10 WAYS TO ACHIEVE A HEALTHY AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM

Everyone is looking for ways to stay healthy. Maybe it's to stay ahead of a potential cold that shows up right before the big vacation - maybe it's to increase energy and overall well being - or maybe it's to release that feelings of stress and anxiety that always seem to be chasing them. 

For any of these use cases, it starts with the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Specifically, we will look at how the parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS) side controls essential automatic body processes such as heart rate, metabolism, and breathing rate. The better you balance your ANS, specifically improving how your parasympathetic nervous system runs, the better you feel. The resulting relaxation can increase your ability to recover faster. 

Most people don't realize where they can start to regulate and monitor their ANS health. So, how do you hack this internal system to work its best? We can think of ten ways you can regulate stress and improve relaxation by activating your parasympathetic nervous system 

10 Ways to Improve Your Parasympathetic Nervous System

The primary solution to activating your PSNS is stress management, as stress can directly affect the autonomic process that governs the body. Stress management can vary from person to person, so the primary strategy is to discover what works for you, specifically. How do you prefer to relax? Schedule that into your day. Whether that means running, dancing, reading, or napping - do what works best for you. 

Meditation can take on many forms. As a form of light exercise, meditation or yoga can decrease reactivity to stress outside our control and help you decompress. It can help us manage our triggers but also has strong physical properties. Meditation's effects on your body can include reducing breathing rates, slowing the heart, and decreasing blood pressure. 

Similar to meditation, breathing exercises are a key way to activate PSNS responses. Intentional breath control tells the body that things are okay while strengthening your lungs, improving your immune system, and decreasing your heart rate. We recommend inhaling for 5 seconds. Do this 10 times. 

Intensive exercise can often stimulate the heart rate and might even send you into a stressed state, but light cardio exercise can have a calming effect on the heart as your PSNS kicks in. The trick is to find a balance between heavier and lighter activity to get the heart rate at a balance that allows the PSNS to regulate properly. 

Good nutrition can help the body maintain a level of fitness while reducing stress. The body can regulate pressure better with fewer stimulants such as caffeine and sugar. A PSNS-supporting diet can be significant way to contribute to the body's automatic process. 

Probiotics, the nutritional supplements we associate with gut health and yogurt drinks, can cultivate healthy intestinal bacteria and stimulate the nervous system. The guts are one of the most common access points to let the outside world inside the body. What goes in, and the culture of bacteria that lives within each person, can affect other parts of the body. 

Sleep is obviously vital to health and recovery. Anyone becomes quickly aware when their sleep schedule is off, or they are suffering from a lack of sleep. During this rest and recovery state, blood flow increases to your muscles which provides the oxygen and nutrients necessary to repair your body and produce an incredible effect on the parasympathetic nervous system. 

Anxiety triggers may be something that requires a non-physical form of therapy. A professional therapist can help uncover those triggers that are putting undue stress on the body. By combining coping strategies and mental health treatment with strong physical therapy, one's quality of life [and PSNS] can sharply rise 

Whether you are measuring your HRV with a wearable device or a clinical system, heart rate variability is a great way to establish a baseline for your "fight or flight" and "rest or relax" status. 

Our women's health services at Acutecaremanagement provide women with comprehensive care and treatment for a range of issues, from prenatal care to menopause management.