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Lately, I have been thinking about stress and ways we can cope with it. Life is busy, and as summer turns to fall, we tend to feel the pace of life pick up. This seasonal shift can cause overwhelm, and it is important that we understand how to care for ourselves during times of stress.
In exploring stress, I thought of the vagus nerve - which is sometimes described as our body’s ‘calm-down switch.’ The vagus nerve is a key part of our parasympathetic nervous system, which controls important bodily functions like our digestion, heart rate, and immune system. The parasympathetic nervous system is often called our 'rest and digest' side - it helps counterbalance the sympathetic nervous system, which activates the 'fight-or-flight' response. While one gears us up for action, the other helps us slow down, reset, and restore.
Our vagus nerves are our longest cranial nerves, weaving from our brainstem down through our throat, lungs, heart, and digestive tract. Because it touches so many systems, it influences digestion, mood, immunity, and much more. The function of the vagus nerve is referred to as the vagal tone, and scientists believe that a good vagal tone helps us recover from stress more easily, which results in feeling calmer, sleeping better, and digesting properly. There are many ways to improve your vagal tone - exercise, breathwork, meditation, laughing … and hooping!
When you are stressed, do you find yourself reaching towards your hoop? The slow, rhythmic movement of hooping can activate our parasympathetic nervous system. Twisting through the torso, flowing with breath, and tuning into your body’s rhythm all support nervous system regulation. Hooping is more than playful movement and sharing joy, it is also a tool for grounding, calming, and restoring balance.
Published by: Shae Nance
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Hoop Your Way to Calm: The Vagus Nerve Connection
