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I feel like it’s so important to calm the nervous system when it comes to manifesting. If you have ever experienced any trauma, criticism or abuse, you may be in constant fight or flight.
*Disclaimer, I am not a doctor, these are just things that have helped me. If you’re experiencing any symptoms of depression, anxiety or PTSD, please speak to a doctor.
When we calm the nervous system, we react less to the 3D, we stop manifesting from a place of fear and we move from chaos to calm.
There is so much information out there now about trauma and the effects it has on our brains and nervous system. This is an amazing shift in the world, that we now have the information to heal.
However, I don’t want you to fall into the trap that you will be healing forever. A simple mindset shift with this will help it feel so much lighter.
I want you to look at this work like exercises. Just like exercise maintains our body and health, by adding any of these ways to calm the nervous system to your daily routine you will be maintaining your health and stress levels.
You are moving your nervous system from being activated a lot, to calming your nervous system down, which means your triggers will significantly reduce.
Contents
Natural Ways to Calm the Nervous System
Breathing Exercises
Breathing exercises are an amazing way to calm the nervous system. There are many different breathing exercises you can do.
Here are a few that have helped me:
1:2 Breathing
This is where the exhale is twice as long as our inhale.
So, inhale for 5 seconds, hold for 2 seconds and exhale for 8 seconds.
Repeat this for a few times until you feel more relaxed.
The reason this works so well is it activates the Parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for keeping you calm.
This breathing exercise with help you feel grounded and centred again. Practice this a few times a day.
Bilateral Stimulation
Bilateral stimulation (BLS) brings both sides of the brain into alignment. This means that when you feel activated, your mind will be fragmented. You can’t think straight or logically.
By using BLS, you are calming your mind and you will notice that your body calms down too.
BLS is part of EMDR, and I learned it from a trained therapist. If you do have a lot of traumas that are affecting you, I highly recommend going to an EMDR therapist.
You can listen to BLS music, with headphones, which is instantly calming. The other main one I use is the butterfly technique. Check out the videos below.
Bilateral Stimulation Music
The Butterfly Hug
Ice Water Therapy
I’ve started doing it every day and I feel amazing afterwards. You are basically putting your face in a bowl of ice water. It feels uncomfortable at first but it fully clears your mind.
The reason this works is because the mammalian diving reflex is activated.
Steps to do this:
- Fill a bowl with icy water, I put a few ice cubes in there (not freezing!!)
- Lean over and hold your breath
- Put your face into the water and hold for up to 30 seconds
- I tend to do bursts of 10 seconds and I aim for a minute
- Make sure the area under your eyes is covered by the water
*Please do not do this if you have a slow heartbeat or heart problems, as this reduces your heart rate rapidly. Also, if you have an eating disorder. If you are unsure, please consult your doctor.
[convertkit form=3647371]Stimulating the Vagus Nerve
Stimulating the vagus nerve is another amazing way to activate the parasympathetic nervous system and feel calm.
It connects your brains to your gut. It can affect so many things like digestion, mood, stress levels and heart rate.
If we tone the vagus nerve everyday, it can help with so many symptoms.
Ways to Stimulate the Vagus Nerve
- Humming, singing and chanting
- Reflexology
- The Voo Breath
- Yoga
- Laughter
Having More Compassion
Compassion emerges from a ventral vagal state. This is a state of calm and safety.
By practicing compassion, you will therefore experience more ventral vagal energy (more peace, calm, joy and feeling safe.
Having compassion for ourselves is so healing. Too many of us beat ourselves up, put ourselves down and don’t give ourselves enough love.
Practice having compassion for yourself every single day. If you need so ideas on how to do this, check out my blog, How to Have Self Compassion When Manifesting
*If you want to learn more about the polyvagal theory, check out Deb Dana’s Audiobook here.
Ways to Calm the Nervous System
We have talked about why it’s so important to calm the nervous system and how it can help you manifest. I’ve given you some great ways to get started, such as bilateral stimulation, stimulating the vagus nerve and breathing exercises.
It feels so good to live a life feeling peaceful and calm and for me this is always a priority. And when we do this, we are more open and receptive to all the good.
Let me know in the comments your favourite ways to calm the nervous system.
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Hi, I’m Laura. I’m a blogger and coach. I help women up their level of self-worth by reprogramming their minds to manifest their desires by using The Law of Assumption!
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