Grounding
I recently discussed the impact of stress on the brain and nervous system and the benefits of breathing on the brain and nervous systems.
Today, I wanted to share recent insights that take a deeper dive into those topics. I am currently studying more about the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the vagus nerve.
The autonomic nervous system has two main divisions which supply the internal organs, including the blood vessels, stomach, intestine, liver, kidneys, bladder, genitals, lungs, pupils, heart, sweat, and salivary glands.
The Sympathetic Nervous System (typically known as the Fight, Flight or Freeze system) and
The Parasympathetic Nervous System (Rest and digest system).
These divisions of the autonomic nervous system most often work opposite of each other. Once the brain receives information about the body and external environment, it responds by stimulating body processes, usually through the Sympathetic division, or inhibiting them, usually through the Parasympathetic division.
The Sympathetic division prepares you for a stressful situation by increasing the heart rate, widening the airways in the lungs to make breathing easier. It causes sweaty palms, dilated pupils, and signals the hair on your arms to stand on end; it's no wonder it's called the fight, flight, or freeze system.
The vagus nerve is key to your parasympathetic nervous system. The longest cranial nerve from the brain stem to the colon is a big reason for the brain-gut connection.
Akerman S., Romero-Reyes M. (2020) Vagus Nerve Stimulation. In: Lambru G., Lanteri-Minet M. (eds) Neuromodulation in Headache and Facial Pain Management. Headache. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14121-9_6
The vagus nerve is tested clinically by stimulating the gag reflex to ensure it is intact. It carries sensory messages to and from the brain, releases the neurotransmitter norepinephrine into the amygdala, strengthening memory storage in limbic regions of the brain that regulate arousal, memory, and feeling responses to emotionally laden stimuli.
Norepinephrine is a naturally occurring chemical in the body that acts as both a stress hormone and neurotransmitter (a substance that sends signals between nerve cells). It's released into the blood as a stress hormone when the brain perceives that a stressful event has occurred.
When we stimulated, the vagus nerve improves memory processing of recently acquired information. The vagus response can reduce stress by reducing heart rate and blood pressure.
The good news is, you can practice stimulating your vagus nerve to allow you to respond more effectively to emotional and physiological stressors.
Grounding is one of my favorite ways to stimulate the vagus nerve for myself and my patients.
Grounding is the practice of bringing the body in contact/connection with the earth. It is a simple practice to initiated, however, is if you are new to this concept or any mindful practice, please check out this audio recording of this grounding meditation.
Resources and References:
Chevalier G. The effect of grounding the human body on mood. Psychol Rep. 2015 Apr;116(2):534-42. doi: 10.2466/06.PR0.116k21w5. Epub 2015 Mar 6. PMID: 25748085.
How to Stimulate Your Vagus Nerve for Better Mental Health -Adapted from - January 21, 2017 Jordan Fallis https://sass.uottawa.ca/sites/sass.uottawa.ca/files/how_to_stimulate_your_vagus_nerve_for_better_mental_health_1.pdf
Akerman S., Romero-Reyes M. (2020) Vagus Nerve Stimulation. In: Lambru G., Lanteri-Minet M. (eds) Neuromodulation in Headache and Facial Pain Management. Headache. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-14121-9_6
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/what-does-mindfulness-meditation-do-to-your-brain/
