Insights from a presentation by Dr. Angie Salvato, PhD
We live in an era of unprecedented stress. Our nervous systems, designed to handle occasional threats, are now constantly bombarded with information and stimulation.
Dr. Angie Salvato is a clinician at the Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic at Alaska Behavioral Health. She believes that understanding how our nervous system works—and learning practical ways to regulate it – has never been more important.
Understanding Your Nervous System
Our autonomic nervous system operates largely on autopilot through two main branches. The parasympathetic nerves handle all the automatic functions that keep us healthy and balanced. The sympathetic nerves activate our fight-or-flight response.
Sometimes we know when our parasympathetic system is in a stressed state, and sometimes we may not realize it. Dilated pupils, rapid heartrate, and shallow breathing are signs that we are.
The HPA Axis: Your Body’s Stress Command Center
At the heart of our stress response is the HPA axis—the communication pathway between the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and adrenals. This system is essential for stress management, so when it gets out of whack, we feel it.
HPA axis dysfunction has some genetic components, but it’s really about the interplay between our daily stress and our genetics. It can result in excess cortisol production and a decreased ability to handle stress effectively. Trauma also plays a significant role.
Symptoms of a dysfunctional HPA axis include feeling tired even after a full night’s sleep, impaired memory, brain fog, and physical symptoms like IBS, joint pain, general aches, and sensitivity to pain. You might tire easily or notice low libido. As Salvato puts it, “You know you, you might be able to tell that things just aren’t working like they used to.”
Salvato says there are two approaches to handling a stressed nervous system: trying to decrease the amount of stress we’re experiencing and learning to manage the symptoms. She says we need both.
Reducing Unhealthy Stress
Limiting Stress
It can be tough to limit stress, with work, family and societal expectations. But Salvato says there is one way to significantly reduce it, though it isn’t popular. “We have never been as traumatized or consumed as much trauma and stress in the past as we do now from our phones. Instant access to trauma for the entire world is a lot of stress for our bodies.”
Her recommendation? “Try to limit that media and social media consumption. You are experts on yourselves. Maybe put aside a certain time of day to allow yourself to access these media. Realize the amount of stress put on our bodies by consuming it all day, every day.”
Choosing Your Stress Wisely
Not all stress is bad—working out is stressful for our bodies, but beneficial overall. The key is picking rewarding stress over empty stress and being intentional about what we expose ourselves to.
Salvato recommends several mindset shifts that may reduce your stress:
Look for the good. Though we’re hardwired to look for threats and problems, we can consciously redirect our attention to what is going well, or positive stories around us.
Give praise. Tell someone what a good job they are doing or share a positive google review. This produces oxytocin, the bonding hormone, even more than receiving praise does. [Similar to how giving the perfect gift can be more rewarding than receiving a gift.]
Practice downward social comparison. While we naturally do upward comparison (especially on social media), intentionally recognizing how fortunate we are can shift our perspective. Volunteering in your community can help with this mind shift.
Healing the Symptoms of Stress
No matter how we try to limit unhealthy stress, we’re all going to experience it sometimes. Learning some techniques to reduce your body’s sympathetic nervous system reactions can help you manage stress and return your body to its parasympathetic functions – the “rest and digest” phase we want our nervous systems to spend most of their time in.
The Vagus Nerve: Your Body’s Relaxation Superhighway
The vagus nerve runs from your brainstem down through your body and contains 75% of your nervous system fibers. Here’s the fascinating part: 80% of the communication flows from body to brain. As Salvato explains, “Our bodies tell our brains how we’re doing. So you can do things to help your body and that helps your brain relax.“
Vagus nerve stimulator devices are being developed, and in some cases, may be covered by insurance. But there are also lots of techniques that can help:
- Singing, humming
- Exercise
- Laughing, Talking
- Yoga, Meditation
- Deep breathing (breath out longer than you breathe in—this sends a safety message to your brain)
- Gargling
- Cold exposure (dampens the fight-or-flight response)
Try Voo Breathing
One of Salvato’s favorite techniques is simple: Take a deep breath in, then breathe out while saying “vooo” or humming all the way until you run out of breath. As she puts it, you’re telling your brain, “ok, I’m good, my body is safe.” Do it in the car, in the shower—make it a habit.
Movement Matters
Salvato recommends “exercise snack breaks”—just 1-2 minutes of intense exercise every 1-2 hours. Run in place, take the stairs, do wall sits or body squats. These quick bursts help discharge stress and reset your system.
She also recommends finding a yoga practice you enjoy, whether an in-person class or a YouTube video series (Salvato likes Boho Beautiful).
Shifting thinking
Salvato appreciates the work of Dr. Rick Hanson, author of Hardwiring Happiness, who has helped bring awareness to our brain’s tendency to fixate on the negative. Hanson and others teach methods to instead focus on the positive. One such model follows the acronym HEAL:
- Have it – Notice a positive experience or recall a recent happy memory
- Enrich it – Stay with that positive feeling for an extra 10-20 seconds, notice the details, make it more real, name it as a positive feeling
- Absorb it – Let the positive feeling sink in, become a core memory
- Link it (optional) – Connect that positive feeling to a negative thought or event, bringing focus back to the positive and letting it override the negative
Meditation Apps like the Healthy Minds app can also be helpful.
The Bottom Line: Practice
With so many tools available, it all comes down to practice. Decrease stress where you can, practice these techniques regularly, and remember: “We’re not meant to absorb the stress of 8 billion people.”
If you’re struggling, teaming up with a buddy to practice may help. Professional therapists can guide you through reframing thought patterns. The Steven A. Cohen Clinic works with military and veteran families; Alaska Behavioral Health serves Alaskans of all ages at clinics in Fairbanks, Wasilla and Anchorage and statewide via telehealth.
Your nervous system is working hard to keep you safe. By learning to work with it—through breath, movement, mindfulness, and intentional stress management—you can find your way back to calm, even in our chaotic world.
Information in this post and our website is provided for informational/educational purposes only, is not a substitute for professional healthcare, and does not establish any kind of patient-client relationship by your use of this site. In providing this content, including treatment resources, we are in no way representing or warranting that this information is appropriate or effective for your individual needs. If you are struggling with mental or physical health, please contact a qualified healthcare professional or reach out to the national mental health hotline at 988.
