3 Nervous System Practices You Might Be Already Doing

[@MJBRigby]

Thank you for this! I found orienting almost by accident, when I was strolling along the beach a few days into my vacation. I realized that for the first time in a long time I was truly relaxed. What a novel idea! When I heard of orienting a few months later, I realized why that was. .. lateral eye movements scanning the horizon, feeling my toes in the sand, and just being present with my breath. Definitely helpful with trauma recovery! Now I just try to create that “beach experience“ when I’m feeling disregulated.

[@bebaaskaful]

I can honestly say that I have so resistance to all talk therapies, Low od atraction, shifting thinking to positive, spiritual bypass, having toxic cnversation with unconceous people, explaiming that I have BPD, and that it is not my mind state and choice that Ive made by myself. Like I was born this way, because it doesnt resonate with true. When I was so owerwhelmed with PTSD symptoms, I found you and youre work. Youre a gift from God, and you did hard work to get in this place where you are now. I started two years ago doing SBSM. And doing one on one therapy with SE therapist. And omg, I look on my BPD symptoms totally different. It is caused by severe early developmental traumas. Like small T trauma. And I know that anyone who is in this kind of work will support my opinion. It is not easy, noone says it. But it is possible. And Ill keep going on. And thank you thank you from my whole heart♥️

[@rosi-complextraumayoga]

I really like what you said about bridging the uncomfortable feeling with the ressources. I experienced a long time that I tried every exercise I could find, but there was a gap. I could not bring it together into context. Your work helps me a lot in the field of traumasensitive yoga and makes it more complete. Thank you so much.

[@maryannribble3254]

Irene thank you for your clarity and sharing your experience so clearly! 😊❤

[@mandyvarel]

Funnily enough my favourite resourcing strategy nowadays is listening to Irene’s voice. No matter what she is talking, as her videos/audios start, my body automatically knows it’s time to start relaxing! I keep wondering if there’s such a thing as too much of Irene Lyon 😂 but I am not totally dependant. Have started (and actually preferring) doing orienting without the audios now 😄 I also loved the term “buzzing sensation” because that’s what I feel but was never able to articulate properly.

[@lynnnestor7985]

Thank you Irene. I was curious as to why I’ve got quite a strong desire to notice nature/beauty. What came up for me during your talk was the greater connection to the here + now I’m looking for. It’s now changed from unconscious to conscious. I love this work. I want to also mention that I’ve been daily practicing these elements you discussed as I’m noticing how powerful this is (say 6 months). I’ve controlled my breathing forever but know without a doubt that the body can calm the breathing. So I’ve reverted to your “listening” to the conscious breath (without trying to take over). Learning to trust the body + breath is a huge calming down of the survival stress for me. I know ALL forms of breathing BUT it was the CONTROL aspect that was a form of resistance for me (maybe not for everyone). This breath listening is after only 2 months of practice + I wake listening to the breath after grounding my body!

[@etienneviljoen6759]

Thank you, Irene. These simple practices work.

[@ElfieBrown-i6s]

Irene, I love the pace with which you speak. It's very soothing! And your explanations are so clear 😊

[@Deelitee]

Irene, have you discussed weighted blankets? I was given one this year and I’m surprised how much it impacts my nervous system. I feel like it flips a switch almost. Just curious if you have ( or if anyone here m) had any feedback or suggestions about how to best use/not use them. Bless you for this powerful work.🌿💗

[@elnerddeltrauma]

Hello there. I used this kind of blanket as a resource for grounding and it was very helpful. I still use sometimes something soft and heavy like a big pillow to hug. But i have seen other people share that weighted stuff causes even more anxiety. I think it depends on the moment that each individual organism is experiencing. Sometimes the blanket could work to calm down but sometimes we don't actually need to calm down but to explore the physiological impulse that "x" feeling is trying to bring to surface.

[@Deelitee]

@@elnerddeltrauma okay… I’m lol bc you totally kung fu’d me with that last paragraph!! I feel found out. 😎 I think I’ve been doing that a bit this past week. Lol. Obviously- I don’t get anxious with the blanket, it’s actually a bit like heaven! Only weirdness is the deep and bizarre dreams I get at times. I tell myself I’m regulating it all out of my body. 😊

[@IreneLyon]

t, Jen here from Team Lyon. Irene doesn't talk too much about weighted blankets and the like. In this work, we would view these as resources - something that may help to settle the nervous system and/or to help someone to be with what they are feeling. People respond differently to the blankets, some find them quiet calming and some have the opposite response. It sounds like the blankets help your system to access settling, so they may be a supportive resource for you. You really don't need to worry about calming too much unless you start to feel like nothing is happening/you're not noticing shifts as you explore this work.

[@dharavasishth]

thank you so much, Irene this really helped

[@jackcroydon2772]

I had an aha moment whilst watching this video so Thankyou very much x

[@michellemcdonnell5197]

Thankyou Irene for generously sharing your time and information on KZbin. I need to know why I am doing something and your educational videos and courses are a great resource. My nervous system regulation and capacity are progressing nicely. We respond well to your teachings. Thanks again. From Melbourne,Australia ❤

[@mandyvarel]

Hello @michellemcdonnell5197 stumbled across your comment here saying you are from Melbourne. I live in Melbourne too and I’ve been keen to reach out to some of local Irene’s students. Please let me know if you are up for these connections too!

[@Systemv1]

Wonderful. Thank you 🙂

[@Marykguise]

This is super helpful. Thank you!! 💗

[@shirleybly2806]

Great video and such helpful information. ❤

[@july713x3]

Thanks..

[@gonniethomassen5096]

❤️🙏

[@marc1391]

I have a hard time with the label resource. I understand orienting, I understand neuroception / tracking body sensations. The term resourcing is so broad and vague that it loses its meaning for me. Is this just anything we do to increase connection with the present and reduced activation?

[@IreneLyon]

marc, Jen here from Team Lyon. Yes, it sounds like you've got it. A resource is something that we turn to to help settle and soothe the nervous system. A resource may connect us with a sense of "goodness" and help to anchor us to the here and now. And yes, it will often help to lessen activation and/or support deactivation.

[@ElfieBrown-i6s]

I find it helpful to consider some possible categories that could be resources, e.g. favourite activity, person you feel safe with, piece of music or art, favourite place. I find that by bringing the thing/person to mind that has a very soothing effect on my nervous system, especially if I'm recalling the experience of the thing/person in an embodied way.

[@amenahossain3464]

I can’t find the video you mentioned. Could you please tell how can I watch swimming pool video part 3.

[@IreneLyon]

Amena Hossain, here's a link to Irene's 3 part Healing Trauma video training: irenelyon.com/healing-trauma It includes 3 videos, including an overview of the swimming pool and beach ball metaphor. Hope this helps! - Jen from Team Lyon

[@Ana-cb2wb]

❤

[@rachd4794]

I had a stressful incident yesterday and I had this big shaking in my body, mostly in my chest area. It went on for a few minutes and I let it pass. I’ve never shaken like that and for that long. I then realized that I have had those sensations in the chest when I’m having fun at a social event, but it lasts for a couple seconds. For context, I have been doing somatic type meditation (focusing on body sensations) for the last year and in the last week, I’ve started pendulating. Can you explain why I feel this sensation when I’m both happy and stressed? I imagine this is a good thing, right? Do I have to trigger these happy or stressed feelings in order to release this trauma/tension? I’ve been focusing on body sensations for a year and I felt like I was making progress but I kind of hit a plateau. Do you think pendulating is the missing piece? Thank you! And I appreciate how you answer all questions!😊

[@IreneLyon]

Hi Rach D, Seth here with Team Lyon. The Sympathetic Nervous System governs both excitement, and fight/flight, it's a degree to how much energy is going in there. It sounds like your chest is an area where either there has been something held, or it's just the place where you feel these energies express the most, and so when you get the Sympathetic energy moving this something wakes up and you feel that vibration - both when excited, happy, and then also when it's more stress-related, just more so, which makes sense. Yes, pendulation is key! It literally gets energy moving and can help move us out of stuck states, so this makes sense :)

[@stefk.1006]

Hi, about the following sensations part, what if it’s a bit more complicated and instead of emotions/usual sensations, you get images and sensations often that you don’t understand and scare you a bit, what do you do then? This started to come up as I started building capacity

[@IreneLyon]

Stek K., Jen here from Team Lyon. As you're finding, images an come up as we explore this work and grow capacity. Whenever what you're feeling feels like too much - feeling, sensation, image, etc. - you can turn your attention towards safety and/or towards a practice or resource that feels setting or soothing. I'll link to a few related resources of Irene's below. Working with your experience in what we call a "titrated" way can also be important. If you want to work with images, one aspect of this involves noticing what happens in your body as you notice (or start to think about) the image or images. For example, if fear comes up, you might invite curiosity to how it shows up in the body. Another aspect can involve working with what you see in the image. As if you're the director of a movie, you can follow your impulses to change what's happening in the images. To give you a few examples, if you see something scary, you might imagine yourself getting away. If you feel the impulse to have support, who or what would you like to have their with you? If you feel the impulse to fight, you might imagine yourself being as strong and powerful as you want to be. As you imagine this, you might invite curiosity to what's happening in your body and see what you notice/what might want to happen. DIY: Ancient Anxiety Medicine - kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZnqmpJWOiqh-o68&lc=UgzKvm65Pqe9xARznlN4AaABAg 4 Simple Steps to Calm Overwhelm - irenelyon.com/4-steps-to-calm-overwhelm/