Balancing the nervous system during times of big change

By Becca Ironside, PT

I’ve been working with the folks at Connect PT for seven years now. When we talk amongst each other, we have a different insight into each other’s lives and this isn’t just because we are colleagues who share the same craft. Rather, we see the powerful role of the nervous systems in our bodies and how they play out in our lives.

I took a class last summer which focused on nervous system input and how it affects pain and depression or relaxation and joy. Your sympathetic nervous system is the “fight or flight” mechanism – your heart begins to race, blood is shunted away from your abdomen and pelvis towards your muscles. This helps you run away from perceived stress and has protected us from an evolutionary perspective for eons. Your parasympathetic system, on the other hand, allows you to feel content, sleep well, live without pain and form meaningful relationships – your breathing will slow, your muscles will relax, and you will digest and assimilate nutrients from your food.​

In February of this year, I moved from New Jersey to Florida. I was excited about this new chapter in my life, and received a farewell gift from the daughter of Michelle Dela Rosa. Elise is 9 years old (such a fabulous age of wonder and creativity) and she created a hobo bag with a long stick, a piece of yarn and ball of tissue paper dangling from it. I was tickled at how Elise imagined me striding towards my next adventure with a hobo bag over my shoulder. But deep down, I was quite scared about leaving everything and everyone that I loved in NJ. I was also well aware that such a big relocation would put my nervous system into overdrive and that my sympathetic nervous system would react and play a dominant role in the next few months.

So, I decided to take action. I put a plan into place to help support my parasympathetic (calming) system during a time when I knew that it needed bolstering. There is significant research supporting ways to allow the parasympathetic system to have its voice during times of duress.  I discovered some on my own, and needed to ask for help for the others. Here is what worked and what you can do to prepare when you know that hardship or major life changes are coming:

• Exercise Regular exercise slows down the sympathetic “fight or flight” response to life stress. Exercise activates the parasympathetic system, which leads to more restful sleep, improved mood, decreased anxiety and depression and decreased perception of pain. I walked five miles daily under the swaying palm trees. It was during some of those long walks when I discovered the next habit to improve nervous system balance.
• Breathing I called Donna Zamost on many of my walks. I’ve worked with Donna for awhile at the Howell office of Connect PT. She danced and sang on Broadway in her twenties. Donna insisted that I begin a breathing program to help with my anxiety. She spoke of how prolonged exhalation can activate the vagus nerve, and that this is proven to help boost the parasympathetic system. I told Donna I don’t do well with sitting still and breathing, so she suggested that I sing! In singing, I could prolong exhalation and resist shallow breathing, which creates stress. I now sing show tunes every day and think of Donna.
• Time in Nature  It was another friend from Connect, Bryn Zolty, who encouraged me to spend time in nature to soothe my nervous system. Every weekend, Bryn and her family go on extensive bike rides in remote areas of NJ. I took her advice and visited a local nature sanctuary with wildlife. There is a bobcat who lives there who stays far away from people and doesn’t bother anyone. But with her long limbs and dark coat of hair, she reminds me of Bryn. Watching that bobcat from afar is a magnificent thing. Bryn was right – observing the creatures of Mother Earth is deeply calming.
• Believe  Marzena Bard, yogi extraordinaire, sent me on my journey to Florida with three books by the Vietnamese monk, Thich Nhat Hanh. These books are about mindfulness and finding meaning in otherwise mundane activities. What made her present so remarkable is that I gifted her with a statue of Kuan Yin,the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy. Reading the words of this monk and imagining Kuan Yin in Marzena’s home reminds me that belief in something can transform the soul. I realized it doesn’t matter what the belief system is. It could be your favorite sports team! But belief in something creates waves of happiness in the nervous system.
• Returning to Childhood  It took three months for these aforementioned tactics to help me to calm down. The final lesson I learned about how to activate my parasympathetic system was from Elise, the nine year old who made me the hobo bag. Because of her gift to me, I can finally visualize myself as a young child, going into the forest for adventure, with delicious cakes in my bag that I can eat with relish and then climb a tree and watch the leaves rustle above me. Seeing life with curiosity and wonder is linked to feeling content and at peace, and something that cannot be accomplished with the sympathetic nervous system in overdrive.

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That is how, four months after moving, I came to coax my body back into a state of calm. I didn’t have to be a slave to a racing heartbeat, shallow breathing, and worrisome thoughts. It is important to remember that when the next big change is coming your way, you can try exercise, breathing, time in nature, believing in something bigger than yourself and viewing life as a child does. And don’t forget to ask for help! Tell others that you need them, until you are ready to pick up your hobo bag and walk bravely towards your new adventure.

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Becca Ironside, PT continues to work at Connect PT from sunny Florida. She does Wellness Visits, where you can have an appointment online and ask questions about how your pelvic health is related to your other bodily systems. You can discuss how various pieces of your medical history gleaned from other medical practitioners can be peeled back for a comprehensive look at what might be driving pelvic floor issues, including bladder, bowel and sexual concerns. Becca also writes articles for Health Union, an online organization which supports those with chronic health conditions like multiple sclerosis, prostate cancer and endometriosis. She has been nominated for an award for Revolutionary Research by this company for her ability to take scientific studies and make them easy to digest with humor, compassion and simplicity.