How stress influences our nervous system
Stress shows up in more ways than one. Whether it’s emotional overload, physical strain, or chemical triggers like poor diet or caffeine, your body responds the same way: like it’s under a threat.
When your body is under stress (physical, chemical, or emotional) your nervous system flips into fight-or-flight mode, releasing stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol. This is a helpful response to short term stressor, but when stress becomes chronic, your body never fully turns off the alarm.
What happens when we are in fight or flight mode?
- Muscles tighten, especially in your neck, shoulders, and back, to protect against injury
- Digestion slows down and blood sugar increases
- Heart rate and breathing rate increase
These are natural reflexes to stress, but when the stress becomes chronic they contribute to heart disease, weakened immune function, and chronic pain.
How Chiropractic Helps Break the Cycle
When your muscles stay tense, they pull on the joints in your spine. That leads to joint restrictions, or subluxations, that interfere with how your nervous system communicates with the rest of your body. The result? Your body gets stuck in a constant stress mode loop.
Chiropractic Adjustments help:
- Enhance communication between the brain and body
- Supports your nervous system’s ability to regulate and adapt
- Helps muscles relax, improves digestion, allows the body to heal
- Helps your body switch to parasympathetic mode, also nicknamed rest and digest mode
You may not be able to remove all the stress from your life, but you can help your body become more resilient to it! It all starts with a healthy nervous system. If you feel like you have been stuck in stress mode, chiropractic care may be the missing piece for you. Contact us today to set up an appointment!