For the longest time, I believed well being was about doing extra. More dietary supplements, extra lab assessments, extra exercises, and extra routines. I stored spreadsheets and detailed checklists of all the things I used to be making an attempt to do for my well being. I assumed if I simply discovered the precise mixture and toughed it out lengthy sufficient, I’d lastly really feel wonderful.
But what truly modified all the things for me wasn’t one other protocol. It was a easy psychological reframe that shifted how I take into consideration well being, therapeutic, and life normally. It was the concept of specializing in sending security alerts to my physique, as an alternative of making an attempt to pressure it into submission.
This mindset shift remodeled the best way I eat, transfer, relaxation, and even suppose. It helped me transfer out of a spot of power low-level stress and right into a state the place therapeutic truly grew to become doable. If you are feeling caught in a rut like I used to be, however can’t appear to pinpoint why, then learn on!
Understanding the Nervous System
First, let’s check out the nervous system. Our nervous system operates in two fundamental modes: sympathetic and parasympathetic. The sympathetic nervous system is chargeable for the combat, flight, or freeze response. Our physique prompts this response when it senses hazard or a menace. On the flip aspect, the parasympathetic system is chargeable for relaxation, digestion, and therapeutic.
Thanks to trendy life, many people spend nearly all of our lives caught in sympathetic mode. Even if we don’t really feel mentally careworn, our our bodies would possibly nonetheless be receiving alerts that we’re not protected.
I spent over a decade in that place. I didn’t perceive that my fixed doing, even the “healthy” stuff, was protecting me caught and my physique nonetheless didn’t really feel protected sufficient to shift into therapeutic mode. That’s the place the idea of security alerts versus stress alerts is available in.
What Are Safety and Stress Signals?
Stress alerts are issues that inform our our bodies to remain on alert. These might be apparent psychological stressors like arguments or deadlines, but additionally extra refined issues. Under-eating, over-exercising, poor sleep, loneliness, adverse self-talk, and even publicity to blue gentle at night time ship stress alerts to our nervous system.
Safety alerts, however, are cues that inform the physique it’s okay to relaxation and restore. These embody issues like nourishing meals, deep sleep, human connection, hydration, daylight, light motion, and sort self-talk.
When we deal with sending extra security alerts, the nervous system can lastly calm down. And as soon as it does, so many issues begin to enhance, like our vitality, digestion, temper, hormones, and even weight.
Rebuilding Safety Through Nutrition
One of essentially the most highly effective security alerts we are able to ship to our physique is thru meals. For a very long time, I used to be under-eating, particularly after I was making an attempt to heal my thyroid and drop pounds on the identical time. I didn’t consider it as a stressor as a result of I wasn’t (often) skipping meals, however I wasn’t consuming sufficient of what my physique wanted.
When we don’t eat sufficient, our physique will get the message that meals is scarce. It perceives this as a menace and raises stress hormones, like cortisol. So as an alternative of therapeutic and repairing, our nervous system is on excessive alert. Overeating additionally places stress on the physique, particularly if we’re overeating high-calorie, low-nutrient, processed meals.
The shift occurred after I began consuming sufficient, particularly specializing in protein, micronutrients, and minerals. I started to prioritize my first meal of the day, ensuring it was full of vitamins and protein, earlier than I reached for any caffeine. I additionally stopped consuming late at night time, giving my physique time to digest earlier than mattress.
Instead of approaching meals from a mindset of restriction or management, I began asking myself, How can I nourish my physique at the moment? That shift alone introduced noticeable enhancements in my vitality, temper, and sleep.
Sleep as a Safety Signal
We all know sleep is vital, however I didn’t understand how a lot my nervous system was affected by inconsistent or inadequate sleep. As a mother to fairly just a few children, I haven’t all the time been capable of get a full 8 hours!
Even skipping one hour of sleep may cause cortisol to spike and have an effect on blood sugar and insulin. And in the case of mind fog, some specialists have in contrast only one night time of six hours of sleep to being mildly intoxicated.
Making sleep a precedence, particularly with an earlier bedtime and constant wake-up time, made an enormous distinction for me. I seen enhancements in my coronary heart fee variability, resting coronary heart fee, and general sense of calm. This might be tough to do for mothers, however the thought is to make sleep a precedence. For me this meant no extra cleansing the kitchen late at night time or shopping social media after the youngsters went to mattress!
Creating a calm sleep surroundings helped too. I turned my bed room right into a sleep oasis and stored it darkish and funky with as little noise as doable. I diminished blue gentle publicity within the night and located that my physique began to naturally unwind and fall into deeper sleep.
Light and Circadian Rhythms
While I keep away from blue gentle at night time, it’s your good friend through the daytime. Natural gentle is among the strongest however missed instruments for supporting the nervous system.
Getting daylight within the morning helps set the physique’s inside clock and helps melatonin manufacturing at night time for higher sleep. Getting daylight in the course of the day boosts mitochondrial well being, improves nutrient absorption, and helps hormone stability. I attempt to get at the very least 10 minutes of morning daylight inside half-hour of waking, typically barefoot so I additionally get grounding advantages. Then I’ll take just a few quick walks with my weighted vest or sit on a lounge chair to take in the afternoon solar.
In distinction, blue gentle publicity at night time tells the physique it’s daytime, which might disrupt sleep and trigger stress. I began utilizing amber and pink lighting within the evenings and sporting blue gentle blocking glasses when wanted. I additionally switched to utilizing heat gentle sources after sundown from lamps. These lamps are on a timer so I don’t even have to consider switching them on when the solar units.
Simple shifts in gentle publicity assist my physique really feel extra in tune with its pure rhythms. Plus, it diminished the fixed background stress I didn’t even know was there.
Hydration and Mineral Balance
Dehydration is one other widespread however typically ignored stress sign. When we’re even barely dehydrated, our blood thickens, our vitality drops, and our physique perceives that one thing is unsuitable.
But hydration isn’t nearly consuming water. Our our bodies want minerals, like magnesium, potassium, and sodium to ensure that water to really be absorbed and used successfully. I began consuming mineral water within the morning, typically exterior within the solar. I additionally deal with staying hydrated between meals in order that I’m not diluting my abdomen acid wanted for digestion.
Not solely does it assist help my nervous system, however I discover extra vitality after I hydrate with loads of minerals.
Movement That Feels Supportive
Getting sufficient water is vital, however so is getting sufficient motion. Exercise can both be a security sign or a stress sign, relying on what our physique wants at a given time.
When I used to be deeply careworn, intense exercises made issues worse. My physique craved light actions, like strolling, swimming, or stretching. Over time, as my nervous system stabilized, I slowly reintroduced energy coaching and resistance workouts. Now you’ll discover me doing sprints on the monitor area.
My mindset has modified so I see motion as one other method to help my physique, not punish it. I goal for normal walks, mobility work, and body-friendly methods of transferring all through the day. There’s a time and a spot for extra intense train, however it may be an excessive amount of once we’re in nervous system overload.
Environmental and Emotional Signals
Even if we’re consuming nicely and sleeping sufficient, our surroundings nonetheless sends alerts to our nervous system. Synthetic fragrances, harsh cleansing merchandise, artificial clothes, and even muddle can all act as refined stressors.
Our internal dialogue issues too. The manner we converse to ourselves, whether or not with criticism or compassion, has a direct affect on how protected our nervous system feels. I seen that I used to be saying issues like “my body is attacking itself.”
When I seen adverse ideas, I requested, Would I say this to my little one or my greatest good friend? If not, it didn’t belong in my internal world both. Instead, I shifted my mindset to say one thing like, “My body is healing.” These shifts helped me create extra security from inside.
Connection, Joy, and the Subtle Signals
Human connection is one other deeply highly effective security sign. Eye contact, laughter, contact, and presence all inform our our bodies we’re protected and supported.
Joy and discovering happiness in even the little issues in life are vital right here too. Things like singing, dancing, heat baths, buzzing, stretching, and even simply watching the sundown are all methods to nurture the nervous system. The vagus nerve, which performs an enormous position in parasympathetic activation, responds to those small, joyful acts.
I additionally started to consider how my house surroundings might really feel extra supportive. I swapped harsh lights for light ones, eliminated artificial fragrances, and made my bed room a comfortable area that actually felt protected.
Final Thoughts on Safety Signals
The most vital factor I’ve discovered is that our our bodies are all the time on our aspect. They are consistently working to guard us, even when it doesn’t really feel that manner. When we study to speak with our physique as an alternative of making an attempt to repair or pressure it, all the things adjustments for the higher.
If you’re simply beginning on this path, I’d encourage you to decide on one small factor. Get morning daylight. Drink mineral-rich water. Go to mattress half-hour earlier. Eat a protein-rich breakfast. Whatever feels manageable and sort to your physique.
It’s not about doing extra, however listening extra to what our physique is telling us.
What are some methods you help your nervous system well being? Leave a remark and tell us!