The Vagus Nerve

I can’t believe I didn’t know about this until my 30s! That should be teaching this in school (or maybe they are now and I’m just too old.)

The vagus nerve is the is the main nerve for your parasympathic nervous system and it runs throughout your body and touches along all your core systems.

Your autonomic nervous system has two components;

  • Sympathetic - Rest and Digest system

  • Parasympathetic - Fight and Flight system

This diagram only shows part of what your parasympathetic and sympathetic systems do, it interacts with all your major systems.

Your body switches between these two states throughout the day. However when you’ve had an injury or trauma this switching can be effected.

Bit of a tangent here, but a couple of years ago I was getting ready in the morning in our ensuite which has a shoot down to the laundry downstairs. My husband and son thought it would be hilarious to lift my son up the shoot and say hello. But I was relaxed and listening to jams on my phone and got the biggest fright. I’m not lying, it took me three days to unwind. I was going for long walks, had a headache, was jittery and on edge.

Why? Well because when I knocked my head (too many times) it's since had trouble communicating with the rest of my body. And part of that puzzle is my vagus nerve.

Another example is, have you ever worked really hard in a lead up to a holiday and then you get sick? It’s because you’re living with your parasympathetic system more active, so when you finally get a chance to rest and restore your body goes yus, finally! Let me sleep or deal with this illness all your fight and flight hormones have been suppressing.

Things to help stimulate your Vagus Nerve

Here are a few things you can do to stimulate or relax your vagus nerve;

  • Check out the article on T.I.P

  • Box breathing and Pace Breathing

  • Meditation

  • Exercise

  • Physical therapies - in particular cranio osteo or cranio sacral therapy

  • Getting a massage

  • Doing your hobbies if they bring you peace and relaxation

Sometimes these things aren’t easy if you’re really rev’d up or stuck in Fight and Flight. But keep just trying 1 minute at a time and slowly build up. Overtime you’ll train your body to help keep that switching as your body intends.

There is so much info online about this. Have a google and a read to look for some more tips and tricks, or more information about how the Vagus nerve controls your body.

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