Did you know that the Parasympathetic State affects EVERY aspect of your well-being?
Optimally, we should all be in a parasympathetic state 80% of the time, but many people struggle to be in this state at any point during their day, because stress inhibits the parasympathetic response.
Our friend and colleague, Jodi Cohen has designed a powerful essential oil that helps to activate this response, transdermally – and she’s written a great blog (which we have excerpted to support our community, directly below) to support you and give you a new understanding of the parasympathetic state.
As part of our community, click here to get a bottle of Jodi’s all-natural Parasympathetic™ Blend shipped to your door, plus two great bonuses, valued at $39! Total Retail Value: $75.95 – Yours Today For Only $15 (includes FREE shipping!)
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Enjoy the blog!
What is the Parasympathetic State? By Jodi Cohen
The parasympathetic state is the healing state that brings your nervous system into balance.
Your Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) runs all of the involuntary mechanisms in your body that are not under your conscious control, such as your heart rate, blood pressure, digestion, respiration, cell activity, and even body temperature. The two branches of your ANS include the Parasympathetic branch, known as the “Rest, Digest and Heal” state, and the Sympathetic “Fight, Flight or Freeze” state.
These two branches operate with a push-pull dynamic and activate very different physical and mental states of being. For example, your Sympathetic branch makes energy available for muscles to mobilize, fight or flee. It is your Sympathetic state that speeds up your heart while your Parasympathetic state slows it down. Parasympathetic turns on your digestion, but when you feel anxiety, the Sympathetic branch kicks in and turns off digestion. There is a constant calibration between the sympathetic and the parasympathetic systems with One or the other playing a more active role at any given time.
This constant state of balance between our sympathetic and parasympathetic systems is facilitated by your vagus nerve, the longest nerve in the body which originates in the brain and wraps through almost every organ in the body. The sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems are always operational, but there is a balance between them. One or the other is always more active. The yin and yang pull of these two systems keeps our body in homeostasis, or balance. Together they ensure that we have enough resources, in the right places, at the right time.
All processes of your healing and health maintenance — including digestion, detoxification, immune activities, tissue regeneration, and being aroused — happen in the parasympathetic state. Almost all disease and dysfunction result from you not being able to drop into the Parasympathetic state.
How Do Essential Oils Stimulate the Parasympathetic State?
While there are many methods of stimulating the parasympathetic state, ranging from a surgical implant that sends an electrical charge to your neck, to gagging yourself or enjoying your own personal ice bucket challenge by regularly splashing freezing cold water on your face, essential oils offer a non-invasive tool for naturally triggering the Parasympathetic state. Applying our stimulatory Parasympathetic™ blend behind the earlobe on the mastoid bone helps you immediately trigger the parasympathetic rest and digest response.
Parasympathetic™ is formulated from a proprietary synergistic combination of Clove oil, which is highly stimulatory, and Lime oil which has super small molecules. The combination of these two oils creates a blend that is super stimulatory and very easily accessible through the skin and olfactory channels and serves as a far less invasive method for triggering the parasympathetic state.
Clove and Lime oils also carry other healing properties. For example, clove oil a powerful anti-bacterial, antiviral and antifungal agent that has long been used to dull pain, heal infections, purify blood and keep unwanted viral invaders at bay, and balance blood pressure. Research has demonstrated that citrus oils, like Lime, help stimulate the production of glutathione, an antioxidant known to protect you against inflammation and reduce our chances of developing autoimmunity as well as normalize “neuroendocrine hormone levels and immune function.” We recommend applying the Parasympathetic™ blend to the vagus nerve three times daily (ideally before meals).
How the Parasympathetic State is Critical to Your Health
Your ability to drop into the parasympathetic state is critical to the following functions of your body:
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Digestion
Digestion can only occur in a Parasympathetic state. In other words, how you eat can be more important than what you eat. To get the most nutrients from our food, you need to invest not only in a pristine diet, but also in taking the time to eat in a parasympathetic state to ensure that nutrients are properly delivered to the cells. If we eat under stress, the nutrients in our food will not be properly digested, absorbed or assimilated.
Think of an ambulance that is stuck in traffic and can’t make it to the person in need – that is what is happening in our bodies when we eat under stress – our nutrients aren’t making it into our cells to help us heal. When you eat in the parasympathetic state, the brain activates all of your digestive functions, including the production of saliva, release of stomach acid, enzymes and bile. The parasympathetic state supports nutrient assimilation and motility. Peristalsis, the muscle contractions required to move food and waste through your system, also relies on a parasympathetic state. The inability to drop into the parasympathetic state is a primary cause of constipation.
The parasympathetic state also allows the gut to signal the brain about hunger and satiety, helping you better know when you are truly hungry and full. Applying Parasympathetic™ behind the earlobe on the mastoid bone before meals helps to drop you into the Parasympathetic state will help you heal faster because the nutrients are actually getting into your body in a way that the body can use them. Eating in the Parasympathetic state can help heal digestive disorders including:
SIBO – A key component to healing SIBO is the “Housekeeping Wave” (peristalsis), which is triggered by the parasympathetic state.
IBS – Poor communication between the gut and the brain may contribute to the abdominal pain, constipation and/or diarrhea that are the symptoms of IBS. The parasympathetic state turns on optimal bi-directional communication between the gut and the brain.
Constipation – Peristalsis, the muscle contractions of the intestines that moves the stool, is triggered by the parasympathetic state.
Acid indigestion (GERD)– The parasympathetic state. signals the sphincter between the stomach and esophagus to close, preventing acid reflux from stomach to esophagus.
Bloating – Bloating is an indication of a stomach acid or enzyme deficiency, and the parasympathetic state is responsible for producing adequate acid and enzymes for digestion.
Bile stasis – The parasympathetic state triggers production of bile, and signals the gallbladder to release bile into the intestines to digest dietary fats.
Dry mouth – The parasympathetic state triggers the production of saliva, which is a crucial element of periodontal health and digestion.
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Detoxification
Detoxification, or your body’s mechanism of eliminating toxins, only occurs in the Parasympathetic state. The vagus nerve, which triggers the parasympathetic response, connects to all the organs of detoxification including the lungs, spleen, kidney, small intestine, liver, gallbladder, stomach and colon. Parasympathetic™ blend also helps to support brain detoxification and support the detoxification of the vagus nerve. (Read More about Vagus Nerve Toxicity – see link at the end of this blog.) Parasympathetic™ blend not only drops you into the parasympathetic state where detoxification occurs, but the blend’s key ingredients of Clove and Lime also support your detoxification.
Research shows that the limonene found in Lime essential oil is known to stimulate the production of glutathione, an antioxidant that serves as a natural chelator that can bind to environmental toxins like heavy metals, pesticides, mold toxins, and other pollutants, which may trigger autoimmunity. Glutathione also helps protect cell mitochondria, enhance tissue recovery, and modulate the immune system. Unfortunately, most nutritional supplements of glutathione are not absorbed well and do not raise glutathione levels within the cells, so Lime oil’s ability to help stimulate the production of glutathione inside the cells contributes to the Parasympathetic™ blend’s ability to support detoxification.
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Inflammation
The parasympathetic state reduces inflammation in your body. It is the vagus nerve that serves as a detection system for inflammation. The vagus nerve’s vast network of fibers stationed around the organs identify inflammation (such as the presence of inflammatory proteins) and alert your brain to send out anti-inflammatory signals, in essence helping to prevent chronic inflammation in your body. Chronic or excessive inflammation can be linked to heart disease, autoimmunity, and loss of cognitive capacities and often results when we are unable to drop into the Parasympathetic state.
The Parasympathetic state helps improve communication between your body and your brain to help modulate your inflammatory response. In the parasympathetic state, your vagus nerve communicates with the rest of the body by releasing the neurotransmitter acetylcholine which acts as a brake on inflammation in your body, inhibiting the production of pro-inflammatory messengers. (Read more about Parasympathetic for Inflammation – see link at the end of this blog.) The ability of your vagus nerve to send signals to your body can be compromised from chronic stress and toxins like heavy metals.
To ensure optimal vagal signaling, apply the Parasympathetic™ oil on your vagus nerve (behind the earlobe on the mastoid bone). Research has shown strong decrease in inflammatory symptoms from stimulating the Parasympathetic state. Research also shows that vagus nerve stimulation seems to restore the body’s natural balance. It reduces the over-production of the chemical messenger that causes chronic inflammation but does not affect healthy immune function, so the body can respond normally to infection. (Read more about how essential oils heal vagal tone – see link at the end of this blog.) Research also shows that the limonene found in citrus essential oils is known to stimulate the production of glutathione, an antioxidant known to protect you against inflammation and reduce our chances of developing autoimmunity. Unfortunately, most nutritional supplements of glutathione are not absorbed well and do not raise glutathione levels within the cells, so Lime oil’s ability to help stimulate the production of glutathione inside the cells contributes to the Parasympathetic™ blend’s ability to prevent or reduce systemic inflammation in the gut and the brain.
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Immunity
The Parasympathetic state turns on your immune processes, allowing your body to fight pathogens, bacteria, fungus, parasites, viruses and infections. The sympathetic “fight or flight” state depresses immune function, opening the door to pathogens and chronic infections. This can create a viscous cycle as chronic infections put you into an inflamed state which further triggers the sympathetic nervous system. More specifically, dysbiotic conditions, like yeast, fungus, bacterial overgrowth, SIBO, or parasitic infestations, all profoundly affect your capacity to absorb nutrients. Subsequent inflammation and toxicity disrupt all of your homeostatic systems of digestion. Research shows that the limonene found in Lime essential oil (an ingredient in the Parasympathetic™ blend) is known to stimulate the production of glutathione, which helps regulate your immune system.
Unfortunately, most nutritional supplements of glutathione are not absorbed well and do not raise glutathione levels within the cells, so Lime oil’s ability to help stimulate the production of glutathione inside your cells contributes to the Parasympathetic™ blend’s ability to support immune function. Consider Parasympathetic for chronic infections like:
- H Pylori
- Candida
- Fungal Infections
- Periodontal Infections (Parasympathetic state triggers saliva in mouth)
- Chronic Sinus, Respiratory, Gut, or Urinary infections
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Stress Management
Our first line of defense against stress is known as the “fight or flight” response triggered by the sympathetic nervous system. Stress activates your sympathetic survival response, which effectively turns off everything not relevant to immediate survival, including digestion, detoxification and immune function.
In the sympathetic state, blood flow is routed away from the organs of digestion toward muscles in the arms and legs in preparation for flight. The sympathetic state also increases heart rate, blood pressure and respiratory rate. We are designed to switch into this sympathetic state, flee from danger, then drop back into the balanced Parasympathetic “rest and digest ” state where we can rest, repair and heal. To help stimulate the Parasympathetic response, apply Vibrant Blue Oils Parasympathetic™ blend to the vagus nerve (behind the earlobe on the mastoid bone). Read more about Essential Oils for Stress – see link at the end of this blog.
*For more information, and references to this blog, please visit the original posting here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jodi Sternoff Cohen is the founder of Vibrant Blue Oils. An author, speaker, nutritional therapist, and a leading international authority on essential oils, Jodi has helped over 50,000 individuals support their health with essential oils. She’s a bestselling author, award winning investigative journalist, nutritional therapist, busy mom, loyal friend & unshakable cheerleader dedicated to helping you and your family regain your vibrant health!
Healthy Regards,
Dr. Tiffany Caplan & Dr. Brent Caplan
PS: Have fun exploring the creative and flavorful recipes in Dr. Caplan’s cookbook “Friendly Recipes to Calm the Fires of Inflammation.” These delicious recipes are great support for lowering inflammation due to lupus or other autoimmune disease symptoms.
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