Nervous System Resilience
Are you stuck due to trauma or chronic stress?
Do you want to build a greater tolerance and resilience?
Do you want to handle new stressors better in the future?
At JoyFeel Therapy, we understand the impact that life's challenges can have on your nervous system, affecting both your emotional and physical well-being. Are you seeking ways to feel more grounded and resilient in the face of these challenges?
We assist in developing the skills and strategies necessary for building your nervous system resilience, empowering you to restore balance and well-being.
Befriending the nervous system
Before we go any further, let's get the basic science down:
Your nervous system is like a messaging system in your body. It's made up of your brain, spinal cord, and nerves. This system helps your body communicate and respond to what's happening around you. For example, when you touch something hot, your nerves send a message to your brain that it's hot, and your brain tells your hand to move away. It's like a super-fast network that helps you sense things and react to them to keep you safe.
Are you able to co-regulate?
What is co-regulation? Co-regulation refers to the process by which individuals, typically in interpersonal relationships, mutually influence each other's emotions, behaviors, and physiological states in a way that promotes emotional regulation and social connection. It often occurs in contexts such as parent-child interactions, therapy sessions, romantic relationships, and friendships.
Whether you're facing trauma, burnout, anxiety, or simply the stress of daily life, it can cause your nervous system to go into overdrive. Symptoms of a struggling nervous system can manifest in various ways, including heightened stress responses, difficulty relaxing, sleep disturbances, and physical symptoms such as headaches, muscle tension, and digestive issues. In short, you don’t feel like yourself. And we want to help.
That's why we offer Nervous System Resilience support. Our services are designed to help you develop the skills and strategies necessary to navigate life's challenges and allow you to feel like yourself again. We are here to help you bring your mind and body back into harmony.
Before we continue, let’s take a pause.
Inhaling for 3 counts. Hold for 3 counts. Exhale for 3 counts.
Kindly, do it two more times. Close your eyes if you are comfortable.
That immediate sense of relief- we want you to feel all the time. We want to teach you the tools and strategies to bring your mind and body into a place of peace and calm.
There will always be stressors- we want to build your resilience to those stressors. So that they can come and go- and you can get back to 100% calmly and comfortably.
What is Nervous System Resilience?
Nervous System Resilience refers to your ability to adapt and respond to stress or trauma in a healthy way. When your nervous system is resilient, you are better equipped to manage stress, and difficult situations, regulate your emotions, and maintain a sense of balance and well-being. Resilient nervous systems are flexible and able to recover and resume normal functioning.
Resilience also involves having many resources and coping mechanisms that can be accessed during challenging times such as social support, mindfulness practices, or movement. There is a strong mind-body connection in nervous system resilience.
For instance, imagine you have a challenging phone conversation with your mother-in-law. Your body perceives a threat and goes into protective mode. You might notice your heart racing, your jaw clenching, and your muscles tensing. Your body is amazing at protecting you but staying in this state is neither comfortable nor sustainable.
Resilience is getting back to a state of calm.
Another way to explain nervous system resilience would be to imagine your nervous system is like a seesaw at a playground. On one side, you have the sympathetic branch, which is like the "alert" side, getting you ready to react quickly in a stressful or dangerous situation (like a lion suddenly appearing). This is the "fight-or-flight" response.
On the other side, you have the parasympathetic branch, which is like the "calm" side, helping you relax and digest your food when you're safe and not in danger. This is the "rest-and-digest" response.
A resilient nervous system is like a seesaw that can easily balance between these two sides. It means that when you need to be alert and ready for action, your body can quickly switch to the sympathetic side. But when the danger is gone, your body can smoothly switch back to the parasympathetic side to rest and recover.
So, having a resilient nervous system is like having a seesaw that can easily balance between being alert and calm, depending on what your body needs at the time.
When our nervous system is balanced, it can improve our physical, mental, and emotional functioning. We can respond to trauma triggers and stress in healthy ways, have better sleep, and even a stronger immune system.
How Can Therapy Help?
Our Nervous System Resilience support is rooted in evidence-based practices and tailored to meet your unique needs and goals. It often goes hand-in-hand with trauma therapy. Through a combination of therapeutic techniques, mindfulness practices, and psychoeducation, we will help you:
Understand the impact of stress and/or trauma on your nervous system
Develop healthy coping strategies and stress management skills
Cultivate mindfulness and self-awareness
Improve emotional regulation and self-soothing techniques
Identify and manage triggers related to trauma
Enhance your overall well-being and quality of life
Resilience is not a trait. It's not something you're born with. It's something that's developed." - Dr. Gabor Maté
Dr. Gabor Maté is a physician and author known for his work in the fields of mental health, addiction, trauma, and childhood development. Dr. Maté is known for his views on the mind-body connection and the impact of trauma, stress, and emotional experiences on physical health. To learn more about his work click here.
What to Expect
During your sessions at JoyFeel Therapy, you will explore and address the root causes of your stress and build a personalized toolkit for resilience. Our goal is to empower you to take control of your nervous system's response to stress and live a more balanced and joyful life.
Who Can Benefit?
Our Nervous System Resilience program at JoyFeel Therapy is suitable for individuals who are experiencing:
Chronic stress
Trauma or PTSD
Burnout or compassion fatigue
Difficulty managing emotions or reactions
Sleep disturbances or fatigue
Anxiety
Depression
Chronic illness
The Power of Neuroplasticity
Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to change and adapt. It is truly amazing how our brains can form new connections between neurons and reorganize itself.
Your brain can reorganize itself.
Learning the tools and strategies to enhance your resilience and having the support of a therapist to begin practicing them over time can begin to rewire your brain. Dr. Norman Doidge is a psychiatrist and author known for his work on neuroplasticity. In his book "The Brain That Changes Itself," he uses a beautiful analogy of Neuroplasticity being like a path in a field. The more it is traveled, the more defined and entrenched it becomes.
Similarly, the more we engage in certain thoughts or behaviors, the stronger the neural pathways in our brain become, shaping our habits and behaviors.
Take the First Step Towards Resilience
If you are ready to enhance your nervous system resilience and improve your quality of life, we invite you to schedule a free 20-minute consultation at JoyFeel Therapy. Together, we will create a personalized plan to help you build the skills and strategies needed to thrive in the face of life's challenges.
Contact us today at JoyFeel Therapy to learn more about our Nervous System Resilience program and start your journey towards greater well-being.
Sources:
Doidge, N. (2007). The Brain That Changes Itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science. Penguin Books.
Maté, G. (n.d.). Home. Retrieved from https://drgabormate.com/
Harvard University Center on the Developing Child. (n.d.). Resilience. Retrieved from https://developingchild.harvard.edu/topics/resilience/
National Institute of Mental Health. (n.d.). Resilience. Retrieved from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/resilience.shtml