What Happens in Vagus: Planning to Stay Sane
There is a saying that “What happens in Vegas (ie Las Vegas) stays in Vegas”.
In contrast, what happens in vagus (the vagal nerve) echoes profoundly and helpfully throughout our body and our state of being.
A dozen nerve networks run between our brain and the rest of the body. Some of them protect us by processing fear or alarm and triggering the body’s systems to fight or flee. The vagus nerve does the opposite. When it is activated it helps calm and restore our bodily and mental functions and our interactions with the world.
Short term stress in our lives is inevitable and beneficial for safety and growth. Sustained stress, however, the kind the kind we can experience during long term deployments or challenging periods in our lives, is dangerous. Among the risks are sleep problems, anxiety, depression, digestive problems, weight gain, high blood pressure and heart disease.
The good news is that the vagus nerve is like a wide open road, inviting us to the destinations of calmed emotional states and relaxed physical states.
This pathway runs between our brain and all of our organs, from our skin to our stomach and everything in between. We can use its connections to slow racing hearts and racing thoughts.
It’s a stretch…
Because the vagus nerve touches so much of our physical bodies, it is stimulated by movement. Yoga exercises are built on this function. Move. People with chronic insomnia sleep better if they do some gentle stretching before bed time. If you are sitting at your desk and needing a spirit boost, sit tall and lower each ear in turn towards your shoulder, while inhaling and exhaling slowly. If you are at home and want to try something new, check out yoga’s lion pose. It helps and you might even laugh with yourself. Walk and breathe with awareness.
Ear this!
“I don’t get no respect” was a leading line for comedian Rodney Dangerfield. Our ears might say the same. They are actually one of the most sensitive regions of our body, connected to many neurological and physical pathways. When we are feeling stressed or anxious or depressed, it can be hard to work up the energy and will to take active steps towards change. Ears are ready and waiting. Take gentle but firm hold and tug and rotate them. Work your way around their edge. Give them a good bit of exercise. You will find your breathing and heart rate changing and yourself moving out of your stuck state.
A breath of fresh air
We breathe an average of 22,000 times a day. We do it while making coffee, while sitting at our desks and while waiting for a light to change. Work consciously with your breath. Even two minutes of deliberate breathing makes a difference. It helps to reduce anxiety, lessen depression or distress, sharpen focus and lower blood pressure. Take a few deep, slow breaths. Put a hand on your belly. Feel it move as you breathe. Breathe in slowly (count 4,) hold it (count 4,) release your breath even more slowly (count 7.) The slow release stimulates the positive work of the vagus nerve. To help build the muscle memory that makes breath work come more readily check free internet apps with exercises on mindful breathing.
Throw cold water on it …
We talk of throwing cold water as a way to take away from an idea or plan. It also takes away from depression and anxiety. Splashing one’s face with cold water, a drink of cold water, a cold shower, or putting cold cloths on one’s neck or throat increases endorphin production. Endorphins are one of four “feel good” hormones affecting mood, pain, pleasure and motivation. For more information on endorphins, dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin and how to impact them, look to reliable sites like this one at Harvard University: https://www.health.harvard.edu . Lots of water, in general, is key to physical and emotional health.
Get in touch
Sometimes, when I am down, I don’t want to talk or engage with anyone else. A period of quiet self-time, can be good for me. We also know that being with others, stimulating engagement, compassion, empathy, humour, voice or movement, has a strong impact on the vagus nerve and our sense of well-being. Reach out. If you are feeling in a funk or isolated, be open to someone reaching out to you.
Hummmm…
Vibrations in the throat stimulate the vagus nerve. Singing alone or with others releases feel good and health chemicals like endorphins. Humming, whether to a tune or just for the sensation of it, does the same. So … if after reading all of this you still aren’t sure, just try making a “hmmmmmmm” (as in “I’ll think about it”) noise in your throat for a couple of minutes and see how you feel. 😊
Keep exploring. There are more profits to be found in vagus than in Vegas.
