Food & Your Nervous System

A dysregulated nervous system can make it hard to heal your gut, hormones, metabolism, or just about any chronic condition.

You can work on regulating your nervous system with breathwork, movement, and meditation…

But what about food?

Let’s take a look:

➡️ Protein

Protein provides amino acids that are the building blocks for neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, which are necessary for emotional regulation.

➡️ Fats

Fats are the main structural component of nerve cell membranes and therefore critical for communication throughout the nervous system.

➡️ Sugars

Blood sugar swings trigger a physiologic stress response and activation of the sympathetic nervous system, putting your nervous system on edge.

➡️ Alcohol

Alcohol gives an initial sensation of calm, but it also triggers production of the stress hormone cortisol, which can dysregulate the nervous system over time.

➡️ Caffeine

Caffeine activates the sympathetic nervous system, meaning that too much caffeine or caffeine too late in the day can leave your nervous system frazzled and on edge.

The bottom line?

We cannot expect our nervous systems to stay regulated and resilient without also being conscious of what we are putting into our mouths.

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Movement & Your Nervous System

Your nervous system loves movement.

That’s because the role of your nervous system is to determine if you are safe (parasympathetic, rest-and-digest mode) or in danger (sympathetic, fight-or-flight mode).

Gentle movements signal the nervous system that you are safe, activating the vagus nerve and a parasympathetic state.

Some of the best types of movement for this include:

☀️ Yoga

☀️ Stretching

☀️ Dancing

☀️ Walking in Nature

There are really 2 different ways to use movement to regulate your nervous system. You can use it in the moment as a reset OR include movement as part of your everyday maintenance routine.

I recommend both!

#elementsnatmed #naturalmedicine #naturalmedicine #movementismedicine #moveyourbody #nervoussystem #nervoussystemregulation

Wired but Tired?

Ever get to the end of the day and just crash?

Or maybe you feel “wired but tired”—as if your nervous system is ramped up and yet you have nothing left to give.

The problem *might* be that you aren’t giving your nervous system any chance to rest and reset throughout the day.

I get it!

Society expects us to be going non-stop.

It’s just that our bodies (and especially our nervous systems) were not built for that.

One of the best ways to support nervous system regulation is to build in periods of intentional rest to your day.

This can look different for different people.

You might:

✨ get up from your desk every hour to stretch

✨ set reminders to close your eyes for two minutes and breathe

✨ allow 5 extra minutes on your lunch break to sit in your car and listen to music

The point is to schedule rest breaks into your day.

These breaks act like a reset button for your nervous system so that you won’t feel so fried at the end of the day.

Have you tried this? What’s your experience?

Nervous System Resilience

📣 This is important. 📣

Your nervous system is constantly responding to inputs.

Sometimes those inputs are regulating—like listening to calming music or going for a walk in nature.

Sometimes those inputs are dysregulating—like being yelled at or seeing fear-based news in your feed.

There are really 2 ways to go about regulating your nervous system:

1️⃣ One way is in the moment: When you notice you are triggered, take a moment to step away and take some deep breaths.

2️⃣ The other way is daily practice: Make it part of your routine to send signals of safety to your nervous system.

Some practices you could choose to do are:

✨ Deep breathing (this is one of the best ways to activate the vagus nerve and reset the nervous system)

✨ Mindful movement (you can shake, stretch, dance, or do anything that releases tension from the body)

✨ Intentional rest (meaning rest on purpose—not only when you’re completely exhausted)

If you commit to just ONE of these things and make it part of your routine, I promise that your nervous system will thank you.

Make sure you're following us to learn more about regulating your nervous system!

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The Goal is Not to Always Feel Calm...

Having a regulated nervous system does not mean you will feel calm all the time.

What it means is that your nervous system can respond to any given situation in a healthy way:

To be resilient.

When your nervous system is regulated and resilient, you’re able to:

✨ experience emotions without letting them take over your life

✨ notice when you feel stressed and come back to center

✨ rest without feeling like you need to justify it

Not only that, but the nervous system connects your brain to every organ of your body.

So with a regulated nervous system, it becomes easier to heal your:

✨ gut

✨ skin

✨ hormones

✨ metabolism

✨ mood & more

In functional medicine, we are always looking for the root cause and removing obstacles getting in the way of healing.

Nervous system dysregulation can be one of those obstacles.

Like this post ❤️ if you want to be sure to see more on strategies to support your nervous system!