Your nervous system runs the show

 Read time: 3 mins 

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🗣️ Quote of the Week:

“Fear is just a thought; it has no power unless you give it power.” –  P. Crone

Fear is a product of our thoughts and beliefs - something we have the power to overcome.

In this week’s dose, I talk about the role our nervous system plays in feeling like we’re surviving to truly thriving.

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) regulates physiological processes including heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, digestion, and sexual arousal.

It contains three distinct divisions: sympathetic, parasympathetic, and enteric (often referred to as the second brain).

We’ll cover the first two this week:

• sympathetic nervous system (”fight or flight”)
• parasympathetic nervous system (“rest, rejuvenate, digest”)

Why this matters:

Our well-being is dictated by the system we live in.

But in order to thrive, we have to understand how to operate the body’s “backstage manager” that is running the show behind the curtains - the ANS.

Let’s dive in.

The sympathetic nervous system helps the body respond to threats or danger by activating the fight or flight response. It evolved to activate for physical threats.

It leads to noticeable changes in the body:

• HR & blood pressure increase to supply the body with oxygenated blood
• The digestive system slows down to divert energy to the rest of the body
• Adrenaline & cortisol are released to give the body a boost of energy
• Eyes dilate to allow for more light to enter, hyper-focused vision
• Breathing increases, becomes short and choppy
• Muscles can tense up

These changes provide the body a burst of energy to respond to perceived threats - often enabling humans to do “superhuman” feats.

To lift a car off a human body.

To fight or run from a wild animal.

To fight off an intruder.

To chase after a child running into the road.

The SNS is critical for survival in a physical environment and is crucial in life-threatening situations.

We wouldn’t be here today as a species without it.

But when it’s activated because of our MENTAL environment, we run into trouble.

Living in a chronic state of fight or flight keeps our body in survival mode, fending for its life → never able to truly thrive.

Living in this state isn’t natural, but it has become normal for modern living.

So it’s imperative to learn how to consistently get our body back into a calm state until it becomes our new normal.

The parasympathetic nervous system helps the body to rest, rejuvenate, and digest.

Parasympathetic (think parachute) helps:

• Slow & calm things down
• Breathing slows down, exhales lengthen
• HR & blood pressure are slowed, stable
• Stimulates our digestive system a&saliva flow again
• Muscles loosen & relax
• Our eyes soften & our gaze widens

This is the “healing state” of the body.

Feelings of peace and safety are restored.

It’s our natural, inherent state as beings.

Ways to calm your nervous system:

1. Deep Breathing: Use the 4-7-8 breathing technique. Focusing on slow, deep breaths helps shift your body into a state of calm.
2. Mindfulness and Meditation: Regularly train your mind to remain present and reduce the tendency to react stressfully.
3. Physical Activity: Exercise helps reduce stress hormones and trigger relaxation responses in the body.
4. Relaxation Techniques: Things like progressive muscle relaxation, guided visualization, or listening to calming music can help activate our PNS.
5. Connect with Nature: Activities like hiking, surfing, gardening, viewing the horizon, or simply sitting in a park can help lower heart rate and blood pressure.

The big picture:

These systems evolved for a world we no longer live in.

Today, our triggers are more about psychological stressors than they are physical danger.

Recognizing this shift is crucial for managing our health in a world where stress is omnipresent but often non-physical.

This is good news because we have more control than ever over it.

Becoming aware of the warning signs that we’re in a sympathetic state and then doing simple actions like deep breathing shifts us from survival mode → thriving.

If we want to kick ass at our jobs, get healthy, avoid burnout, be a good father/husband, we have to understand that our ANS is the one pulling the strings and learn how to manipulate it to our favor.

Tim

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