When your nervous system is especially sensitive, it can cause many adverse impacts on your health. By understanding he way your vagus nerve works, it might be possible for you to work with the nervous system so that it benefits you rather than working against you.
Studies show that taking care of the vagus nerve with some home strategies can help you overcome emotional problems like stress, anxiety and fatigue. It can also have a positive physical benefits especially with regard to inflammatory conditions.
“Vagus” is a Latin word that literally translates to “wandering.” The vagus nerve is a large nerve that wanders and surrounds many different organs in the body, thus its name. But don’t let its “wanderer” label lull you into thinking it doesn’t take its job seriously! “What happens in vagus stays in vagus” is not the case here. The vagus nerve is referred to as the “heart of the nervous system” because it’s the link between the body and the brain.
Structure
The vagus nerve (also called cranial nerve X) is two cranial nerves that is part of the parasympathetic nervous system. It has a left and right component. Both start at the medulla oblongata of the brain stem, which is the part of the brain that controls involuntary movements such as breathing, heartbeat, sneezing, and swallowing.
From there, the vagus nerve heads down through the throat (larynx, esophagus), where it branches out to many of the organs of the viscera (heart, lungs, stomach, pancreas, spleen, liver, gallbladder, large and small intestines).
Function
The two major functions of the vagus nerve play a critical role in maintaining overall wellbeing.
First, the vagus nerve is responsible for monitoring heart rate, peristalsis (contractions along the digestive tract that keep food moving), sweating, and several mouth movements, including speech, among others.
Second, it monitors what’s going on in the body and reports back to the brain. The brain interprets the information and sends signals back to respond to the information. About 80-90 percent of the vagus nerve fibers are solely dedicated to sending information to the brain on the state of the organs.
If the brain receives information via the vagus nerve that something is out of the ordinary with one of the organs, the brain can send the appropriate signals to solve the problem and return the body to homeostasis (a relative state of equilibrium). If the vagus nerve is damaged or fails to function properly, crucial information about the health of the organs may not get to the brain. This means major issues for the functioning and health of the body as a whole.
Have you ever had a gut instinct or a visceral response to something? Recent studies suggest that the vagus nerve plays a major role in some of our emotional responses.
The vagus nerve picks up on sensations or emotional intuitions in your gut and sends that information to the brain. For example, when you are nervous or excited, chemicals are released by the adrenal glands. The vagus nerve picks up on this change in the viscera and sends signals to the brain. The combination of the sensation in your gut and your brain processing that information direct your response to that nervous or excited state. Therefore, your reaction to a situation initiates from your gut rather than your brain.
This is an interesting concept to consider. If your brain interprets the gut reaction, your response is determined by that interpretation. So, moral of the story: the gut is giving you the most pure reaction to a situation, while the brain is giving you a reasoned response.
Additionally, have you ever passed out from seeing blood? You’re not alone; that is also related to the vagus nerve. It is called a vasovagal response. If you see blood, it may cause emotional or physical stress. The physical stress may be relayed as pain, whereas the emotional stress may simply be related to the fear of what might happen because of the blood loss. Stress causes the sympathetic nervous system to turn on, causing a “fight or flight” response. In order to regain balance, the vagus nerve activates its vasovagal response to stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system.
Unfortunately, in the case of a vasovagal response, the vagus nerve becomes over activated to compensate for the sympathetic response, which in turn causes dramatic drops in blood pressure and heart rate. The decreased blood flow leads to a lack of consciousness.
A healthy nervous system is less likely to overdo this response, and vasovagal responses may become less frequent. In the meantime, don’t look while you’re getting your blood drawn!
How The Vagus Nerve Affects Me
If the vagus nerve is not working properly, the body’s ability to monitor and regulate the viscera and find balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems (the responses of fight and flight, and rest and digest) is compromised.
When the vagus nerve is unable to regulate the viscera, the body may experience a number of digestion-related issues. Because the vagus nerve is responsible for peristalsis, the muscle contractions that push food along the digestive tract, when the vagus nerve is damaged or not working properly, peristalsis is weakened and/or less frequent. Since the muscle contractions that push food along are not as strong, the food may become backed up as it travels along the digestive tract. This delayed gastric emptying (gastroparesis) causes abdominal pain after eating, nausea, loss of appetite, heartburn, and feeling full after eating very little, to name a few.
Further, an inability to balance the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous responses of the autonomic nervous system can result in the body spending more time in the sympathetic nervous system. Living in this system means living in a constant state of fight or flight, otherwise know as living in a constant state of stress. This can lead to or exacerbate several conditions. Some conditions that arise from decreased vagus nerve activation and imbalance of the autonomic nervous system include GERD, various heart conditions, multiple sclerosis flareups, Alzheimer’s, migraines, epilepsy, depression, anxiety, and more.
Vagus Nerve Stimulation
Stimulating a weakened vagus nerve may help bring it back to optimal function. A new treatment called vagus nerve stimulation uses electrical impulses to activate the vagus nerve, thus stimulating a parasympathetic response in the body. It is currently being used to treat those who are not responding to traditional treatments for epilepsy and depression. Research suggests a link between overactivity of the sympathetic nervous system and temporal lobe epilepsy and depression. The rationale is, if stimulating the vagus nerve results in a parasympathetic response, then the autonomic nervous system can balance. This balance may decrease seizures and depressive moods/behaviors.
The treatment is being studied for patients with other nervous system-related ailments, such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s and migraines.
How Breathing Can Help
Outside of medical vagus nerve stimulation, it is believed that the vagus nerve can be stimulated through controlled breathing. In yogic traditions, the Ujjayi breath (a breathing technique where you partially close your glottis in the throat to produce a sounded breath, sometimes likened to Darth Vader) is practiced specifically to stimulate the vagus nerve and trigger a parasympathetic response in the body. Other ways to stimulate the vagus nerve include diaphragmatic breathing (belly breathing), chanting, and various yoga asanas or shapes.
The great thing about breathing is that you do it all the time! The average person takes about 12 breaths per minute when at rest. That means that you easily take between 17,000 and 20,000 breaths per day. That’s a whole lot of opportunities to practice stimulating the vagus nerve!
Back Breathing
My favorite breath technique is called “Back Breathing.” The ribs form a 360-degree cage around the lungs and the heart. They have the capacity to expand in all directions, side to side, front and back, up and down. Often, we don’t utilize our full range of motion in the ribs. By practicing expanding and contracting the ribs, we can increase our breath capacity and stimulate the vagus nerve.
Start by placing one hand on either side of your ribcage. When you inhale, expand the ribs east/west (side to side) toward the hands. When you exhale, contract the front of the rib cage. Now, move your hands toward the back of your ribs, or if that’s not possible, stand or sit with your back against a wall. Now inhale and expand into the back of the ribs.
Try to keep your shoulders out of the equation (don’t let them rise and fall as you breathe). This one may be more challenging! Again, exhale and contract the front of the ribs together. If possible, let each inhale take up the same amount of time as each exhale. But don’t sweat it! Remember, this is designed to help calm your nervous system.
Challenge yourself to practice expanding and contracting the ribs for 3-5 breath cycles at least three times throughout your day, whether it be when you first wake up, during your commute to work, sitting at your desk, or just before you fall asleep at night. Let us know how it makes you feel!
What is the Vagus Nerve?
The vagus nerve is the longest nerve in the human body, extending all the way from the brain stem all the way down to the stomach and the intestines. It enervates your lungs and your heart and connects the facial and throat muscles.
The nerve fibers running through the intestines are often referred to as the enteric brain because some 90% of those fibers connect back to the brain via your vagus nerve. As such, the vagus nerve plays a key role in the connection between the human body and mind. It can help a person remain in touch with their feelings and emotions. It puts the sparkle in a person’s smile but also the knot in their throat.
The Role of the Vagus Nerve
Several recent news articles have looked at the potential health benefits associated with vagus nerve health. It has been linked to various illnesses including those related to inflammation like rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel syndrome and epilepsy. As well as the physical benefits bestowed by regulating the vagus nerve, it can also play a significant part in improving mental health. Studies indicate it can help treat anxiety, depression PTSD and fatigue helping your take control of your emotional well-being naturally.
Inflammation and the Vagus Nerve
Your vagus nerve is critical to the immune system, keeping it in good health and protecting against illness. There is also a very close link between inflammation, immune functioning and chronic stress. By activating your sympathetic nervous system, you release cortisols and keep the immune system healthy. Stress has an adverse effect on immune health leading to inflammation throughout the body and increasing your risk of many diseases including serious illness like heart disease.
Activating your vagus nerve helps boost the immune system and release various enzymes and hormones like oxytocin and acetylcholine. The result is a reduction in inflammation, and a general improvement in overall health, fewer tension headaches and reduced allergic reactions.
What is Vagal Tone?
Good vagal tone is the key for activating the nervous system. We measure vagal tone by measuring breathing rate along with the heart rate. When you inhale, the heart rate gets a little faster and slows down slightly when you exhale. The greater the difference between heart rate when you exhale and inhale, the higher a person’s vagal tone.
When vagal tone is higher, your body is able to relax better, and more able to deal with feelings of stress and anxiety. Higher vagal tone helps the body regulate blood sugar levels and reduces the risk of diabetes and heart disease.
On the other hand low vagal tone has been linked to depression, fatigue, anxiety and cognitive issues. It is also linked to physical problems like diabetes, heart disease and a wide range of inflammatory and autoimmune disorders from arthritis to lupus.
How to Stimulate the Vagus Nerve
Unless a surgical device has been implanted into your body, it is not possible to directly stimulate the vagus nerve. There are however a number of simple methods of indirectly stimulating it to achieve the right balance. Because it passes through so many parts of the body, practices which alter or contol those areas can have a major influence on the way the vagus nerve functions. And the best thing about these methods – you can try then in the comfort of your home.
1) Humming or Chanting
Your vagus nerve runs through your vocal cords and inner ear. The vibrations caused by humming is a very simple way to positively influence your nervous system. Pick a song and hum it to yourself – it really is that simple. Another option is to use the ‘Om’ chant popular in certain cultures and in yoga. It may sound odd, but go with it and let the sensations wash over you.
2) Conscious Breathing Exercises
Controlling your breath is also one of the best ways to get your nervous system under control. The aim of this exercise is to move your diaphragm and belly with your breath and to slow your breathing down. You can stimulate the vagus nerve by slowing sown your breathing to between 5 and 7 breaths a minute or about half the rate as normal.
Inhale while counting to 5 then hold your breath briefly before exhaling slowly. Try counting to ten as you exhale. Slightly constricting the back of your throat while performing this exercise can further stimulate your vagus nerve. You can accomplish this by breathing as if you are fogging a mirror.
3) Meditation
Another way to stimulate the vagus nerve is meditation. In a study published in 2013, 70 staff members at a university were recruited for a study on the link between vagal tone and positive emotions. The researchers recorded vagal tone at the outset and again at the end of the 9-week experiment.
Half of the subjects learned a meditation technique designed to promote positive feelings towards themselves and other people. Those that used this technique saw a significant increase in their vagal tone and this was linked to an increase in positive emotion.
You may be able to influence the vagus nerve by performing a massage in certain areas of your body. Massaging the neck may stimulate the vagus nerve as can a good foot massage. Massaging the neck along your carotid sinus is one of the best spots for vagus nerve stimulation.
5) Diving Reflex
There are several ways to achieve the diving reflex to stimulate the nervous system. This reflex slows down the heart rate and increase the flow of blood to your head. It can both relax the body and the mind.
Simply splashing some very cold water onto your face all the way from the lips to the scalp can cause a diving reflex and have an excellent effect on the vagus nerve.
You can achieve the same result by filling a ziplock bag with ice cubes and holding it briefly on your face while holding your breath.
6) Form Healthy Connections
When you are feeling anxious or emotionally fragile, reaching out to friends can help a great deal. Whether you make connections face to face or by telephone and social media, this can help stimulate the vagus nerve and promote a healthier mind and body.
Playful relationships and laughter with friends can have a very powerful impact as can hugging a close friend or partner until you feel relaxed.
One hugging exercise is extremely effective and very simple. Just stand on your feet, embrace your partner wit both arms and focus on yourself until you quiet down fully.
How positive emotions build physical health: perceived positive social connections account for the upward spiral between positive emotions and vagal tone. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/p
If you’re ready to resolve. . . the “inner” emotional drivers of dis-ease (both physical and emotional). Healthy Vagus Nerve function is critical to both physical and emotional wellbeing. This video shares strategies you can use immediately use to TONE your Vagus Nerve and amplify your health and healing potential.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYOfw6Nva5k