I was recently asked a really good question within the Nervous System Reset Facebook Group, one of which I had often asked myself. Here is a slightly reworded question with my reply….
Question
I understand the impact of adjusting the Nervous System’s response on healing from Chronic & Complex Stress and associated illnesses. However, for many of us, this might not be the ‘ROOT CAUSE’. Take conditions like Lyme Disease, where there can be numerous pathogens and it can evolve, causing inflammation and neurological issues. While I appreciate a Nervous System approach, ‘Chronic & Complex Stress’ seems like an additional layer on top of our medical condition.
Insight
Yes, this perspective is valid and I agree with the point that pathogens can indeed cause inflammation. I used to share a similar viewpoint and it took me years to embrace a more integrated perspective. While pathogens can be a primary cause of illness, we must also consider the body’s ability to heal and reduce inflammation. The body strives for homeostasis.
Functions like immune response, epigenetics, anti-inflammatory processes, digestion, and heart rate are influenced by both the brain and the autonomic nervous system (ANS). To put it simply, the body is either healing or not. A state of nervous system regulation enables healing, while sympathetic activation focuses on ‘survival’. Dorsal vagal shutdown similarly halts healing functions.
I haven’t encountered a chronically ill client who operates from their parasympathetic nervous system for healing.
Why? Because their ANS isn’t optimally primed for healing. When the nervous system functions optimally, healing is possible.
Research shows that 70-98% of illness stems from STRESS.
Thus, my focus on addressing the ROOT CAUSE of illness. The bug isn’t the root cause; the body’s response to the bug is. Dr. Bruce Lipton, Dr. Joe Dispenza, Gabor Maté, Bessel Van De Kolk, Dr. Candace Pert, Stephen Porges, and concepts like Polyvagal Theory, Psychoneuroimmunology, Heart Math Institute research and neuroplasticity support this perspective.
Additionally, we can measure stress and nervous system health through
- A basic self-assessment
- Breathing function
- Heart rate, and HRV (heart rate variability. Note: HRV is a gold standard for stress measurement).
A study showed that 50% of people said they were stressed and 50% said they weren’t. Of the 50% who said they weren’t stressed, 90% tested as having stress, at a level of physiological distress at the level of illness and disease! (2010, Loyd, A,. Johnson, B., The Healing Code).
So even when we think we are not stressed if that it’s causing an issue, it is highly likely we are and it IS causing and issue.
This perspective is crucial to our holistic understanding of healing. If you’d like more in-depth information or resources, I’m here to assist. 🧠
Join the discussion
If you’d like to join the discussion, head to the Nervous System Reset and Rewire Facebook Group now.
