Is it possible to reset - or even calm down - one's nervous system?
October 6, 2024 6:41 AM
I want to understand what kind of toolkit I can create to help me take better care of my nervous system after trauma and a lay person's guide to understanding the science and how to feel better.
I came across the Neurofit app and am on the fence if something like this is worth spending money on. I want to understand what kind of toolkit I can build to better handle stress and part of this is trying to understand the nervous system and how to better self regulate.
I meditate for 20 minutes every morning and it does help; I go to the gym about 2-3 times a week, see a trauma therapist, take meds for ADHD, go on walks at lunch to get sun, and am constantly going to meetups and courses as well as painting, which I find put me in a state of flow that calms me/feels like it's regulating. But I live in an stressful city and have undergone a series of traumas that left me with PTSD. I am dealing with health (physical and AuDHD) and financial stressors and an upcoming move. I don't exactly know what a 'balanced' or 'less sensitive'/raw nervous system at points like this, or if a regulated nervous system with CPTD is possible. It's not anxiety per se (but very much autism sensory overload), but literally feeling disregulated and like the stress hormones can send me spiraling. Doing things like box breathing helps, but I want to find out what else is there as a long term program especially when sensory overload can be hugely disregulating.
I would love to know if an app like Neurofit makes sense, or what somatic work helps. (If I could afford weekly sound baths, yoga and massage I probably wouldn't be posting). I am reading about the vagus nerve, the parasympathetic nervous system and I'm all a bit lost on what to do because my understanding of the science feels limited. I don't want too much 'woo woo' focus on tapping per se without understanding how that works but am open to ideas or any useful links.
I came across the Neurofit app and am on the fence if something like this is worth spending money on. I want to understand what kind of toolkit I can build to better handle stress and part of this is trying to understand the nervous system and how to better self regulate.
I meditate for 20 minutes every morning and it does help; I go to the gym about 2-3 times a week, see a trauma therapist, take meds for ADHD, go on walks at lunch to get sun, and am constantly going to meetups and courses as well as painting, which I find put me in a state of flow that calms me/feels like it's regulating. But I live in an stressful city and have undergone a series of traumas that left me with PTSD. I am dealing with health (physical and AuDHD) and financial stressors and an upcoming move. I don't exactly know what a 'balanced' or 'less sensitive'/raw nervous system at points like this, or if a regulated nervous system with CPTD is possible. It's not anxiety per se (but very much autism sensory overload), but literally feeling disregulated and like the stress hormones can send me spiraling. Doing things like box breathing helps, but I want to find out what else is there as a long term program especially when sensory overload can be hugely disregulating.
I would love to know if an app like Neurofit makes sense, or what somatic work helps. (If I could afford weekly sound baths, yoga and massage I probably wouldn't be posting). I am reading about the vagus nerve, the parasympathetic nervous system and I'm all a bit lost on what to do because my understanding of the science feels limited. I don't want too much 'woo woo' focus on tapping per se without understanding how that works but am open to ideas or any useful links.
My understanding is that autistic overload is different and requires different interventions than anxiety. Anxiety/trauma reactions are coming from our brain/body feeling like it's back in the unsafe place, and a lot of the interventions are teaching it that it's not and that we are instead where we actually are right now. Autistic meltdown is often coming from sensory overload in the moment, and so the problem is that we are where we actually are right now. So you might want to think of them as different situations that need different techniques.
posted by lapis at 7:52 AM on October 6
posted by lapis at 7:52 AM on October 6
For the PTSD portion I recommend the book. Burnout - even though it deals with stress and its long-term effects, its inquiry into the stress cycle and completing it has been a great add to my toolkit.
Also echoing that it takes time. Everyone is different but I have a high ACE score as well as I lost my daughter and hemorrhaged in her birth which added to my PTSD score and it is possible to get to regulated (again, can’t speak to the sensory/autism issues here.)
posted by warriorqueen at 8:09 AM on October 6
Also echoing that it takes time. Everyone is different but I have a high ACE score as well as I lost my daughter and hemorrhaged in her birth which added to my PTSD score and it is possible to get to regulated (again, can’t speak to the sensory/autism issues here.)
posted by warriorqueen at 8:09 AM on October 6
You're doing great, and it sucks for now but that's life.
You specifically asked about somatic stuff, and I'd say two broad things:
Learn about vagus nerve massage techniques (gentle rubbing of the ear or neck or abdomen - it will be subtle)
And find whatever weird spot that feels wrong when you're having a tough time. My spot isn't your spot, but it's only tense when I'm activated and pressing on it while breathing deeply helps me! (I've never met another human who has the same spot)
posted by Acari at 8:32 AM on October 6
You specifically asked about somatic stuff, and I'd say two broad things:
Learn about vagus nerve massage techniques (gentle rubbing of the ear or neck or abdomen - it will be subtle)
And find whatever weird spot that feels wrong when you're having a tough time. My spot isn't your spot, but it's only tense when I'm activated and pressing on it while breathing deeply helps me! (I've never met another human who has the same spot)
posted by Acari at 8:32 AM on October 6
what somatic work helps
First, notice the people around whom you feel calmer, lighter, more like yourself. It might only be one or two specific people. It might be also be an animal. Then, make a point of deliberately spending time with them. Lots and lots of time, many hours a week. That's it, that's the practice. Co-regulation. Intentionally spending time with those whose mere presence calms and regulates you. If people or animals don't do it for you, consider time in nature instead.
A regulated nervous system with CPTSD absolutely is possible.
More in a previous comment here.
posted by danceswithlight at 8:35 AM on October 6
First, notice the people around whom you feel calmer, lighter, more like yourself. It might only be one or two specific people. It might be also be an animal. Then, make a point of deliberately spending time with them. Lots and lots of time, many hours a week. That's it, that's the practice. Co-regulation. Intentionally spending time with those whose mere presence calms and regulates you. If people or animals don't do it for you, consider time in nature instead.
A regulated nervous system with CPTSD absolutely is possible.
More in a previous comment here.
posted by danceswithlight at 8:35 AM on October 6
Reading about nervous system regulation just doesn't work for me, but there are tons of tutorials on youtube showing exactly HOW to do them and that has made a huge difference for me.
You'll also find videos on the terms somatic movement, somatic exercise, and somatic yoga.
If you want to do actual somatic experiencing therapy, for that I'd want to at least start with a trained therapist. Also I can't figure out if it's the front for a cult or if its adherents just sometimes act super culty (I have the same problem with IFS) so while it does appear to be a truly helpful methodology just, uh, don't join a cult about it if one is presented to you.
The 'Therapy in a Nutshell' youtube channel has done deeper dives into anxiety, nervous system regulation, and somatic techniques. I like her a lot, not culty at all.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:36 AM on October 6
You'll also find videos on the terms somatic movement, somatic exercise, and somatic yoga.
If you want to do actual somatic experiencing therapy, for that I'd want to at least start with a trained therapist. Also I can't figure out if it's the front for a cult or if its adherents just sometimes act super culty (I have the same problem with IFS) so while it does appear to be a truly helpful methodology just, uh, don't join a cult about it if one is presented to you.
The 'Therapy in a Nutshell' youtube channel has done deeper dives into anxiety, nervous system regulation, and somatic techniques. I like her a lot, not culty at all.
posted by Lyn Never at 9:36 AM on October 6
Psychology Today has had a number of articles about Vagus Nerve Stimulation for nervous system health and reducing inflammation. I find it maybe kinda helpful. No real risk of harm.
Spending time with my dog, being in nature, and having some sense of meaning in life help me a lot. I started a different anti-depressant that has helped a lot. Good luck.
posted by theora55 at 9:38 AM on October 6
Spending time with my dog, being in nature, and having some sense of meaning in life help me a lot. I started a different anti-depressant that has helped a lot. Good luck.
posted by theora55 at 9:38 AM on October 6
I completely agree with danceswithlight. The other thing that worked for me was psychedelics - I can give you more details if you want.
posted by wheatlets at 10:41 AM on October 6
posted by wheatlets at 10:41 AM on October 6
I have found taking powdered Adaptogens like mushroom powders (I like four sigmatic brand) helpful in calming down adrenals. I’ve also used myndlift app with a neuro coach for some neurofeedback training and found it helpful too!
posted by St. Peepsburg at 11:04 AM on October 6
posted by St. Peepsburg at 11:04 AM on October 6
1) prioritizing sleep
2) eating enough at the right times
3) swimming specifically. It encourages regular breathing, improves mood, modulates pain, improves sleep (for me swimming in the evenings had me sleeping like a baby, which never happens otherwise). Feeling weightless and gliding through water = amazing relief.
3) YMMV **extremely** but gabapentin (which I sometimes take for nerve pain) can help with anxiety too, is sometimes prescribed off label for that.
posted by cotton dress sock at 11:12 AM on October 6
2) eating enough at the right times
3) swimming specifically. It encourages regular breathing, improves mood, modulates pain, improves sleep (for me swimming in the evenings had me sleeping like a baby, which never happens otherwise). Feeling weightless and gliding through water = amazing relief.
3) YMMV **extremely** but gabapentin (which I sometimes take for nerve pain) can help with anxiety too, is sometimes prescribed off label for that.
posted by cotton dress sock at 11:12 AM on October 6
and a lay person's guide to understanding the science
[harvard:] When someone experiences a stressful event, the amygdala, an area of the brain that contributes to emotional processing, sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus [wiki2]
posted by HearHere at 7:44 PM on October 6
[harvard:] When someone experiences a stressful event, the amygdala, an area of the brain that contributes to emotional processing, sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus [wiki2]
posted by HearHere at 7:44 PM on October 6
nautilus:
most psychologists believed that memories—including fear memories—became “consolidated,” or unchangeable, soon after they were acquired. In just the past 16 years, that understanding has shifted. Research has shown that every time we recall a memory, it undergoes reconsolidation, meaning we are able to add new information or a different interpretation to our remembrance, even turning fearful memories into fearless ones.posted by HearHere at 9:53 PM on October 6
...
Visualization—which we might think of as pre-consolidation, whereby a person pictures a future event rather than a past one—functions in much the same way. “To review move after move, you’d expect that he did consolidate his motor memory and as a result probably had an increased sense of competence,” Monfils [UT Austin] says. Feelings of competence, in turn, have been shown to reduce anxiety, which helps to explain why, for example, people who are fearful of public speaking (as Honnold used to be, by the way) feel less anxious about it as they do it more often & develop their skills.
A brief suggestion to add to the toolkit - yoga nidra or sleep yoga - I’m pretty sure it was key for my recovery from the stress/adrenalin/anxiety/neuro element of long covid, and met many others who said the same. Ally Boothroyd has a YouTube channel with a ton of guided yoga nidra options which might be a good place to start. I find doing a short one daily and getting into the awake-sleep state it promotes for a while massively improves my quality of life
posted by melisande at 9:58 PM on October 6
posted by melisande at 9:58 PM on October 6
Seconding sleep meditations. I use the (free) Insight Timer app, and the sleep tracks by Jennifer Piercy are just lovely. Calming, peaceful, and really feel like good self care for an anxious person like myself.
posted by sucre at 2:48 PM on October 7
posted by sucre at 2:48 PM on October 7
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(Definitely not a doctor, but I was born with my nervous system set on high and spent many years trying to work with it. That culminated in a long meeting with a Stanford neurophysiologist who pretty definitively told me the score. Caveat: that was 15 years ago, and research has continued.)
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 7:50 AM on October 6