Calm Your Nervous System
What's the BEST thing you can do to heal?
The key to effective healing is calming your nervous system. Whether you want to lose weight, appear more youthful, or tackle health issues, this tip is fundamental. Regardless of the diet you follow, fitness routine you master, or wellness program you complete, lasting improvements depend on a calm nervous system.
Before we explore into this vital aspect of healing, pause, take a deep breath, and connect with the present. Prepare to tap into your body's potent healing potential. True wellness originates within, beginning with a calm and relaxed nervous system.
Relax Your Nervous System
Calm Your Nervous System for Deep Healing
Healing requires relaxation. Calming your nervous system means relaxing your body and mind. Although this sounds simple, most people struggle with this, and their health and well-being reflect it. Let’s cover some basics about your nervous system so you understand the importance of this simple yet crucial and oh-so-relaxing tip!
How Your Nervous System Works
Consisting of a network of nerves, your autonomic nervous system (ANS) keeps your body sensing, responding, and functioning. Its goal is to maintain homeostasis or balance in the body. You ANS can only be in a parasympathetic or sympathetic state.
Parasympathetic
The parasympathetic ANS stimulates the body’s rest-and-digest healing response to calm, repair, and heal the body. When your body relaxes, it can focus on vital functions that help you thrive.
Sympathetic
In contrast, the sympathetic ANS stimulates the body’s fight-or-flight stress response. When there's a perceived threat, the ANS notifies your brain, and your body prepares to fight, take flight, or freeze. As a result, your heart rate increases, and cortisol and adrenaline are released. Although this is a healthy survival response, serious health problems arise when the body gets stuck in chronic stress.
Parasympathetic, Rest-&-Digest, Healing State
Sympathetic, Fight-or-Flight, Stressed State
"Over 90% of all doctor's visits are stress-related! Stress hormones shut down the immune system to conserve energy."
Bruce Lipton, Ph.D.
Nervous System Healing
Is Your Healing on Hold?
Scientists estimate that over 85% of us live in a fight-or-flight state most of the day. Being stuck in a stress response depletes your body, whereas being relaxed heals your body.
Dr. Bruce Lipton's research shows that our 50 trillion cells respond to either growth or protection signals. You can survive in protection mode or thrive in growth mode, but not both.
Running From a Bear
Let's talk about how your body responds to stress. Whether it's a real threat like a bear or a perceived one like a text message, your nervous system triggers the same stress response. Unfortunately, many people aren't in a relaxed state where healing is possible. When you're stressed, your body prioritizes survival over things like digestion or weight loss.
The bigger issue is that the "bear" can be a thought, an email, or even a low-grade infection. Pay attention to your feelings and symptoms; they can reveal underlying stress-related problems.
Are YOU Stuck in Stress?
These feelings are associated with being in a stress response...
- Do you feel wired but tired?
- Does it feel like your life is out of control?
- Do you feel overwhelmed, worried, anxious, or stressed?
Symptoms of Stress
Chronic stress can lead to...
- Anxiety, depression, mood imbalances
- Blood pressure problems
- Blood sugar imbalances
- Cravings for sugar or caffeine
- Circulation issues, cardiovascular disease
- Digestive issues, autoimmunity
- Fatigue, low energy
- Headaches, migraines
- Hormone imbalances
- Sleep issues, insomnia
- Urinary issues, kidney disease
- Weakened immunity
- Weight gain, obesity
"Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you."
Anne Lamott
The Healing Solution
To calm your nervous system naturally and improve your health, identify and address your subconscious, emotional, internal, and external stress sources. View the areas below to find the hidden “bears” in your life and to experience DEEP healing!
Subconscious
Stressful beliefs, perceptions, and programs.
Address stress with PSYCH-K, a rapid belief change process. As a PSYCH-K Facilitator, Cate helps you uncover and shift underlying beliefs creating stress.
Internal
Unhealthy diet, low-grade infections, toxins, etc.
Does your diet contain refined sugar, caffeine, gluten, or other inflammatory foods? Cate helps determine the best diet for you.
Emotional
Fear, anxiety, worry, etc.
Unaddressed emotional stress impacts your well-being. Cate's coaching unlocks old emotions and promotes mind-body-soul healing.
External
Environmental toxins, chemicals, allergens, etc.
Clean your environment and lifestyle by finding healthier alternatives and more natural solutions.
Vagus Nerve
The vagus nerve is a vital concept to calming your nervous system.
What's the vagus nerve?
In Latin, vagus means wandering. The vagus nerve meanders from the brain to the organs in the chest and abdomen. This nerve is the most influential in the parasympathetic nervous system, impacting heart rate, respiration, and digestion. The vagus nerve helps you return to a calm state optimal for health and well-being.
What's vagal tone?
The tone of the vagus nerve activates a calm nervous system. You can measure vagal tone by monitoring your heart rate variability (HRV). Higher vagal tones reduce stress, anxiety, depression, and unease. Improving vagal tone benefits inflammatory conditions, immunity, digestion, brain function, and more. Calm your nervous system and vagus nerve with the activities below!
“Give your stress wings and let it fly away.”
Terri Guillemets
Parasympathetic Stimulation
Your body reacts to thoughts, movement, breath, diet, and surroundings, either promoting relaxation, growth, and health, or stress, protection, and illness.
Incorporate relaxing activities into your day to naturally calm your nervous system and stimulate your vagus nerve. Make mindful choices and follow the tips below for better wellness.
Choose Relaxation
Modern society doesn’t emphasize relaxation. We’re constantly stimulated, distracted, and kept BUSY. Everything from your phone to finances can leave you stressed. Start enjoying more relaxing activities daily to support your well-being.
Calming Activities…
- Meditate, do yoga, take a nap, journal, etc.
- Listen to music, sing, or play an instrument
- Experience Sound Healing or a sound bath
- Do what makes you happy… laugh, dance, play
- Lay down with a lavender eye pillow
- Listen to nature sounds to create a tranquil environment
- Spend more time in nature
- Enjoy a warm lavender Epsom salt bath
- Take screen-time breaks from your devices
- Minimize the news and social media
Focus on Your Breath
Learn basic breathing exercises to relax your body and mind. Start with Alternate Nostril Breathing, Belly Breathing, Diaphragmatic Breathing, or Lion’s Breath. Listen to relaxing music, such as nature sounds, healing frequencies, hang drums, or singing bowls.
Hum, Yawn, or Gargle
Vocal expression techniques, like humming, stimulate vocal cords and relaxed breathing. You can hum a song or make the sound “OM.” Next, enjoy a long, exaggerated yawn to encourage relaxation. Lastly, gargle water to stimulate throat muscles and activate the vagus nerve.
Sound Healing
Biofield Tuning is a sound-healing modality that uses tuning forks to restore energy flow and harmony. Tuning can activate a POWERFUL relaxation response, ideal for healing. The process aligns you with a deep sense of presence, vitality, and wellness.
Eat a Healthy Diet
Focus on eating a High Vibration Diet rich in whole, unprocessed fruits and vegetables. Avoid a low-carb or ketogenic diet, especially if you experience anxiety. Limit your intake of caffeine and stimulants that make it hard to relax. Lastly, eat fresh fruits, veg, sprouts, and microgreens to support your gut with good flora.
Sleep More
Many people don’t get enough sleep, creating another missed opportunity for the body to heal. It's best to get to bed by 10:30 pm and aim for at least 7 hours of sleep daily. Diffuse or inhale lavender before bed to support restful sleep.
Meditate Daily
Although there are many ways to meditate, Synctuition is relaxing, inspiring, and increases intuition. No matter what meditation practice you choose, aim for at least 10 minutes daily. Make it easy to fit into your routine by doing it upon waking or before bed.
Try HeartMath
HeartMath devices measure your Heart Rate Variability (HRV) to increase heart-brain coherence and promote relaxation. HRV is a reflection of your nervous system. It measures subtle interval variations between beats, making it a great tool for detecting stress. It's excellent for building stress resilience.
Move Your Body
Moving your body with exercise or play is an excellent way to regulate and calm your nervous system. Choose stimulating movement earlier and gentle movement later in the day. Balance challenging workouts with gentle stretch sessions. Activities like yoga, pilates, dance, running, and cycling are great forms of movement to include. Start small and do what feels best. Even taking breaks from sitting can benefit your well-being.
Healing Bodywork
Healing bodywork can stimulate a relaxation response. So calm your system and boost relaxation with acupuncture, massage, sound healing, and other relaxing modalities.
Cold Water Therapy
Cold-water therapy, such as cryotherapy, cold showers, cold baths, and cold water plunges, are great for regulating and calming your nervous system. Cold water activates your vagus nerve to reduce stress. Start by splashing cold water on your face or taking a cold shower. Next, try an ice bath, ocean dive, or river plunge. Refresh your routine with cold water throughout the week.
Fear vs. Love
Dr. Bruce Lipton highlights stress's significant impact, stating, "Our biology depends on whether we're open to love or closed in fear." Fear hinders growth, weakens the immune system, and leads to dis-ease.
This video stresses the importance of a relaxed state for growth, healing, and love. Cultivate self-love to nurture body, mind, and soul for optimal wellness.
Choosing Love with Bruce Lipton
Ready to Calm Your Nervous System Naturally?