47 Ways to Calm the Nervous System

If your nervous system is like 90% of people I meet, you may be too much or too often in fight or flight and could benefit from regulation. Regulation means we can recover from stress and balance the ups and downs. Our society throws a ton of crap at us daily, so, it's hard to stay in equilibrium. Dysregulation means we're too anxious, too jumpy, too on edge... or that we've suffered long enough that our mind-body is shutting down and we're frozen or cut-off. 

Here are SIGNS you're dysregulated, and reasons why.

Here's one of many videos on HEALING from dysregulation.

If you've tried some methods but still struggle, I wonder if you might want to check out:

47 Practices to Heal a Dysregulated Nervous System

*Note that forest bathing, nature meditations, EFT, and other breathing techniques I teach are in this list! 

What happens when we CAN regulate and relax after a spike of hyper-arousal???

AMAZING things!!!

You might guess I come from a "get 'er done" family. I was raised to accomplish tasks. It's useful. Dishes need washing; doctor's appointments need scheduling. And, sometimes the frustration of not accomplishing a task gets in the way of joy. It prevents a new, lovely experience from arising. It can short-circuit presence, the ability to tune into the reality- and beauty- of the actual situation at hand.

I often get caught up in frustration-

Why isn't it working?

I wish I had done x-y-z instead!!

Can't we just fix it now?

These are common mindsets I get sucked into.  However,

nature has taught me that slow is delicious. 

Thwarted projects can turn into better outcomes. A tree stump forced to grow around a gorgeous rock suddenly becomes a nook of love for a toddler.  When something goes wrong,

I can recognize my caught-breath and let it flow again,

and recognize negative thoughts creeping from the back of my skull (hi, amygdala) toward the front,andI can stay present by looking at what's actually in front of me. 

Blue sky.

Incredible cotton-candy clouds.

Trees in full flush; numerous possibilities for new growth.

Sure, something isn't working.

But a million things ARE.  

When we can RELAX and focus on the opportunity that comes with break-down, we can break-through to incredible surprises. The Chinese symbol for crisis is made up of two word signs. The first one means danger, while the second symbol means opportunity. This can apply to complex emotional issues, or to simple projects that redirect. Such as my defunct lemon balm salve. 

***Sigh***

I hand-picked lemon balm leaves for hours. I soaked them in olive oil, so I could strain them and add bees wax to the oil to make it into a healing lip salve (great for herpes outbreaks, cracked nostrils, or the common dry lip).I soaked it over 10 days... I got busy, it went about 4 days too long. 

When I finally checked again, it was too late to make into a salve. I sulked at first.I didn't want to throw it out. So after brooding, I researched what I could do with the oil... I greased tool handles. I oiled wooden steps. There was still more oil left. Then my kid, who wasn't as attached to "productive use" as I was, had an awesome idea:

SPA TIME.

We soaked our feet and it felt

SOOOOOOOOOO GOOOOOOOOOOOD.  

This was actually MORE FUN than making lemon balm salve. We rejoiced, ooooo-ed and ahhhh-ed. We laughed and were silly. It nourished our hearts and spirits.You want more enticement to let nature be your (other) anti-depressant?  What if you could calm yourself after a big problem or hiccup, enough to see a new possibility? 

You can. :)

Love,

Shannon 

PS. 2 books about amazing nature that folks keep raving about:  

Service Berry by native educator Robin Wall-Kimmerer, and

The Light Eaters by Zoë Schlanger (about plant intelligence).   

🌷 I'D LOVE TO INCLUDE ANY OF YOUR QUESTIONS. PLEASE WRITE ME. :)

© Shannon Gorres, 2025. Written by a human, not AI or chatGPT. Please contact me to request permission before sharing. I will give you permission to share sections of it when you include "by Shannon Gorres, www.DivineNatureTherapy.com"