| p>Your body wants you to stop panicking. When | | | | ten minute breaks to focus your breath and invite |
| you push the panic button, you also push the | | | | it deeper into your body. The breathing |
| adrenaline (and other stress hormones) button. | | | | technique creates a relaxation response in your |
| Your sympathetic nervous system is activated, | | | | body by activating the parasympathetic nervous |
| which is what surges your body into fight-or-flight | | | | system and immediately pulling you out of your |
| mode. If you are continually feeling fear and | | | | fight-or-flight overdrive. Moving into this healing |
| panic, you are continually running your | | | | state and evoking the relaxation response several |
| sympathetic nervous system, which I compare to | | | | times a day will only help both your emotional |
| running the heat in your home on hot summer | | | | state and your physiological healing. |
| days. Not only does your electric bill go up, but | | | | Do you see the genius of your body/emotion |
| you suffer discomfort. Your body is not | | | | connection? Your emotions serve beautifully as |
| comfortable continually using the sympathetic | | | | messages to you - little reminders to pay |
| nervous system, and it will let you know via | | | | attention. Fear and panic are your internal |
| increased pain. You won't feel well, and you | | | | sticky-notes reminding you to return to a |
| won't heal. You will be expending useless energy | | | | relaxation response. The more you listen to |
| (electric bill up) that could be focused toward | | | | these emotions rather than focusing on them and |
| healing. | | | | return to your healing state, the better you will |
| The parasympathetic nervous system is in charge | | | | feel emotionally and physically. Soon, you will be |
| of your relaxation and is the part of the | | | | spending more time in a healing state than in a |
| autonomic nervous system you want to access. | | | | fight-or-flight response. This will feel about ten |
| The more you can power down from your fear | | | | million times better to you, even with your |
| and panic state into a calm, restful state, the | | | | symptoms still present. Your symptoms will not |
| more you can access your body's own ability to | | | | be as strong, and your emotions will not be as |
| heal. This is the second reason to take those | | | | intense. |