Creating Resilency in your Nervous System

A maladaptive nervous system sets one up for health issues including but not limited to anxiety, panic attacks, insomnia, emotional dysregulation, low immunity, fatigue, high blood pressure and IBS.  I use various tools to help you explore, reset and heal your nervous system.  Examples of the treatments I use in my practice are:

·         Diet and Supplements

·         Biofeedback Training and Breathwork

·         Mindful Meditation

·         Counselling

·         The Safe and Sound Protocol

·         Lab tests- sex and adrenal hormones and melatonin (including their metabolites)

The nervous system is responsible for our reactions to our external and internal environments.  It tells you if you are safe or in danger and your body reacts to these different states.  Each state holds a story from the past.  Those past stories are brought to the present.

A good start in understanding the nervous system is Dr Stephen's Polyvagal System.  Here he describes the nervous system as a continuum from a more primitive nervous system (dorsal) to the Sympathetic Nervous System to the more advanced nervous system (Ventral). 

·         The Dorsal Nervous System – when your body shuts down. 

·         Sympathetic- when your body is ready to fight or flight

·         Ventral Nervous system-when you are engaging and connecting- feeling safe. 

He states that each person has a preference to one of these states.  He calls this our Neuroadaptive State. 

In Deb Dana'a book Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection she uses exercises to help each person to understand their nervous system and learn new tools to reset the nervous system- creating a new psycho-physiological state.  These exercises include creating visual art, writing and movement.  We can explore this in our session as well.

Deb Dana uses words to describe the Polyvagal states.  Here is a list of examples:

·  Dorsal- Absent, Blank, Exhausted, Foggy, Unloved, Zoned out, Numb, Judged, Collapsed

·  Sympathetic- Alarmed, Envious, Frightened, Irrational, Judgmental, Unwanted, Worried, Manic, Overdoing, pressured

·  Ventral- Awesome, Courageous, Devoted, Free, Grateful, Happy, Loving, Nice, Mellow, Relaxed, Trusting

Just the act of labelling these three states gives feelings/emotions/body sensations a language that lets you explore deeper.  What is the story behind these words?  Has this story changed?  When was the first time you felt this way?  Are you stuck in reacting in the same way?  Is this story serving you now? 

Our nervous system is reacting to the environment outside a person's body and inside a person's body and also in the communication between the two.  In trauma, the nervous system is primed to see threat and react to threat accordingly (flight or flight and eventually learned hopelessness when flight/flight does not work).  The response was once adaptive but overtime it became habitual, non-adaptive and inflexible.  By understanding the story of your nervous system and seeing this story with compassion you will be able to befriend (Deb Dana) your nervous system and eventually make positive changes.  

Dr Stephen Porges also created an auditory treatment, the Safe and Sound Protocol, which fine tunes your nervous system to increase a sense of safety and engagement.  This treatment is passive and allows one to learn, engage and regulate better.  It is often the treatment used before other treatments to enhance their efficiency. 

Dr Brad Lichtenstein, my mentor, uses the same concepts as Deb Dana but focuses on breathwork including biofeedback and meditation to reset the nervous system.   Using the biofeedback machine, breathing exercises and meditation you will learn to self-regulate your breath and learn to accept your reactions with nonjudgement and with no fear.  Breath is a powerful tool to engage your Ventral Nervous system and bring about feelings of safety and social engagement. 

It is important to find which treatment or combination of treatments is right for you. I can explore that with you and put together a plan that matches your needs and goals.  If you would like to learn more, please contact me.  I am here to help you feel better.

Reference- Deb Dana- Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection

                     Dr Brad Lichtenstein The Breath Space

                     Dr Stephen Porges The Pocket Guide to The Polyvagal Theory

                     The Safe and Sound Protocol Welcome to Unyte-iLs - Integrated Listening