If you have heard of the vagus nerve and are not quite sure that it is and why it is a big deal, then this post is for you! The vagus nerve plays a really large role in managing and reducing stress and if you have not been taking advantage of this innate physical response system, then I encourage you to keep reading.
As you are likely aware, our bodies are designed to trigger a stress response when a threat is detected. You can thank your amygdala for deciding to activate this system and your hypothalamus for initiating a stress response in your body. When I ask clients about how their bodies respond to stress, common responses include; increased heart rate, changes in breathing (often rapid and shallow) and chest pain (there are many others but these seem to remain constant and widespread across diverse client populations).
If you have ever experienced a tightness in your chest during a stressful situation, your sympathetic nervous system is the likely culprit. This system reacts to the perception of danger but cannot differentiate between the perception of threat and immediate danger. The fight or flight response will continue to activate until it is told not to. This means that people with a heightened sympathetic nervous system often live in a constant state of anxious arousal.
Your vagus nerve carries signals between your brain, heart and digestive system. The vagus nerves run from your brain to your large intestine and are the longest cranial nerve in the body. When we experience stress, the vagus nerves tense up, often creating the sensation of pressure in our chests (often mistaken for a heart attack in conjunction with difficulty breathing and increased heart rate that frequently accompany a panic attack).
The parasympathetic nervous system is designed to counter these affects and calm the brain, but must be triggered. This is where the vagus nerve comes in. In order to help calm the body and reduce stress response, it is essential to relax the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve turns off the body’s stress response, which in turn, reduces anxiety and physical responses to stress. As we breathe through our diaphragms, they fill with air and expand. As they expand, our internal organs become compressed. The vagus nerve is wrapped around these organs and therefore also becomes compressed. As the vagus nerve is compressed, it sends a message up our spine, telling the brain to relax. This process is initiated by deep, intentional breathing through our diaphragms. If you have ever been told to “relax” or “take a deep breath” when experiencing stress, the intention is to calm the vagus nerve and deactivate the body’s stress response. Picture pressing a relaxation button, this is essentially what your body is doing when the vagus nerve is compressed.
Breathing from your diaphragm is essentially expanding your stomach instead of your chest while inhaling and contracting while exhaling. This may seem a little strange a first over time, you might just discover your vagus nerve is more important than you thought. This process is extremely fast and is said to take just 45 seconds, which makes it not only simple but extremely convenient.
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Sweeton, J. (2021). Eight key brain areas of mental health and illness. W. W. Norton & Company.
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