In continuation of my last few blog posts, I wanted to mention one easy & effective way to relieve stress and anxiety. Instead of taking a prescription drug, try a safe and effective remedy for stress that is backed by thousands of years of scientific evidence: stimulating something called the vagus nerve.

The vagus nerve originates from the brain stem and it travels all the way down into the belly, spreading fibers to the tongue, pharynx, vocal cords, lungs, heart, stomach, intestines. It also connects to glands that produce anti-stress enzymes and hormones like Acetylcholine, Prolactin, Vasopressin, Oxytocin. These hormones influence digestion, metabolism, and naturally, the relaxation response.

The vagus nerve is the most important element of the parasympathetic nervous system. It’s the one that calms you down by reducing your heart rate, blood pressure, and controlling your relaxation response. It counteracts your sympathetic nervous system, the one that causes stress by activating your fight-or-flight response.

So how can you stimulate your vagus nerve? By deep belly breathing.

Start by taking a deep inhalation into your belly, expanding your diaphragm, while counting to five. Then very slowly exhale while puckering your lips. To get into a vagus-nerve stimulation mode, try reducing the number of breaths from the usual 10-14 per minute to 5-7 per minute.

Studies have shown that practicing 10 minutes a day of deep breathing is enough for you to notice you’re relaxing. The key is diligence! Without forcing it, gradually work on reducing the number of breaths per minute. The whole point is feeling relaxed!

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