We all hear about stress these days.  Yet, how each of us define and describe stress is as individualized as we are as humans. Stress can be defined as physical, mental, or emotional strain or tension.  I like this definition. Whether our stress is experienced as tension in our neck or back, brain fog creating fuzzy focus, or the anxiety, sadness, anger or despair we feel in tough times; the bottom line- stress affects all aspects of us. 

To understand stress, we must understand our nervous system.  Not understanding this powerful system can limit one's quality of life. Our stress response can control us, and we remain stuck, overwhelmed or uncertain as we go about our lives.  By respecting and regulating our nervous system, it becomes a great ally in dealing with anything that comes our way.  
 

We all have the same system, but how we access it and how healthy it is, depends somewhat on our history and reactions to stress and trauma. Because the stress response is automatic, we ebb and flow out of it daily to manage our stressors and to just get things done.  Left unchecked, the chronic use of our sympathetic nervous system (fight/flight) can lead to health issues in our physical, mental and emotional beings. 

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So, what do we do?  We stop the chronic use of the sympathetic and learn to down regulate our system into the parasympathetic (rest/digest) state. 

 

This is where the Nervous System Reboot comes in.  We are going to retrain the nervous system to respond in a healthy pattern. These nervous system “boot camps” uses somatic exercises to connect us back into our bodies and help us down regulate.  We are going for present moment awareness here, where we are not in the future and not bound by our past.  

 

This allows us to begin to reboot our nervous system.  Just like the I.T. person has us turn our computer off and back on to reset our operating system, we can start to reset our nervous system so it can function in a healthier way.  The boot camps (individual or group sessions) can allow one to have a sense of peace in a chaotic world.  Using the exercises learned, we gain ways to calm our nervous system when demands on it are high. 

 

We can also begin to access our natural tremor mechanism that can help us release deep held tension and reboot the system in a profound way.  Using care as we approach this innate healing power, we can also feel comfortable to allow ourselves to shake off the stresses of the day or of our past. 

 

Whichever approach is used, is based on where one starts in the process and how one is dealing with stress/trauma currently. We will work together to find what exercises are needed to achieve your goal of a healthy nervous system and stress release.