Stressed Out? The Science Behind How Your Nervous System Reacts to Stress and What You Can Do About It.

Chances are you could be feeling a little stressed about something or other right now. A little stress in life is to be expected and  whilst it’s not pleasant it’s a normal part of life that we are able to cope with.

But it seems like stress is on the increase, we are living in a world that’s moving so fast it’s no wonder we are afraid to slow down and take some time to rest and relax. Our to do lists are getting longer, our inboxes getting fuller and messages and alerts keeping us vigilant all the time!

So, what is stress, and how do we recognise it.

It’s good to understand a little about how our nervous system  works. You know that feeling when you’re about to give a speech, and your heart starts pounding, palms get sweaty, and your mind starts racing? That’s all thanks to your nervous system!

When we encounter a stressor, our nervous system releases stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. These hormones activate our sympathetic nervous system known as “fight or flight” response, which prepares us to either face the stressor head-on or run away from it.

When our sympathetic nervous system is activated we experience the following physiological response. An increase in heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure as well as the release of glucose into the bloodstream. These changes are all designed to help us respond to the stressor quickly and effectively, think, running away from a tiger! It’s meant to be a short term response to keep us safe and its important.

On the other hand, our parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for bringing our body back to a state of relaxation after the stressor has passed. It slows down our heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure, and helps us feel calm and relaxed again. In this state our body is able to repair and restore. It’s often referred to as the rest and digest state.

What does all of this mean for us?

Staying in a prolonged state of chronic stress whilst there is no ‘tiger’ present to escape from means we are spending long periods of time in flight or flight.  Over time, chronic stress can have negative effects on our health. So it’s important to find ways to manage stress and support our nervous system’s ability to respond to stress effectively. This means being able to activate the parasympathetic nervous system to return to a state of balance once the threat or ‘tiger’ has disappeared, or if indeed there is no tiger!

It is possible to train our body to strengthen its ability to switch to the parasympathetic nervous system making it easier to switch from a state of stress to feeling at ease. I like to think of it like a muscle I need to train to get more efficient.

Here are some proven ways to activate the parasympathetic nervous system that allows our body to recover, rest and repair and release feelings of stress.

Pick one or two and try adding them into your day this week.
  • Use a breathing technique such as diaphramatice breathing as needed throughout the day.
  • Explore some simple meditation techniques. A great starting place is with the free app Insight Timer, which has thousands of accessible meditations
  • Make time for daily movement/exercise
  • Spend time in nature, even 10 minutes can lift your mood and have health benefits
  • Practice Yoga, movement with breath awareness is an excellent way of accessing the parasympathetic nervous system and has the added benefit of helping us feel great in our body
  • Start a daily Yoga Nidra Pracitce. There are many short yoga nidras that can be fit into busy schedules. This is my go to practice in times of increased stress. Try this 20 minute grounding yoga nidra for a nervous system reset. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjwclEDWPck&t=43s
  • Get enough good quality sleep. The human growth hormone which plays a vital role in our body’s ability to repair and restore is most productive between the hours of 2200 and midnight. So head to bed early and don’t miss out!