About your Nervous System and Stress

A well-balanced nervous system is at the very core of psychological and physical well-being as well as  performance. If the default position of your Autonomic Nervous System is to over or under react physiologically and biochemically because of chronic stress or past trauma, you do not need to to have a diagnosable mental or physical illness for it to undermine your well-being or your ability to function at your best. You may not identify easily as being beseiged by the biological response of stress but when your nervous system is dysregulated even normal day-to-day activities such as running late or hearing the news sets off can set off the flight-flight or freeze response in the brain and body. We have a Basic Rest Activity Cycle (Rossi) where for every 90 minutes or so of working we then need 20 minutes of physiological rest. Without the skills to keep your nervous system in healthy balance you can keep on going until there reaches a point where the imbalance becomes chronic. This Stress Creep© puts a heavy load on your organs, weakens your immune system, kills brain cells and can even inhibit the release of pleasure chemicals which can lead to a loss of confidence and motivation and even feelings of sadness. It can cause fatigue, memory problems as well as  lead to disease states such as cardio-vascular disease, stroke and cancer. With Autogenic Therapy and Training you learn how to self-direct your Autonomic Nervous System and develop a healthy balance between the Sympathetic Nervous System which generates a physiologically hyper-aroused state to mobilise us to action and the rest and repair mode of the Parasympathetic Nervous System where we also feel safe, secure and connected at will. With Autogenic self-practice you don’t need the 20 minutes of rest at the end of each working cycle. In 5 minutes you can completely refresh yourself so that you can begin the next 90 minute working cycle with renewed energy and focus.