The Vagus Nerve – unlock your wellbeing through creativity
Our body is truly unique, just like the whole Universe. Allowing us to move, to live, to experience, to create, it comprises a fascinating biological machine with many crucial parts and features. One of them is the Vagus Nerve, which is largely responsible for our mental and emotional well-being. As it turns out, creative activities play an important role in stimulating the nerve and, thus, help us feel better. But why and how exactly? Let’s find out:
The Vagus Nerve is the longest one in our body. Its name comes from Latin and can be translated as “wandering” nerve – it exactly shows the way the nerve exists in our organism – it wanders down from brain, signaling almost all-important organs between the brain and abdomen. By carrying sensory information from the internal organs back to the brain, it regulates a number if vital biological processes, like blood pressure, digestion, cell regeneration, and immune responses.
Being the central part of the Parasympathetic Nervous System, the Vagus Nerve is what directly affects our mood and mental health in general. When we do different kinds of creative activities that make us focus, slow down, train our motility as well as imagination, we stimulate the Vagus Nerve to work properly. Eventually, such things as singing, painting, or dancing become a kind of treatment for recovering from heartache, depression, severe anxiety, and other unpleasant diseases.
Let’s take a closer look at more activities you can already try doing now to stimulate the Vagus Nerve:
As the Vagus Nerve is linked to areas of the mouth and throat, activities connected with sound production (singing, humming, chanting) trigger our parasympathetic nervous system (associated with relaxation, digestion, healing, and regeneration). You may sing in unison with your friends or along to the radio – this will boost your feeling of satisfaction from having social connections.
Walking the dog, taking care of your garden, doing yoga outside, or meditating calm the gut and make the vagus nerve active. Moreover, sun and other natural phenomena also affect our mood, so don’t hesitate to go out even for just a walk.
Taking care of digestive system is crucially important as it is directly linked to the heart and brain. You may want to avoid junk food as well as overeating. During stressful moments in your life, don’t try to eat your troubles away – think carefully about what you eat, and your digestive system will help you cope with stress.
Laughter stimulates the vagus nerve and recuses stress, depression, and anxiety. You can watch stand-up or hang out with your friends – laughter is a great way to activate positive thinking.
You might have heard that cold immersion therapy can boost the immune system as your body adjusts to the temperature of water. Have you ever tried taking cold shower? If not, you may start by turning down the temperature on your morning shower for a couple of seconds or splashing your face with cold water.
Of course, don’t forget about your hobbies – it may be dancing, drawing, writing poems, or cycling - everything that helps you express yourself. It’s up to you how to stimulate your Vagus Nerve. It, in turn, will benefit your well-being.
Article by Anna Mikhova,
Unarthodox Element Blog Contributor