Lorri Angell, LPC-Associate, EMDR Trained, ADS
Supervised by Cristy Ragland, LPC-S, LMFT-S, RPT-S, EMDR certified
Simple Tools to Calm Your Nervous System: Part 3 of 3
Welcome to part three of this blog series. Thank you for taking the time to learn about tools to calm your nervous system. Maintaining a calm nervous system helps support our mental, physical and relational health. For part one of this blog series, which discusses physical and relational warning signs to increase awareness of the need to calm ourselves, how to belly breathe, as well as micromovements helpful for self-regulation, click HERE. For part two, which discusses embodied gratitude, click HERE. This final post covers some benefits of time with nature, basing our daily rhythms around natural light and practicing visualizations.
Nature time & optimizing your circadian rhythm
Being surrounded by the beauty of nature tends to calm our nervous systems, whether it’s walking on a trail, listening to the birds sing or watching the sunset. Trees release chemicals that are good for us, so it’s beneficial to spend time walking by them, sitting under them and even hugging them! Standing barefoot on the earth’s natural surface (dirt, grass, rocks, clover, sand, etc) also has many documented health benefits. Start with just a few minutes a day. Being near moving water offers the calming benefits of negative ions (ocean waves, waterfalls, rivers, and rain!) Hopefully there are nearby parks or trails where you can go and experience the calming effects of natural beauty. Whenever possible, unplug and be fully present with the nature surrounding you, engaging your senses (noticing what you see, feel, hear and smell). In addition to spending time daily in nature, syncing our bodies to the light of our natural surroundings has many proven benefits to our mental health. Below are simple tips to maintain a healthy circadian rhythm.
Morning light
The way we start our day sets the tone for the rest of the day, in part because our brains are more neuroplastic that first hour. Each morning, before looking at your phone or any screen with blue light, look at the sky (ideally with bare feet on the earth). Even 1-3 minutes can be helpful. Increase the length of time gradually, in a way that feels doable for you, aiming for 10 – 15 minutes each morning.
This is where habit stacking can be helpful. For example, most mornings, I walk barefoot slowly on the earth while looking at the sky and the trees around me, noticing the sounds of the birds and insects, box breathing, rubbing circles under my collarbones, setting my intentions for the day and inviting Divine Love to guide me (usually ending it with some spinal twists!) Experiment with habit stacking using any combination of tools from these three posts (and other sources) that feel right for you. Practicing our spiritual and/or self-care rhythms to ground ourselves each morning before looking at screens can be a challenging habit to cultivate; however, our mental health is worth it and we get a fresh start every day!
Natural light, Sunset and Dark
Adjust the settings on your devices to reduce blue light as much as possible as it can have negative effects on the eyes and brain. If you work indoors, try to get 10-20 minutes of natural daylight throughout the day. In the evening, it is beneficial to see the sky around sunset as the contrast of the warm and cool colors is especially good for our brains. Taking a sunset walk is a calming way to end the busy part of the day and to let our brains know it is time to start settling down.
After sunset, try to limit screens to reduce exposure to blue light before bed. If possible, use the blue light blocking features in your device settings. Most smart phones have functions that will limit access to social media and other apps. Set your alarm as a reminder to send final messages and turn off your devices ideally one hour before your bedtime. During the last hour of the day (maybe starting with 5-15 minutes slowly building up) engage in calming exercises like taking a warm bath, stretching, reading, listening to soothing music, journaling your lessons learned, and gratitudes from the day, etc. Let your loved ones know that you won’t be on your phone after whatever time you decide on so that they can be aware of (and hopefully be supportive of) your new rhythm. Make your room as dark as possible to increase your body’s natural production of melatonin for a restful sleep. (If you like to use apps on your phone, “Circadian” gives more guidance on optimizing your mental health through daily rhythms.)
Visualizations
Visualizations can be a powerful way to calm our minds, emotions and body. Below are two visualizations taught by the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing International Association (EMDRIA). These are useful not only in preparation for reprocessing traumatic events in therapy, but also throughout the day as needed and when winding down in the evenings.
Before each of these, take a few deep and slow belly breaths to get settled. Become aware of your body making contact with the surfaces supporting you, noticing any sensations in your body. Breathe into any areas of tension, inviting calm into them.
“Container”
Close your eyes (or use a soft gaze if that feels safer) and imagine a strong and secure container made of whatever material you want that is capable of holding anything disturbing from your day. Then imagine the lid with a secure seal and strong lock. Next, decide where you want to store this container that feels safe and secure. Clients have put it on a mountain top, under an island or in their backyard. It could be anywhere that feels good to you.
Once you decide on what your container is made of and where it is stored, you are going to create a new neural pathway by walking very slowly or slowly tapping on top of your knees, alternating left and right and practicing this visualization. While you are walking or tapping slowly, imagine any upsetting thoughts, memories, images, sensations, worries leaving your body and going into your container and being stored in the place you choose.
After you create and install this resource called “container”, bring your attention back to the present moment, taking some deep and slow breaths, noticing how your body feels. People often feel lighter after this exercise. Know that anything in your container can be processed later when you choose to take it out, only when you are ready.
The more you practice your container visualization, the more it deepens that neural pathway that you created, and the more effective it will be. The slow bilateral stimulation is only needed the first time to create it. For future, you can simply imagine it. I recommend using it when upsetting images, sensations, information, feelings and worries are causing a stress response, are distracting you from your main priorities during the day and also as a calming part of your bedtime routine.
“Safe Calm place”
Close your eyes and imagine a place that feels totally safe and calm for you – where you have complete control. It can be a real place you’ve been to, want to go to, an imagined place or a combination. Picture several things that you’d like to see around you (mountains, ocean, trees, sunset, lightning or stars). What would you like see near you and off in the distance? What would your body be doing in this place? Are you walking, running, lying down, floating? What sounds would you like to hear around you (waves crashing, trees blowing or music playing). Imagine what you want to smell in this place around you (flowers, salty beach air or pine trees). What would you feel on your skin (a soft blanket, warm sun, cool breeze, or squishy moss under your feet, etc). Imagine what you would want to taste in this place (hot cocoa, coconut water or your favorite food). The more senses you can involve, the more effective it can be. If there’s anything disturbing, change it to make it feel as safe as possible.
After you create this place, with everything exactly the way you want, imagine being there while walking very slowly or tapping the tops of your knees very slowly, alternating left and right. The slow bilateral stimulation helps create the new neural pathway of your unique “safe calm place.” Afterwards, notice how you feel emotionally and any body sensations. Usually people feel more peaceful after going to their “safe calm place”, but it can take practice. Body sensations could include warmth in the chest or lightness in the shoulders or any other signs of relaxation. Every time that you go to this place in your imagination, and enter in with all your senses, the stronger the neural pathway will be.
This would be a great visualization to practice during the day when you notice your stress levels are increasing, to ground before an anxiety provoking experience and also before bedti
Final thoughts:
There are numerous tools and techniques that can empower you to calm your nervous system daily to support your mental, physical and relational health. Some of the areas covered in this blog series include:
- Warning signs to increase awareness, belly breathing and micro movements (that stimulate the vagus nerve)
- Embodied gratitude
- Time in nature, syncing your circadian rhythm to the natural environment and practicing visualizations
I hope you received some helpful reminders, found some new things to try and/or are inspired to explore other options to find what works best for your unique personality and lifestyle. Remember that consistency is key and to habit stack in creative ways that feel good to you!
While these self-regulating tools (and many more can be found online) are supportive to your mental, physical and relational health, they are not a substitute for professional support. The more trauma, or unprocessed pain we have, the more triggers of stress responses there tend to be. There are many wonderful mental health professionals in Austin, Texas who are equipped to do this, including at my practice, Compassion Counseling Group. Our bios and rates are listed at: https://compassioncounselinggroup.com. Two of my favorite healing modalities are EMDR and Walk and Talk therapy. If you’d like to set up a free discovery call to discuss your needs and explore our potential fit, please call or text me at 512-774-4932 or email me at l.angellcounseling@gmail.com
References:
Shapiro, F. (2017). Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy: Basic principles, protocols, and procedures (3rd ed.). Guilford Press