The Soul Nerve

If your brain were able to figure out how to reverse your chronic illness, it would have done so by now. Let your body speak!

When you experience symptom flare-ups or have been unwell for an extended period, your entire focus can become centered on fixing, researching, or simply trying to figure it out. If this approach doesn't work, you need to learn to approach this journey from a place of trust in your feelings and sensations, allowing you to move forward instead of being held back by brain patterns that aim to fulfill old needs.

Your nervous system consists of:

• Central Nervous System (CNS): your brain and spinal cord;

• Peripheral Nervous System (PNS): connecting the CNS to the rest of your body. 

The PNS further divides into voluntary actions (e.g., stretching your arms overhead) and involuntary actions (e.g., breathing).

The Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) is part of the PNS. According to the Polyvagal Theory, the ANS, which largely controls involuntary actions like breathing, consists of a three-part hierarchical structure:

• The Dorsal Vagal Complex;

• The Sympathetic Nervous System;

• The Ventral Vagal Complex, a component of the Parasympathetic Nervous System, which includes the ventral portion of the Vagus nerve and plays a crucial role in regulating social engagement, relaxation, and calming responses.

Mind-body therapies help activate the Ventral Vagal system, promoting relaxation and connection. Strengthening the parasympathetic function of the vagus nerve is crucial in trauma treatment to feel safe. This can reduce inflammation, lower heart rate and blood pressure, and enhance emotional resilience.

 The "Soul Nerve”

The vagus nerve, often referred to as the "soul nerve," plays a pivotal role in human behavior and the body's stress response. This wandering nerve communicates not only between the brain and gut but also between various organs. Stress and trauma can impair its function, leading to symptoms like chest tightness, gastrointestinal issues, altered respiratory function, and heart rate.

The largest part of the vagus nerve is located in the gut, often called the "second brain," containing approximately 100 million neurons. This "second brain" helps the body sense coherence and evaluate situations.

The Vagus Nerve Information Superhighway

The vagus nerve is made up of visceral fibers that communicate throughout the body:

• 20% are efferent fibers, which provide brain-to-body communication.

• 80% are afferent fibers, providing body-to-brain communication.

This is why incorporating “BOTTOM-UP” practices when you listen to your body is so important for nervous system regulation and self-healing.

These practices can include:

• Somatic experiencing

• Vagal toning exercises

• Bodywork such as craniosacral therapy, massage, chiropractic, or myofascial release

• Trauma Releasing Exercises (TRE)

• Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), which combines both top-down and bottom-up approaches

The 20% is important too; this ties into "TOP-DOWN" therapies such as brain retraining. However, we can rewire our mind and ANS not just through our cognition ("TOP-DOWN"), but also through "BOTTOM-UP" approaches—our feeling, sensing, and perceiving of safety and connection somatically.

✨ IF YOU'RE FOCUSED ON THE 20% AND MISSING THE 80%, YOU'RE MISSING THE HUGE POTENTIAL OF YOUR VAGUS NERVE TO HELP YOU RELEASE, REGULATE, AND HEAL!

🙌 Join us at the upcoming 'Stress Management' practical workshop and retreat at Faena Hotel Miami Beach, we will learn how to rewire our mind and autonomic nervous system through cognition, feeling, sensing, and perceiving safety and connection somatically. Join us for a transformative one-day program to facilitate a holistic journey of self-care, balance, and beauty.

🎁 Attendees will enjoy access to Faena’s state-of-the-art wellness facilities, including the sauna, steam room, hammam, and ice chamber. These amenities provide the perfect complement to the day’s activities, offering opportunities for detoxification, rejuvenation, and sensory renewal.

🌹Limited Spots Available; hurry to reserve yours!

Sending Optimal Health & Ultimate Wellness,

Julia Smila, Holistic Health Practitioner & Pranic Healer