25/10/2022
One of the most important aspects of being able to heal, from anything, is the capacity to calm our nervous systems.
You may not think the nervous system has anything to do with healing, but it actually plays a key role in whether or not we have the capacity to heal.
When we become locked in a stress response due to the trauma of illness or events, our system stays in a heightened state, waiting for the next proverbial shoe to drop. We feel the tension in our shoulders, neck, and the head. Maybe our sleep has been affected, our mood, and even our appetite. Our ability to focus has become impaired and perhaps socially, we've begun to withdraw.
Sound familiar?
So how do we find our way back, despite the trauma, despite the grief, despite the illness? How do we start the process of getting some relief from what feels like a never-ending tornado of negative energy?
It starts with the breath.
How do we know if we are operating in a stress response? We can test this on ourselves with a simple exercise to determine this. Sitting comfortably, place on hand on your belly and the other on your upper chest. Now inhale. Take note of what hand rises first? Belly hand or chest hand? If you are in a stress response and not breathing efficiently, your chest hand will have risen first. Not to panic! This can be fixed.
What we want to do is breathe into the belly. When we do this, we activate the diaphragm. Why? you may ask? Well, when we 'belly breathe" we attune to our abdomen area, specifically our diaphragm, which plays a key role in regulating our stress response. When our diaphragm moves, it signals the brain to shut down the Fight, Flight, or Freeze/Fawn response and to switch from sympathetic to parasympathetic nervous system regulation. In other words, we calm down.
How do we do this? It's quite simple, although at first it may feel very counter-intuitive: you want to allow your belly to extend when you inhale. Try to close your eyes and imagine that your belly has a healthy set of nostrils, and that you can breathe through them into the belly. Use your hands again to inform you as to whether you're successful in getting the belly to rise first. Once you get the hang of it, you will need to practice it in order for your brain to 'remember' that this is the better way to breathe. In the process, you are effectively shutting off your stress response, and you should feel markedly better.
Operating in an extended phase of the stress response has a myriad of health implications. These are just a few:
~mood disorders
~sleep disorders
~cognitive fog
~inability to make decisions
~feeling hopeless, helpless and overwhelmed
~high levels of blood sugars
~cortisol weight-gain (around our middle)
~high blood pressure
~chronic pain
~systemic inflammation that leads to diseases such as auto-immune disorders, cancers, liver and kidney disease, and bowel diseases
~ulcers and digestive issues
~dementias
Breath-work has become a huge focus of late, as more and more science is showing the benefits of being able to regulate our breathing. Specifically, when we can increase the length of our Exhale, we can bring the system into a state of homeostasis (balance) which automatically allows the body to start healing physiologically. It begins to balance out the pH, the blood sugars, the toxins, and the gases, and in turn, the inflammatory processes and cell regeneration begins to return to normal.
So here's a short method to try to incorporate into your daily routine. Either while in the shower, lying in bed, meditating or during yoga, or even when driving your car:
1. Focus on the belly and start your inhale to a comfortable count of four
2. Hold for 4 seconds at the top of the inhale, then purse your lips as if you were blowing through a straw, and begin your Exhale. Alternatively, you can hum on the exhale with your lips closed, making the mmmm sound. This also helps to reset the Vagus nerve which communicates to the stress-responsive part of the brain.
3. Exhale slowly this way to a count of 8.
4. Repeat.
You should feel calm, yet remarkably energized. The more you do this, the more benefit you will find. You'll notice yourself being less reactive, more engaged, more focused, calmer, happier, and feeling better physically.
So the next time someone says to you, "Just breathe".. don't be offended... heck, make a habit of saying it to yourself and practicing what you preach.. your body will thank you
