Get Your OM On!
Just another WordPress.com weblogArchive for parasympathetic nervous system
Balasana Benefits: Chillin’ Out in Child’s Pose
Simple forward bends as Balasana are among the most effective ways for closing the body down. Allowing the spine to decompress and the sacrum to rest, we soothe the body by bending in half. Such postures tell our parasympathetic nervous system to kick in to rest and repair our body. To read more about child’s pose, please visit the Innerspace Yoga Virtual studio by clicking here.
Regarding the Question: “how do you get the parasympathetic nervous system to kick in”
I noticed a reader had searched the question, “How do you get the parasympathetic nervous system to kick in?” My answer, of course, is do more yoga! Here are some things you can do if you’re trying to activate your parasympathetic nervous system:
1. First, and foremost, become aware of your breathing. You must breathe through your nose. Nasal breathing cools the breath, filters and moisturizes the air before it hits your lungs. It forces you to breathe more slowly, deeply and evenly than you would if you were panting out of your mouth. When we breathe rapidly, shallowly, in the uppermost chest and through the mouth, our bodies shift into “fight or flight mode.” Our nervous system thinks it needs the strength to outrun a tiger.
2. Once you have control of your breath, you’ll pretty much be good to go. Whether this takes 10 seconds, ten minutes or an hour will of course, depend upon your individual circumstances.
3. Remember your yoga. You’ve practiced how to relax your body on the mat, so you have plenty of experience with the process. If it’s possible to get yourself to a quiet space, you should practice such simple inversions as are appropriate for you. Just lay down on your back and do some simple twists and curl up into a ball. Move into restorative postures like Child’s Pose or Savasana.
4. Work with practices like Yoga Nidra to increase your own awareness and self-controlling, and self-soothing skills.
Hope this helps! Namaste!
What is OM?
Sooner or later in your experience with yoga, you will see or hear OM, which is essentially the universal vibration, a sacred syllable said to permeate everyone and everything. The sound of OM is so important to Hindus and Buddhists that many mantras begin and/or end with the syllable.
Sometimes, you might see OM written as AUM, which is a more phonetic spelling because the syllable is actually three audible parts: A-U-M.
One need not be Hindu, Buddhist, or any permutation thereof in order to realize the benefits of chanting the sound of OM because in and of itself, OM is not a “religious” word. In fact, it’s useful if a person doesn’t have any preconceived notions about the etymology of the sound. Here in Indiana, OM isn’t a usual part of speech, so if one were to choose it as a personal mantra, repeating it wouldn’t trigger thoughts as words in English might.
I present yoga as the art and science of self-regulation. Therefore, I won’t ramble on about my personal metaphysical experiences with mantra practice. I won’t even go into the bliss and the insight gained through chanting the mantra OM.
What I will say is that chanting helps to induce a peaceful, calm state because it involves breath work (pranayama) and vibration in the body. By chanting, or singing or whatever you want to do, you have to focus on the mechanics of the exhalation.
As you control the speed and depth of your exhalation, you elongate the breath going out. As your vocal cords vibrate and you exhale as you sing/say/chant “OM,” you stimulate the Vagus Nerve in a way which signals the Parasympathetic nervous system to kick on. In other words, the stress response is turned off and the body is able to relax, heal and metabolize.
Want to learn more about expanding your yoga practice by learning more Sanskrit? Check out Colleen Saidman’s blog entry. If you want to hear the sound of OM, click here.
