It’s been a pretty rough few years to say the least. We’ve all gone through difficult situations and circumstances and if you’re someone who’s been trying to stay on top of your health, you’ll know how challenging it’s been to prioritize that through it all.
Thankfully, it’s not impossible.
Even when we go through stressful situations in life, we can still make space for our healing.
When we prioritize our well-being first, we’re actually better able to take care of those around us. We become more productive, more approachable, more centered, and have more purpose.
On the other hand, when we neglect our health and needs, we actually signal to our brain that we’re operating under stress. Even if it’s saying yes when you mean no, or putting off your healthy habits, or staying up late to answer emails, you’re telling your brain that you cannot rest yet. And that puts your nervous system under a Sympathetic (Stress) state.
When you operate in the Sympathetic Nervous System, your blood vessels constrict, eyes dilate, breath shortens, and blood pressure raises. This raises cortisol and inflammation. In the short term, acute inflammation is useful and beneficial. However, when you operate like this for longer periods, this can downregulate your thyroid and shut down your reproductive system. Your body will always prioritize survival over reproduction.
So how can you prevent from staying too long in the Sympathetic state and lower stress and inflammation?
Here are some of my favorite ways to support your nervous system and lower system inflammation:
1) create healthy boundaries with yourself and others
2) get plenty of sleep, uninterrupted
3) create a holy space or ritual for your meals
4) exercising according to your needs and not by obligation
5) letting go of things out of your control
The last one is probably my favorite because it has the biggest impact on your nervous system.
When you try so hard to make sure things go your way in life, you restrict yourself from the freedom and peace you can have, both in your mind and body. And in that case, you can entrap yourself with negative thoughts or feelings when life doesn’t happen the way you want. Our thoughts and emotions influence our responses and it all goes back into the same stress feedback system. Negative thoughts and emotions trigger the Sympathetic System. Healthy thoughts and emotional regulation trigger a balance between the Sympathetic and Parasympathetic, which is your rest and digest state.
I know it can be hard in the beginning, learning how to rewire your thought patterns, but it could completely change your health and your life.
Many things, as we know now, are out of our control. But one thing we can control is how we respond to that and how we choose to prioritize our own health and mental well-being.
If you have been struggling to find that balance, or don’t know where to start with your health journey, reaching out for support may be the first step! It’s an act of surrendering and knowing that you cannot do it all nor control it all.
Spaces are filling up soon, but book a free call or apply to my Stress & Energy Reset if you’re looking for immediate 1:1 support for your health today.