Learning to Heal Your Nervous System
Regulating the Nervous System | Get out of Survival Mode
This is a continuation from Part 1 Survival Mode | An Intro – Brighter Manner
But I can’t get out of my head long enough to even begin to do what you’re talking about Josie.
This is not an uncommon feeling, luckily there are some things you can do to practice calming your body down so that you learn to reconnect and regulate your nervous system and cut out those awful feelings of unease during crazy, stressful times.
Sometimes healing your thoughts and mindset come first. And sometimes you have to start to HEAL THE BODY before the MIND will CATCH UP. Heal the body, the mind will follow.
So where do you begin?
First, by understanding the nervous system a little more.
There are two parts to the body’s Nervous System.
The Sympathetic Nervous System is the part of our body system that alerts us and mobilizes us into action. Increasing awareness, alertness, heart rate, etc. This is the system responsible for the fight/flight/freeze action that occurs when we are under stress, or our body senses danger.
The Parasympathetic Nervous System is the part of the body system that helps us maintain homeostasis or helps us manage all our body systems to keep us healthy and feeling safe day to day.
This is the system that maintains our daily mood and tells us when it’s okay to calm down. Decreasing your overall stress level, heart rate and sense of distress.
We discussed Survival Mode and that it means your body is “stuck” in a sense of overwhelm.
This means your Sympathetic Nervous System is in overdrive.
The nervous system is sending signals to your brain that it is not safe to “come down” and the system is unable to regulate itself so it stays in the RED zone.
When your Sympathetic Nervous System is stuck in overdrive – your body begins to look at everything in daily life as a threat.
Your body will try to show you signs of this dysregulation…
- High stress load, unable to relax
- Mood swings, anger, outbursts
- Fatigue, poor sleep, lack of energy
- Acid reflux, stomach pain, nausea, IBS
- Anxiety, anxiousness, unease
- Depression, poor mood, disinterest
- Brain fog, confusion, headaches, migraines
- Systemic inflammation, arthritic pain,
- Lack of Motivation, feelings of joy
- Other medical conditions such as
- Adrenal Fatigue, High Blood Pressure, Diabetes, and Gut and Colon Conditions, etc
What is the point? Having a nervous system that is always “on” affects your WHOLE HEALTH.
You must take action to regulate your Nervous System to improve your health, in body, mind and spirit!
So how do we start to heal and regulate the Nervous System?
The goal of recovery is to stimulate the Parasympathetic Nervous System to reduce the body’s reaction to stressful stimuli.
Stimulating the Parasympathetic Nervous System decreases the heart rate which tells our brain it’s okay to calm down and deal with the emotions of the situation occurring.
This calming feeling increases your digestion and overall feelings of well-being. You carry this new calmness with you.
Here are some things you can do to start calming, regulating your Nervous System right now
- Deep breathing exercises
- Singing and Dancing, let loose
- Meditation, go within
- Yoga / Body Movement
- Connecting with Nature
- Journaling, get it out
- Laugh, A LOT!!!
- Heal the gut
When you incorporate these practices into your daily wellness routine, you will begin to reduce those feelings of overwhelm, always being “on” and feeling “stuck”. You learn to better connect and regulate your body/reactions.
And better still, you learn to support your body during those times of stress build up and overwhelm.
Calming yourself is a practice.
Give yourself time to learn, to feel and to heal.
With time, you will begin to feel a sense of ease as you move through life.
Once you begin feeling that sense of calm and well-being, you are more inclined to take further action to better your health.
Start by going within. Calm the body, Calm the mind. Get the clarity and feelings of peace you deserve.
Need some extra support?
My Meditation Workbook and Journal are available for purchase.
Workbooks and Guides to help you learn how to pause and reflect through meditation and journaling practices.
Read more about managing Stress and Adrenal Health here:
The 7 Best Supplements to Better Manage Stress
Body Basics: What Are Adrenal Glands and What Do They Do?
TELL ME, do you practice any of these activities already?
What practice will you add to start helping your body learn to relax?
I am always rooting for you
Xo, Josie