs of escalation in both the people you support and the teams around them
Practical Low Arousal techniques, including stance, voice, timing, environment, and response sequencing
Strategies to reduce supporter stress, prevent burnout, and create more sustainable ways of working
Approaches to using respectful, non-pathologising language and embedding prevention-focused routines in everyday practice
Simple, immediately usable changes that reduce risk while maintaining dignity and safety

Contact the host of Workshop 2: Understanding Stress and Behaviours of Concern

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