Breaking the Stress Cycle After a Traumatic Experience

Ideally, after the threat of danger from a stressful experience has ended, our body stops reacting to the stress signals and returns to a healthy state of homeostasis, where we are able to breathe easily, think clearly, sleep deeply and function normally in our daily lives. We can effectively relax back into a sense of safety and allow our bodies to heal from the depletion the stress caused.

Sometimes, however, our body can’t remember how to do this and it becomes tricky to find your way out of “Fight or Flight” mode.  This happens especially if the highly stressful event was extremely traumatic or if the stress lasted so long that ‘survival mode’ became a familiar and ‘normal’ state of being.  In this case, our bodies and minds need help to break the stress cycle and re-learn what it feels like to recognize safety and a healthy level of baseline-relaxation. In this case, we need to actively choose relaxation.

So, here are 3 helpful, easy-to-do tips and tools to re-discover your calm, relaxation ‘Rest and Digest’ response again…

1. “Legs Up On Wall”

This relaxed, inverted yoga pose is extremely effective (and remarkably fast-acting!) to switch off stress mode and turn on relaxation response.  

It’s completely free, highly accessible and only takes about 5 minutes – all you need is a little bit of floor space next to a wall you can lean on; a pillow or folded blankets are a bonus.

((Click on title of email to watch the video to see the general idea of it.))

I like to use a folded blanket and/or pillow to elevate my hips and give my spine some extra relief while in this position.  

It’s a little awkward to scoot my bum close to the wall, but starting out sitting close to the wall before laying down helps get there easier.

Once in position, just rest and let your breathing start to deepen naturally.  

I like to tuck my chin slightly and slowly turn my head side-to-side, like I’m enjoying looking at the horizon, which signals to the primal part of my brain that I’m safe (not running from a bear).  This helps my diaphragm start to relax.  Combined with the tractioning elevation from the folded blankets easing the tension out of my mid and lower back, hips, and back of my diaphragm, the physical tension that squeezes on the area of my Adrenal glands that produce stress hormones, starts to ease – further signaling to my body and brain that the stress is over and it’s time to rest now.  

In just 2 minutes or less in this pose, I’m able to catch a truly deep breath and I can feel my body turn the corner on resetting my stress level – Every. Time.  

Stay in this pose for as long as you like – or as long as you feel circulation in your legs…. Then just bend your legs, roll to your side and sit up – taking your time to let your flow of circulation normalize again to an upright position.

I highly recommend this pose anytime you want to practice calming your nervous system – and especially anytime you are struggling to find that sense of safety and calm within yourself.  It’s great in the evening when you are trying to wind down for a good night of sleep.  It’s also great if you wake up stressed and just want to start the morning over again with a calmer outlook for the day.

2. Warm-Wrapping the Adrenal Glands

A cozy adrenal-soother I learned years ago from a former massage instructor, is to warm up a long, narrow bean bag and place it across your back at the level of your lower ribs. The warmth helps relax the tight muscles and fascia around the adrenal glands, signaling to those glands to take a break and stop excreting stress hormones.  It’s a nice relaxing body treat, especially just before bed/sleep.

3. Breathing

Of course, I can’t talk about calming the Nervous System without mentioning Breathing.

#3’s effective tool to turn the corner on stress is Breathing Exercises. (There are many to try, so don’t stop here. Books: “breathwork”; “Self-Healing with breathwork”; “Breathe” )

Try this one:  set your timer for 3 minutes.  While sitting or lying down with your spine straight and supported, breathe into your belly and lower back.  Inhale as full and deep as you comfortably can, letting the expansion of your inhale be aimed mainly into the area of your belly and lower back. 

Feel the way your hips and spine move, stretch and rock with each breath.  The key to really activating your relaxation response is to make your exhale just as important as your inhale by slowing and extending it as long as you comfortably can.  Exhale all your air and pause for a beat before beginning the next inhale again.  That’s all.  Keep going for 3 minutes, increasing the length of your inhale and exhale gradually as you go. Just breathe and feel your body’s response to it.  You might love it – it is quite relaxing after all. 🙂 If you want to go longer, reset your timer. 

 It’s also a great tool to help with falling asleep at night.

Why bother training your Nervous System to recognize and return back to a state safety and relaxation?  

It’s about far more than just feeling good.  It’s all about balance, which we need in order to live long, healthy lives.  The relaxation state is where your body can heal and balance out the effects of stress – so you can continue moving forward, thriving in life. 

The adrenaline of “Fight or Flight” can be addictive – after all, when you are pumped up on those emergency hormones, it feels like nothing can stop you – you become hyper-focused and hyper-effective at going after the task at hand, at least in the short term.  That’s what this body response is designed for, surviving short-term emergency situations effectively.  ‘Fight or Flight’ survival mode minimizes any body function that is not needed to save your life from immediate danger (real or imagined).  But if it’s not reversed, in the long term, it will damage your wellbeing and health as it depletes all of your internal resources. 

In stressed mode (chronic effects)… digestion slows down (so less nutrients available to heal damaged tissues or keep you healthy and energized);  Lymphatic system slows (so inflammation, lactic acid, and germs don’t get cleared out of your body efficiently – leading to lowered immune function, increased pain and risk of injury); healing from injuries is postponed; clear, broad, creative problem-solving thinking narrows and impulsive short-term decision-making takes over (effective for survival short-term, but not effective for planning and working towards a long, successful life.); blood pressure rises; vision narrows and eyes are stressed; a variety of negative mood changes can occur…  The list of negative health effects from chronic stress is long.  Keep going in this state and you can to see how your body and your health start to break down – shortening life and lowering quality of life…

When ‘Rest and Digest’ relaxation mode is found again – and returned to, again and again until it becomes the healthy normal state-of-being, all of these items are reversed.  The damage from stress mode can begin to heal and tissue repair can begin to take place again – building you back up to be able to handle the next emergency stress mode that comes along.  And creating a familiarity within your system that can help you return you to this healthier, balanced state more easily again once the stress emergency is over.

Pausing to add these helpful tools into your life regularly can help re-establish a baseline of calm, healthy functioning to live life in. This baseline can help keep you healthy and restored from the damage of stress – giving you reserves to fuel the power of fight or flight response for future emergencies when you’ll need them again.