Method to Rebalance Autonomic Nervous System in 14 days?

tandrsc

Well-Known Member
@Remy - thanks for this. I'm giving it a go. I'll let you know how I get on.

Well I've been doing this every day for the last 14 days.

Has it helped? Hard to say - it definitely hasn't made me worse.

Sadly I don't have a heart rate monitor to check all the groovy stats.

It was definitely worth a try and I think I might still do it every other day or so - thanks for posting @Remy
 

Remy

Administrator
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It's still really pathetic but that's by far the best HF (parasympathetic) number I've ever had.
 

Remy

Administrator
OK, so tonight I did my meditation laying on the floor, bum on a cushion with my legs up on a sofa. And my HF/LF did not switch which means I did not shift into parasympathetic dominance for the first time in ages. It could certainly be a coincidence...but it's weird!

And unfortunate considering the dining chair I was using is supposed to go in the garage sale this weekend...:arghh:
 

San Diego

Well-Known Member
OK, so tonight I did my meditation laying on the floor, bum on a cushion with my legs up on a sofa. And my HF/LF did not switch which means I did not shift into parasympathetic dominance for the first time in ages. It could certainly be a coincidence...but it's weird!

And unfortunate considering the dining chair I was using is supposed to go in the garage sale this weekend...:arghh:
Wow, so the actual position really matters?
 

madie

Well-Known Member
OK, so tonight I did my meditation laying on the floor, bum on a cushion with my legs up on a sofa. And my HF/LF did not switch which means I did not shift into parasympathetic dominance for the first time in ages. It could certainly be a coincidence...but it's weird!

And unfortunate considering the dining chair I was using is supposed to go in the garage sale this weekend...:arghh:

Do you think the issue might be that your head wasn't lower than your back? I'm having good luck on a 2-cushion couch. I take off one cushion and put a pillow there for my head so it doesn't drop too low.
 

Remy

Administrator
Do you think the issue might be that your head wasn't lower than your back? I'm having good luck on a 2-cushion couch. I take off one cushion and put a pillow there for my head so it doesn't drop too low.
It might be. Right now it's just a data point, nothing more.

We are also getting ready for a garage sale this weekend. Packing up my old life is stressful both emotionally and physically. It might just be a coincidence.

I'll keep fiddling and report back. And I have a call set up this afternoon with the maker of the app to ask some questions about how to use it for chronic illness vs fitness/performance too so if anything interesting comes up, I'll be sure to share!
 

Remy

Administrator
Just an update for anyone who is interested...I'm still doing this for 30 minutes at night during my meditation practice.

Since I started in the "special" chair, the chair no longer seems to really matter. I can get the switch in any old chair now and even laying flat on the floor with my legs up. I think maybe my body just needed to get the idea of it because it all happens a lot more quickly now.

It used to take almost the full 30 minutes to get the switch from LF to HF dominant but now it happens usually within the first 15 minutes.

So my guess is that the type of chair isn't as crucial as I initially thought. Maybe if you start out on the floor with your legs up, you might just need a longer period of time at first, especially if you've been sympathetic dominant for a long time like I have been.

The results last typically through the evening but by morning I'm back to sympathetic dominant again. I'm sure that's somewhat normal, after all I do get a big cortisol spike in the AM, but I am still striving for a more balanced state.

I'll keep it up though and see what other changes occur as time goes by.

Now I'm also curious to see what would happen if I started the day with a legs up meditation instead of always doing it at night...wonder if it would help balance my nervous system throughout the day or if it would have little effect?
 

Remy

Administrator
Hi Remy
An old but interesting thread. Do you still do it? How's life?
I don't do it anymore. After a while, I found that it could put me into a parasympathetic dominant state pretty quickly, so I no longer needed to hang out in the upside backward position for as long anymore. And whatever all I'm doing now seems to have helped my autonomic balance in general as well. I'd definitely still recommend it as a cheap, easy and effective intervention!
 

Not dead yet!

Well-Known Member
[fright]View attachment 1501[/fright]OK, so in my never-ending quest to improve my autonomic nervous system balance and balance the sympathetic and parasympathetic arms, I came across this guy, Dr Stephen Stiteler. He's a naturopath and acupuncturist in LA.

He says that if you lay on a chair tipped onto its back with your thighs at a 90 degree angle to the floor for 30 minutes every day for 14 days, you will reset your nervous system back into a balanced state.

Apparently this works because it helps just enough blood pool back into your gut and brain without overwhelming the system like the chairs that put you fully inverted.

It reminds me a little bit of the yoga pose where you put your legs up on a wall. I know of some OI patients that use this technique to help mitigate symptoms. It's a bit different though because the chair does give you a slight decline so the head is lower than the rest of the body and the feet almost start to feel weightless.

I'm on day 3. So far I can say that when I take my HRV measurements pre and post session, they are always improved in the post session, but nothing dramatic yet. I'll keep you posted!

Here's my setup:

Great tip, thank you! My chiropractor's office and physical therapy office both have bolsters that will keep you in that position without stress on anything. Always my favorite part of the visit. And there are suppliers for these professions that have those bolsters. I think I may finally buy one. I've tried the "wall" position and while it's ok, it's not as stress free.
 
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