Breathe: The First Step to Calming Your Nervous System

Hello everyone, my name is Cecelia. I'm a licensed massage therapist and I've been practicing here in the valley in Mesa for over eight years. Throughout the years, I've been focusing my energy and my practice on a more holistic way of healing. I truly believe that the body is meant to heal itself, and I also believe that we all heal in a holistic way. There are many dimensions to healing. Here on this blog, I'll be talking about the different types of dimensions to healing. I'll be providing self-care tips, enlightenment, and ways to manage your pain and create a lifestyle out of it — because healing is a lifestyle. It's a way of living. It's not a magic pill that we take.

Today I want to talk about how our central nervous system can really affect how we feel. For instance, if we're in a state of heightened central nervous system, all of our senses are heightened and we can't truly relax. In today's society, we have deadlines. We have things that are thrown at us constantly on a daily basis that are causing us to be in a high-end state of mind. It's like a caveman-style life — our body doesn't know the difference between a dinosaur chasing us or a deadline. All it knows is: I need to survive.

So how do we soothe or sedate our central nervous system? One good way, other than obviously a massage, would be breathwork. When we're in a heightened state of mind, our breath becomes shallow. Breathing shallowly, in my opinion, is dangerous because we're not getting enough oxygen to our brain and all of our organs. If we can learn to take nice deep belly breaths and repeat affirmations in our mind — I am safe. I belong. I am worthy — we can begin the healing process.

What's one thing that you feel can help remind you to breathe?