Soothe Your Nervous System Anytime with These Simple Techniques

We’re surrounded by constant noise today. Notifications and alerts dominate our lives, often stealing our attention. As someone balancing the demands of motherhood, work, and everything else, I understand this struggle. If you find yourself caught in a cycle of stress, you’re not alone. Fortunately, there’s a simple wellness practice that can help. By stimulating our vagus nerve, the connection from brain to abdomen, we can reclaim our inner peace.

Understanding the Vagus Nerve: A Pathway to Wellness

In today’s fast-paced world, managing stress is essential. The vagus nerve is key here; it regulates our stress responses, impacting heart rate and digestion. Recognizing its importance allows us to make healthier choices. To explore this further, I spoke with an expert in holistic wellness.

Meet Brooke Taylor, the founder of The Road in Austin, a sanctuary for cosmetic acupuncture and natural skincare solutions. Brooke is a wealth of knowledge on holistic healing practices. Through our conversation, I learned how to activate the vagus nerve and bring calm into our daily lives. Read on for her valuable insights.

Brooke Taylor LAc, MAcOM

Brooke established The Road to share her expertise in holistic skincare and acupuncture. Her background as an esthetician and global skincare educator led her to pursue a master's in Chinese medicine, deepening her capacity to help others.

What Exactly is the Vagus Nerve?

The vagus nerve serves as the body's communication superhighway, transmitting crucial information between the brain and internal organs. This nerve, originating in the brainstem, travels through the face, neck, heart, lungs, diaphragm, and abdominal region, affecting multiple organs such as the stomach, liver, and kidneys.

Interestingly, most signals typically flow from the gut to the brain rather than vice versa, which is why we often mention the “gut-brain connection” and the importance of listening to our gut instincts.

“Vagus” translates to wanderer in Latin, aptly describing the longest cranial nerve in the body.

Influencing the Parasympathetic Nervous System

The vagus nerve is crucial for our parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), which oversees involuntary functions like digestion and heart rate. Brooke likens the PNS to a symphony conductor, regulating the tempo of our nervous system. It slows down responses after stress, helping to lower heart rates and promote relaxation, counterbalancing the fight-or-flight response of the sympathetic nervous system.

Assessing Your Vagal Tone

You can monitor your vagal tone through heart rate variability (HRV), which indicates how your heart rate fluctuates with your breathing. A higher HRV typically signals healthier vagal tone, suggesting better stress management. If you own devices like an Oura Ring, Whoop, or Garmin, you can easily track this metric.

Indicators of a Strong Vagal Tone

With a robust vagal tone, individuals tend to feel better overall, respond to stress with resilience, and support a healthy immune system. It also aids in regulating blood sugar levels.

Indicators of a Weak Vagal Tone

A weak vagal tone can hinder stress management and recovery, leading to increased inflammation, digestive problems, fatigue, and mood disorders. Research has linked a weak vagal tone to conditions like cardiovascular diseases and autoimmune disorders.

By the Numbers

For adults, a typical higher HRV is around 60-100 milliseconds or more, while lower values (under 50 milliseconds) may indicate stress or a weakened vagal tone. Remember, HRV varies individually, so it’s important to track your baseline.

Everyday Habits to Strengthen or Weaken the Vagus Nerve

Incorporating simple habits like mindful eating and humming can significantly enhance your vagal tone.

Nutrition Matters

Brooke advocates for a diet abundant in essential fatty acids, B vitamins, and zinc. Chewing your food thoroughly is even more crucial! It activates the vagus nerve, assisting with digestion. Brooke suggests ensuring your tongue touches the soft palate during swallowing, which can trigger a yawn—an indication that it’s working!

Reduce Neck Tension

Tension in the neck, particularly in the sternocleidomastoid muscle, can impede the vagus nerve. Learning to stretch and massage this area can alleviate tightness and support optimal vagus nerve function.

Encourage Vibration

Other effective methods to enhance vagal tone include red light therapy, massage, and craniosacral therapy. Cold therapy is also beneficial. Brooke loves humming, chanting, and singing to stimulate vibration. Movement practices like tai chi, yoga, dancing, and breathwork, as well as meditation and journaling, are also powerful tools.

Acupuncture's Role in Vagus Nerve Stimulation

Brooke notes that acupuncture is highly effective for treating the vagus nerve. Many experience a noticeable shift in the first session. Studies indicate that acupuncture can lower inflammation, enhance HRV, and balance autonomic functions. Used alongside herbal remedies, it can address various issues tied to vagus nerve dysfunction.

Understanding the Vagus Nerve's Impact

Brooke emphasizes the vagus nerve's significance, stating it connects our mind and body, influencing our quality of life. She hopes more people discover the various tools available to regulate this system, including breathwork and acupressure.

Practical Tools for Nervous System Support

To illustrate, Camille recently shared her focus on nervous system regulation and how she incorporates vagus nerve-stimulating practices into her routine. Here are her favorite tools:

Morning Rituals for Nervous System Support

• Omnibiotic Probiotic
  • This probiotic aids in stress management and gut health, with 83% of its strains reaching the gut alive—far superior to many U.S. brands. She takes this each morning.
• Breathwork
  • Techniques like diaphragmatic breathing and the 4-7-8 method activate the parasympathetic system, facilitating relaxation. Camille enjoys sessions from Mindful in Minutes.
• Yoga Block
  • Camille uses a yoga block to maintain a comfortable posture during breathwork and journaling sessions.
• Vagus Nerve Stimulator
  • This device enhances vagal tone over time, promoting relaxation and well-being.

Evening Rituals for Nervous System Support

• Juna Nightcap Sleep Gummy
  • Quality sleep is crucial for nervous system health! Camille loves this gummy, which blends botanicals, magnesium, and microdosed phytomelatonin.
• Calm Music
  • Soothing music can greatly affect our nervous system. Camille enjoys the Spiritune app, which merges music therapy with neuroscience for relaxation.
• Essential Oil
  • Essential oils like lavender and chamomile can soothe the nervous system. Camille applies this lovely oil to her and her husband’s wrists each night.
• Weighted Blanket
  • Camille enjoys the comforting sensation of a weighted blanket while reading at night, benefiting from its gentle pressure that promotes a sense of safety.

Establishing Your Supportive Rituals

Ultimately, nurturing our well-being begins within. We need to carve out time for mindfulness and prioritize quality sleep. While no quick fixes can substitute these essentials, the right practices can enhance your nervous system support. Here’s to nurturing a healthy vagus nerve with every deep breath.