For this week’s Mental Sunshine, I want to talk about something that will help you to lay the foundation for plenty of Mental Sunshine in the future.
Have you heard of the vagus nerve?
It’s the longest cranial nerve in your body, and is the main pathway for your parasympathetic nervous system.
The system that is responsible for your “rest and digest” function.
It goes from your brain, down into your chest and abdomen, connecting to most of your vital organs and plays a major role in regulating your heart rate, digestion and general emotional state.
If your vagus nerve has good vagal tone, this means your body is able to relax better after a stressful event.
You can roll with the punches a bit more.
Someone with high vagal tone can switch from a fight-or-flight feeling back into “rest and digest” much more quickly than someone with low vagal tone, who may find themselves stuck in fight-or-flight for hours or even days after a stressful event.
High vagal tone is also associated with better physical and mental health, lower inflammation, better blood sugar regulation and improved mood and emotional resilience.
So, how do you improve your vagal tone?
The great news is that this is free and easy to do!
Deep, slow breathing is a great way to stimulate the vagus nerve and improve tone.
Inhale slowly for a count of four, hold for a moment, and then exhale even more slowly for a count of six to eight.
You don’t need to get the counting exactly right – just make sure your out breath is longer than your in breath.
Cold exposure can also help to stimulate the vagus nerve.
As you know, I love swimming in lakes, and I’m sure the cold water has been a massive help to improve my mood.
But the good news is you don’t need to immerse your entire body in cold water if that’s not your thing!
You can just turn your shower cold for a few minutes at the end, or perhaps splash your face with icy water.
Singing is also good for stimulating the vagus nerve – put on your favourite song and sing along at the top of your lungs!
Humming and gargling can have a similar effect – but they’re not as much fun!
Laughter and social connection can also help with this; spending time with the people you love, laughing together, helps to naturally boost vagal tone.
There’s also a really simple eye movement exercise you can do which will help to reset your vagus nerve in this video.
Don’t be put off that in the video she is lying down – once you’ve learned how to do it, this is something you can do anywhere!
Over time, doing these things can help to train your vagus nerve to be more responsive, leading to higher vagal tone.
This will mean that over time your body and mind will find it easier to be calm and restful, contributing to a more positive and stable mood – your very own Mental Sunshine!
Had you heard of the vagus nerve before today?
I’ve been seeing a lot about it lately in my social media feeds.
I hope you find this email helpful in improving your vagal tone and, therefore, your mood!