Our nervous system ensures our body responds appropriately to stimuli, be it responding to an injury by feeling pain or feeling excitement when we see a loved one. The autonomic nervous system is comprised of the sympathetic nervous system which is responsible for the ‘fight or flight’ response, and the parasympathetic nervous system promotes the ‘rest and digest’ activities. In our daily lives, we encounter various stressors that activate the sympathetic nervous system, and this state keeps our body on ‘high alert’. When triggered, it leads to physiological changes, e.g. increased heart rate, elevated blood pressure, and sharpened mental focus, which are all aimed at enhancing our ability to face or escape the threat. The ‘fight or flight’ response, or stress response, is one of the most critical functions of the autonomic nervous system. It’s an automatic reaction to perceived danger or threat, designed to protect us from harm. Although this response is necessary for survival, constant activation leads to chronic stress, anxiety, chronic pain, dysregulation and eventually complete ‘burnout’.
Paying attention to your body’s own signals of dysregulation can be really helpful in preventing ourselves from becoming depleted. Be aware of symptoms like fatigue, poor digestion, feeling run down, running on adrenaline for long periods of time, feeling pressure in the chest or tension build up in our shoulders. We might feel overwhelmed or worried, feel anxious or over-indulge in food, alcohol or social media, feel irritable and snappy or struggle to relax.
If you’ve recognised the signs of a dysregulated nervous system, the next step is to learn how to regulate it again. Regulating the nervous system is not an overnight process; it requires a combination of appropriate interventions and lifestyle changes, patience, and consistency. With the right interventions, it is possible to help regulate your nervous system. Healing your nervous system can take time, but it’s worth the effort. The health of your nervous system can affect your quality of life on a day-to-day basis, and the earlier you begin to heal, the better.
Likewise, the ability to move flexibly from the sympathetic to parasympathetic states is essential for greater health and well-being, and this is where self care plays a pivotal role. There are a variety of things we can do to help ourselves, from creating tech free zones by scheduling automatic airplane modes, taking cognitive breaks every 90 minutes or so to re-charge our batteries, not having lunch at our desks, and instead spending time outside in nature or with our friends, avoiding talking about work.
Another essential strategy we can take is ensure we allow ourselves a Self-Care day or Wellness day. With the never-ending competing demands and responsibilities of our daily working lives, we often neglect self-care. We minimise its importance until we suffer with burnout or get sick. But we all deserve to treat ourselves to self care days throughout the year - to refresh, unwind and recharge.
Within the workplace, it is becoming more widely accepted, and many organisations offer a day or two a year as a formal benefit within their mental health policy, reducing the stigma surrounding mental health, fostering a culture of openness and trust, better communication and promoting a healthy culture within the workplace, showing understanding and compassion towards employees.
Regular exercise, relaxation techniques, and spending time in nature are effective ways to activate the parasympathetic nervous system, promoting a sense of calm. By reducing exposure to chronic stressors and prioritising self-care in our daily lives, we can prevent the sympathetic system from becoming ensnared in a chronic stress response.
Giving yourself a Self-Care Day can be a great way to help create a healthy balance in your life, allowing you to re-center, re-focus, and re-energise. Everyone has a different idea of what it means to take a self-care day so its important to listen to your body and mind - when it tells you it needs a break, you should do it and choose how to spend your day wisely.
If you choose to spend a self care day with someone else, make sure they’re a positive and uplifting person. If you want to feel refreshed and rejuvenated, set aside some time for a relaxing trip to the Spa, and treat yourself to a massage or facial. If this isn’t an option due to financial constraints, create an at-home spa experience, with candles, relaxing music and a face mask. If you fancy some fresh air, spend some time outdoors in the sunshine and observe the beauty of nature taking time to reflect on your goals and values to help you stay grounded and focused. If you need to reduce some stress and anxiety, try some Meditation, Progressive Muscle Relaxation or Breathing exercises. If you are exhausted, you might choose to stay in bed all day or put your feet up on the sofa, and binge watch a TV series or read a bunch of magazines or a good book.
Giving ourselves moments to re-charge and thinking about how we may offer ourselves daily maintenance can go a long way toward well-being, so be intentional about allocating time to rest and recouperate. We can all create small ways to re-charge on a daily and weekly basis. It doesn’t need to take huge amounts of time in your day, but it may go a long way to keeping your energy flowing in a more balanced way.
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