Understanding and Regulating Your Nervous System: The Key to a Vibrant Life
Welcome to the Vibrant Humans blog. If this is your first time reading, I’m so glad you are here. This is a place where I write about topics that I’m learning about and practicing. Ones that I hope all of us can benefit from. This is for you if you are intrigued or fully invested in personal growth. I’m on a mission to helping other working moms live more authentically, vibrantly, joyfully and resiliently.
Today, let’s explore the fascinating world of the nervous system and how learning more about our own unique nervous systems, and how to work WITH them instead of against them can be transformative in how we manage our emotions and our stress.
A Story to Illustrate:
Taylor, a busy GI doctor and mom of 3, is facing an unexpected deadline for a project at work. She thought she had another week to finish, and things have been especially crazy with end of the year activities for her kids, so she hasn’t had much time to work on it lately.
She’s having a relatively normal (but always busy) day, and she receives an email from her boss saying he wants to see the final draft of the project at the end of the day. TODAY.
In just a few moments, her heart starts racing, she can feel her palms sweat, and her mind alternates between racing and spacing out. She can’t concentrate, feels restless, and gets tunnel vision.
This type of scenario, familiar to many, showcases the activation state of the nervous system in real time. Taylor’s physical, mental, and emotional symptoms highlight how our bodies react to perceived threats.
Autonomic Nervous System Overview: The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is our mind-body connection superhighway, controlling many automatic functions and systems in our bodies. I won’t bore you with ALL the details, and for today, we are going to focus on the two main branches of the ANS: the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) and the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS).
The SNS acts as our gas pedal, initiating the fight-or-flight response, increasing heart rate, and preparing us for action. Conversely, the PNS serves as the brake pedal, promoting rest and relaxation.
The Three States:
Green Zone: Connected and Regulated
In this state, we feel relaxed, comfortable, and safe. Our thoughts are clear, and we experience a sense of connection and capability. We have access to our creativity and curiosity here. We have thoughts like “I can do this” and “I have enough time”
Yellow Zone: Activated
Here, our heart rate rises, muscles tense, and we may feel anxious or overwhelmed. We feel restless, and can’t sit still or focus. We are reactive, irritable, and feel pressured and activated. Our thoughts race or scatter, and we sense urgency or worry. If we are in this zone, we think things like “There is NEVER enough time” “I have to work faster, do more, do better”
Red Zone: Shutdown and Overwhelm
When we stay in our yellow zones too long or too often, we enter the red zone. This is essentially our bodies’ way of saying I TOLD YOU I NEEDED YOU TO SLOW DOWN. This state brings fatigue, numbness, and disconnection. Emotions include depression and hopelessness, and thoughts become foggy and negative. We have thoughts like “It’s just too much” “It’s worthless to keep trying, I’ll never catch up” and “Why does it always have to be like this?”
Reflection and Self-Awareness: After reading about these 3 different states, how familiar are you with your own nervous system states?
Identifying your default state (the zone you spend most of your time in) and learning to tune into your nervous system in real time can empower you to manage stress and enhance well-being when you know yourself and when you are shifting into a more activated or shutdown zone. Imagine recognizing your state and then knowing exactly what you need to move closer to the green zone.
Understanding and regulating your nervous system is an incredibly powerful step toward becoming your most vibrant self.
Stay connected, grounded, and present by tuning into your body's signals and responding with the right tools and support.
Becoming more aware of the sensations and feelings we are experiencing is a skill we can learn and grow.
Getting more clarity on how we WANT to feel (what you would love to feel more of) is also incredibly important as you are on your journey of cultivating more peace and regulation. If you don’t know where to start with this and draw a blank when someone asks you “How do you want to feel?!” — then download my free resource now to help you get started in answering this question more clearly for yourself.
https://sarahwittry.myflodesk.com/desiredfeelings
Until next week, stay vibrant, my loves!
XO, Sarah
