Strengthen Your Brake

The autonomic nervous system is the common denominator in our human experience. Everyone has a nervous system that is wired the same way, even if people respond differently to events. Your vagal brake, which is connected to your vagus nerve, is what gives you heart rate variability, and is a sign of how well your nervous system responds to and bounces back from stress. An effective vagal break helps you move between activities of various demands with ease and is even active while you are talking and listening. A clear example of the vagal break at work is when you watch a child or you yourself go from big emotions to calming down. But, when the vagal brake fails, you go into a sympathetic or stress response. This brief meditation is a guided visualization to help you connect with and strengthen your vagal break.