02 Feb CPR your life back to wellness

Stress, estimated to be responsible for most health challenges, can be minimized, to some degree, with what was covered in the previous article – ‘small daily actions’.  By incorporating small daily actions to reduce stress, you can benefit yourself immensely!

Not everyone requires intervention. I love to focus on prevention and empowering people to take control of their lives.  Many just need to learn some basic tools and techniques to help themselves, while some individuals do require more support to regain their well being and vitality.

In my practice I find that Biofeedback is incredibly helpful in reducing anxiety, panic attacks, symptoms of depression, fatigue, chronic pain etc.  Psychosomatic Energetics is also an excellent tool which addresses underlying unresolved emotional conflicts which impedes the immune system and sets one up for health challenges, whether physical or mental. Sometimes it is the combination of a few modalities which best supports an individual and therefore I do not hesitate to refer people to other health practitioners. Ultimately, my primary goal is to assist you so that you can live your life well.

Breathing – a tool to assist you. Simple therapeutic breathing techniques can transform the body-mind communication and supports the nervous system. This is taught in many healing modalities such as meditation, yoga, Body Talk, Hurley Osborn technique, Reiki etc.

Unless we are under a direct threat or danger, we want to stay in the ‘Parasympathetic Nervous System’ (PNS) which is a calm state. The ‘Sympathetic Nervous System’ (SNS) is a system which helps us deal with danger or a direct threat, be it physical or emotional. When the SNS is charged up, it increases certain stress hormones such as cortical and adrenaline, which may be temporarily required by the body. Chronic stress puts us into a dominant SNS state, which can lead to adrenal exhaustion, sleep disturbances, immune dysfunction, heart disease etc.

Therapeutic breathing supports the nervous system and helps us to return to the PNS state. It also supports cardiopulmonary functioning, affects the immune system and endocrine (hormone) systems, and ultimately cellular outcomes (even our DNA and gene functioning is participating in the conversation). Simple breathing techniques can interrupt the stress response, and set off a whole host of positive mind-body changes.

Breathing technique – breath thorough the nose and out through the mouth. When we breathe in through our mouth, we can add to the stress response, which induces shallow breathing and sets off a stress response for the SNS to kick in. Inhaling thorough the nose promotes the opposite response, supporting cellular communication to support the immune and endocrine systems as well as helping to dispel toxins from the body and assist the lymphatic (cleaning) system of the body to function better.

So, when feeling anxious, tense, stressed or just uneasy become aware of how you are breathing. Using the above technique is a simple, effective way to reduce your stress level, assisting you in returning to the PNS state, with very little time and at no cost. Consciously start with this ‘small daily action’ to shift you towards better well being. Mary Anne