Over Stimulated Nervous System
When under stress the sympathetic nervous system’s (SNS) general action is to mobilize the body’s resources to induce the fight-or-flight response. For many who live under constant chronic stress their SNS remains in an over stimulated state.
Symptoms of an over active or dominant sympathetic nervous system are: anxiety, panic attacks, nervousness, insomnia, breathlessness, palpitations, inability to relax, cannot sit still, jumpy or jittery, poor digestion, fear, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, to name but a few.
Many people suffer from a dominant SNS of varying degrees ranging from low grade seemingly imperceptible to severe obvious cases. For many this low grade overstimulated state has become such a familiar state of being to them it has become “normal” or imperceptible. For others the symptoms have become more severe and relief is usually sort.
The increasing level of anxiousness in many also contributes towards a dominant SNS as it stimulates the nervous system to deal with the anxiety. The underlying cause of anxiety is thinking or believing that you are not enough to handle a situation and thus it creates anxiety. Feelings of self loathing, worthlessness, inadequacy, not being good enough, etc, etc all fuel this belief and thus fuel the anxiety. Again many if not most people suffer from some level of anxiety, ranging from low grade which many are not even aware of as it has become their familiar state of being, to more severe obvious cases whom usually seek help in some form.
Eventually in later stages the over stimulated nervous system becomes depleted which signals the rest of the body to slow down in order to maintain a “back up” energy supply in case it is required for an emergency. This stage is where the constant fatigue, lethargy and lack of vitality occur. Usually some form of artificial stimulation is sort by many such as caffeine, salt, energy drinks, sugar (carbohydrates), alcohol (the sugar in alcoholic drinks), drugs and entertainment which all stimulate a depleted nervous system. The problem is that these short lived artificial energy boosts are sort more and more often in an attempt to maintain a barely functioning level of existence. This artificial stimulation “confuses” the nervous system as it is trying to slow the depleted body down to store energy but the artificial stimulation is doing the opposite. This then creates a cascade of events which eventually causes more long term problems such as under active thyroid and autoimmune conditions, not to mention the adrenal fatigue which is concurrently created due to the stress and thyroid imbalance.
Treating a Dominant Sympathetic Nervous System
The first step is to establish a baseline of what it feels like not to be in nervous overdrive. The gentle breath meditation will help you connect to your truly natural state of being which is gentle and harmonious. Once you establish this baseline you then need to be present with yourself (do not check out) throughout the day and be aware of when you lose the gentleness, when the hardness returns, when you go into nervous energy to get things done, when you start to rush, when you become anxious and then bring yourself back to your gentle natural state of being. Without the baseline feeling of gentleness and harmony you may not ever be aware of when you are in SNS overdrive as you have no comparison of what it is like not to be in it, that is, it becomes familiar to you and thus becomes your normal state of being which in truth is not natural. At first this technique may be difficult but over time it gets easier!
You also need to deal with the belief that you are not enough in order to heal the anxiety. This involves developing self love which will naturally develop over time as a consequence of remaining in the gentleness. Be aware of when you go into hardness, disregard, over indulgence, self loathing, etc and bring yourself back to the gentleness. This is the way to truly heal your self. It is that simple!
Physiological support
To help support your body through this process our laboratory has developed a neurorelief supplement to assist with reducing your nervous system overdrive and balance your neurotransmitters. It contains a combination of inhibitory neurotransmitter amino acids GABA, taurine and glycine to help calm the nervous system in addition to 5-hydroxytryptophan to help regulate serotonin levels and licorice extract which energetically promotes harmony in the body. Neurorelief capsules are available online through the members section of this website.
Adrenal and thyroid issues which are usually present with a stimulated nervous system also need to be tested and treated if found to be depleted. Refer to the relevant sections on this website for details.
Treating a Depleted Nervous System
If you progressed into the later stages where the nervous system is depleted do not seek relief in the form of artificial stimulants as it will create more long term problems. At this stage in addition to the gentle breath meditation mentioned above you need to support the depleted body by increasing your metabolic rate and thus increase energy production. This is achieved through plenty of rest, sleep, good nutrition, adrenal, thyroid and sex hormone support. These hormones are essential as they all regulate metabolism and if they are depleted your metabolism will slow down. Refer to the relevant sections on this website for details. When your energy production is restored your nervous system will also return back to normal.
