Course about the Vagus Nerve

[Hope67]

Hi everyone,

This is especially for Persistant, as I tried to reply to your comment to me in the thread I started about the Vagus Nerve conference - and I really wanted to let you know that I did manage to take some notes, and I hope to write some of them in the next couple of days, if I can.

But for some reason I can't get access to that original thread, and don't know why that is.

Anyway, I will hope to put some notes here when I can.

Apologies that I didn't reply earlier.

Hope 

[Hope67]

Hi again,
The Conference online that I attended was organised by Dr Peter Kan and took place in August 2023.  I must admit that I ended up not being able to attend much of it.  But I did take some notes, and wanted to share them here.  (Apologies again to Persistant, as I meant to reply to the other thread, but somehow can't access it!)

I think a main point made by Dr Peter Kan was that "stimulating the vagus nerve may not work if other underlying root factors aren't addressed."  He did a presentation showing the other factors - a neuro metabolic road-map and spoke about applying things in a sequential manner.

Notes taken on 12.08.23 "Vagus Nerve's Role in Immunity and Inflammation."
The vagus nerve can become dysfunctional - brain, gut, immunity - any area can affect the vagus nerve.
Vagus nerve difficulties can be caused by: Blood sugar problems, fuel delivery problems, oxygenation problems (anaemia, poor circulation, low blood pressure).

They spoke of how trauma can affect it, both physically and emotionally.  Stress.  Current trauma.

Viruses can b egood at crawling up nerves - herpe virus, parasites, candida overgrowth, toxins, drugs.

Infections (bacterial and viral)

Antibiotics can disrupt gut microbiome.  Antacids can also do this.
If antibiotics used at a young age -= disruptive.  Especially if given in first 6 months of life.

Gut microbiome needs to be healthy.
Some people have leaky gut.

Notes taken on 11th August 2023 on a talk by Jason Prall entitled "Circadium Rhythm and Vagus Nerve"
Good vagal tone = important.
Sympathetic overdrive leads to freeze and shut-down.
System running too hot.
Unable to get through the stress leads to shut-down (dorsal vagal)

Dorsal-vagal to sympathetic and back to ventral.  Can't just re-wind.
Stuck patterns.

Stimulate ventral vagal tone.
Think 'why'
Test for vagal function.
Heart rate variability (HRV) - check this.  High = good vagal tone.  Low = stuck/weak vagal tone.

(I wanted to ask what constitutes a high Heart rate variability and what is a low one in terms of numbers).

Gargling
Ah - arches rise in palate
Listen for gurgling after eating
Gagging reflex
singing

All the above listed things helpful to indicate vagal function.

Chronic stress can affect it.
The energy blueprint.com is the website Jason Prall has.

Notes taken on 11th August 2023
Talk by Ari Whitten - Vagus Nerve & Stress Resiliency

(I found Ari's talk to be very hopeful - useful)

Resilience - capacity to handle stressors and bounce back into homeostatis.

Replace the word 'stress' with the word 'challenge'

Intelligent, adaptive systems
Adapt to stressor and adapt.
If stressors aren't there, it atrophies.

Keeping moving.
Weight bearing movements.
Strengthening.

Cognitive challenges.

Exercise spikes free radicals.
Stress adaptation within cells.
Internal anti-oxidant system.

Autonomic nervous system and vagus nerve.

Chronic stress = bad.
Anything chronic is.

Moderate exercise - extended life.
No exercise - early death
Lots of exercise - early death

Trauma - beyond your capabilities to handle.

Nothing uniquely harmful about being in acute stress.

"There are no master sailors who have only sailed on calm seas"

Train in the stressors.
Exercise.
Endurance exercise.
High intensity interval training.
Weight training.
Sauna
Cold
Physical uncomfortable things
Acupressure
Hypoxia - breath holding practices
Cognitively demanding things.

Training them systematically.
Growing resilience.
Mitochondria.

Learning to dissociate the physiological response from the situation stressor.

Learn how to be calm mentally whilst in a state of physiological stress.

Mental re-frames
Systematic training.
Train mind to dissociate.
Train mind sets - stress = natural and helpful response to challenges.

Mobilising resources.
Neuro-plasticity.

Chronic stress = harmful.
Intermittent acute stress = helpful.

"I don't have problems, I have puzzles."
"How do I figure this one out?"

Engage resources to solve something.

"Don't fear stress"

Train your identity towards resilience.

I can get through it and grow stronger from it.

Walk through life more relaxed.
How to know when it's too much?
Goldilock's principle 'just right'.

**********

I realise those notes might not necessarily make sense - but I hope some of it does, and is helpful.  There were many more sessions, but I literally wasn't able to keep up and attend more than the ones I wrote about above.

Hope 

p.s.  I have been trying to stimulate my vagus nerve for several months now, and I have noticed an improvement in my heart rate variability - it used to be in the 20's and now it's in the high 30's and occasionally 40's - but I wonder what other people's heart rate variability is - I suspect it can be much higher...!  I'd like to get mine higher.