Part II: How our nervous system interacts in our daily life.

Both systems are in play throughout the day. When we need a boost because of a threat, or some extra energy for an activity, like playing a sport or lifting weights, the side of our nervous system that calls our body and its systems to action comes online and gives the extra energy we need to accomplish the task at hand. In the latter case of a physical activity, it is a muted response more in line with the needs of the activity. When the activity is over, or the threat has been eliminated, the other system is dominant. This helps us recover from the stress of the event. When we’re doing a physical activity, such as lifting weights, getting back into more of this state helps us recover between sets and lifting sessions. Increasing our performance during the activity and helping us adapt to a higher level of performance between sessions. 

One of the challenges in our culture is that we tend to spend more time in the part of our nervous system that is designed for protection and survival than rest and recovery. With the increased interpersonal conflicts, changing environmental and economic situations and the resultant fear we tend to perceive there are threats to our survival that as immediate when they are not. On a certain level they may affect our future, at the moment they aren’t a threat to our health and survival. This is exacerbated by our consumption of electronic media that promotes the divisiveness that spurs interpersonal conflict and heightens fear of the future. When we were cave people, we had to be in the more energetic side of our nervous system to hunt our food or protect ourselves from predators or other threats. When those situations were over, we went back into the rest and recovery side of our nervous system. Which was also a part of our survival process. If we were injured or worn out and didn’t recover, we wouldn’t be able to survive the circumstances we faced.  

In our current circumstances the threats don’t seem to be resolved so we stay in this heightened state that leads to the deterioration of our body, mind and emotional state. 

One of the goals of this report is to give you strategies and activities to help you return to the state of our nervous system that promotes a healthier body, mind and spirit.