massage and our nervous system
Out of the over seven million nerves we house in our bodies, twelve connect to the brain. And out of those twelve, one is our vagus nerve, also known as Cranial Nerve X.
The vagus nerve connects our brain to our body. As the longest cranial nerve, it exits from the medulla oblongata at the lower brain stem and travels through the neck, chest, heart, lungs, abdomen, and digestive tract, ending in our large intestine.
When stimulated, the vagus nerve can activate our parasympathetic nervous system, putting us into a state of rest and digest. When we are in rest and digest, our heart rate slows, blood pressure lowers, sleep improves, pain and inflammation reduces, and stress receptors can be inhibited.
So how do we stimulate our vagus nerve?
For extreme cases treating conditions like epilepsy and depression, medical devices can be placed inside our body to stimulate the nerve through electrical impulses. Currently, research is being done on how this kind of vagus nerve stimulation can affect other conditions, like long covid, migraines, multiple sclerosis, and Alzeimers.
But we can’t all have, and don’t all need, these devices to help us regulate. Some ways to stimulate the vagus nerve on our own include meditation, movement, music, and (drum roll please)...
Massage!!
Stimulation of the vagus nerve through massage has the potential to decrease cortisol and increase serotonin. This is backed up by a clinical trial completed in 2005 that included individuals struggling with depression, anxiety, auto-immune conditions, and stress. Saliva and urine samples were taken before and after massage, and the post-massage samples showed an approx 31% decrease in cortisol, approx 28% increase in serotonin, and an approx 31% increase in dopamine.
Fast forward to April of 2024, to an article in the New York Times that highlighted researchers from Germany and the Netherlands reviewing studies on physical touch. These researchers collected data from 137 completed studies, which included about 13,000 adults, children, and infants. These studies compared results of individuals who received touch vs those who didn’t receive touch. From studies on dementia patients, to folks with cancer, to general young adults, positive touch consistently showed benefits.
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In my private practice, I’ve seen the impact of massage and touch on clients for over six years.
Do you ever notice that your stomach starts to grumble when you receive bodywork, even when you aren’t hungry? Well, that could be your body kicking into rest and digest!
Have you ever worn a smart watch while getting a massage? If you’re a client of mine, odds are I’ve peeked at your heart rate and blood pressure during your massage - and it almost always shows restful numbers.
Safe, positive touch can help not only regulate your nervous system, but bring you in touch with your emotions. When Remedy re-opened after the shut down in 2020, a majority of my clients experienced some sort of emotional release during or after their first massage. Whether clients experienced grief or elation, it’s clear that touch (and lack there-of) has such an impact on our well-being as humans.
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/vagus-nerve-stimulation
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-024-01841-8
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/08/health/physical-touch-benefits-premature-babies.html
