5 ways to give your nervous system a break
Living through the pandemic and just in general, life can be stressful. From current events, re-entry anxiety, relationships & work, your nervous system takes it all on.
Not to mention hustle culture and the constant nagging feeling that you’re not doing enough and all the ‘healthy habits’ seem to fall to the wayside. At some point, you’re going to feel it all, whether that’s through burnout, fatigue or anxiety.
Before you reach your limit, it’s time to give your nervous system the TLC that it deserves.
Your nervous system needs daily support, just like you eat food or breathe air, regulating your nervous system is an essential part of maintaining positive mental health as well as physical wellbeing.
The good news is, it doesn’t have to take too much time out of your day to nurture your nervous system.
Here are 5 of my favourite ways to regulate your nervous system:
Step Breath
Step breathing is one of the simple breathing techniques that can calm your nervous system down and activate the parasympathetic nervous system.
Here’s how to do it:
Sitting or standing up straight, spine tall, chest lifted with feet on the floor.
Take four little sips of air through the nose to make one complete inhalation, imagining that each sip brings you one stair closer to the top of a staircase.
At the top of your breath, pause for a moment.
Now slowly and smoothly exhale your breath through your nose, imagining an elevator descending back to the ground floor.
Repeat three times before returning to your natural breath. Notice how you feel.
Weight it out
Weight provides proprioceptive input to your brain. This creates a calming and organising effect on the brain and nervous system.
There are simple everyday activities that provide this type of proprioceptive input such as carrying grocery bags or a book & lifting household items.
Other ways include:
Weight training: Lifting weights or simply doing bodyweight exercises such as push-ups at home are a great way to get your exercise in, as well as proprioceptive input!
Weighted blankets, eye masks or vests
Self hugs/hugs
Chewing gum
Jumping on a trampoline
Havening
Havening is a psycho-sensory technique that uses touch to regulate the nervous system and promote calm. Havening uses touch applied to your arms, face and hands to activate delta brain waves.
Here’s how to do it:
Place your hand's palms together at about waist height and gently rub them together.
Think about the thing that is making you feel anxious or stressed (you want to feel the feeling)
Slowly bring your hands up, continuing to rub together to chest height, noticing how the feelings change.
Place the palm of the hand on opposite shoulders and gentle stroke downwards towards elbows.
Repeat 3-5 times.
Place two fingers on both cheeks and gently stroke your face as though you were wiping away tears.
Fun fact: We have neurotransmitters on the surface of the skin designed to recognise touch. This is from when we are babies to recognise the calming touch of a parent/guardian. When your skin feels a calming touch, it sends messages to the brain to relax!
Heat it up
Studies have shown that heat exposure can reduce depression and anxiety symptoms. Heat can also reduce blood sugar levels and regulate the nervous system.
Simple ways to gain heat exposure:
Sauna (frequent sauna users were found to be 40 per cent less likely to die from all causes of premature death, Dr Rhonda Patrick, PhD)
Hot Bath
Hot Shower
Shake it out
Shaking is a natural fear response that humans and animals use when experiencing danger and/or threatening events. Animals engage in shaking to release trauma from their bodies, and you can too!
Here’s how to do it:
Start by bouncing on your toes, allowing the movement to flow through your body.
Shake out your arms and legs.
Shake for about 1 minute or until you naturally stop, then stand, eyes closed and sway like a piece of bamboo in the breeze.