Exploring how to heal the autonomic nervous system

...as a pathway to healing long covid and perhaps many other syndromes

Disclaimer

This article is exploratory. I have only just realised the overall significance of the autonomic nervous system to my personal health. I have realised that the messaging systems in my body are potentially sending the wrong messages around my body, and somehow I have to re-set them. This seems to be particularly common amongst those dealing with long covid.

So what follows is a start at building my personal strategy for healing, based on fixing my body's electrical and messaging systems, principally the autonomic nervous system. Early days, and there is no local doctor or any other kind of therapist willing to help me, or at a price I can afford. This quest is currently entirely self managed and exploratory, and critically, low cost.

In my quest, I am having to research some very basic ideas, each of which I have visited in the past over a lifetime of treating Fibromyalgia, but not simultaneously. Now is the time to address them all at the same time, as they all relate to how our bodies communicate information and commands.

This is early days research, so where you know of something I have missed or something better than I am using, please comment with links to the resources you use. Between us we might be able to build a seriously useful strategy for curing long covid and potentially many other syndromes that may be caused by the same thing.

Dysautonomia and POTS

These words are being bandied about by the long covid community, but I am seeing very little on how they can be successfully treated. Again, if you know of a reliable technique to CURE them (as distinct from manage them) I would love to hear it.

This article explains the symptoms of dysautonomia, and its treatment, which is essentially to drink more water and consume more salt.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/6004-dysautonomia

First is correct breathing

I am trying to do breathing exercises every day. These are known to stimulate the vagus nerve. The system that suites me is Square breathing (Breathe in for four seconds, then hold for four seconds. Breathe out for four seconds, then hold for four seconds. Repeat this three or four times.) but pick whatever system you like. Any focus on breathing clean air deep into your lungs is going to feed oxygen to every part of your system that needs healing.

Second is correct hydration

This includes the right salts, so I am making sure I am doing that right.

Third is correct nutrition

Obviously this is important overall and I am not going to get into the various debates around diet. But some nutriments are more critical than others for the body's nerves. This is a really obscure area. I have found reference to the use of B12 for the vagus nerve, and choline for the nerves generally. Also B complex and olive leaf extract for nervous system health generally. But very early days and hard to find any detailed information online, particularly in how to slow the production of stress hormones.

Fourth is to reduce the production of stress hormones

Very minor things can cause me to do adrenaline dumps (very common in long covid people) and once the stress hormones are there, it can take 6-8 hours to get them out of the body. Meanwhile, they shut down the vagus nerve and, for example, sugar metabolism, for that period of time. So we have to work out how to stop producing the stress hormones when they are not needed, or how to detox them immediately after an "adrenaline dump" or similar. I am not on top of either, yet.

Fifth is exercise

Moderate levels of exercise are critical to burn up the stress hormones which shut down vagus nerve functioning. It takes 1.5 hours per day of moderate exercise to use up stress hormones or 6-8 hours for them to dissipate naturally, so not for the elderly or in any way physically compromised. I personally cannot engage in the level of activity necessary to burn up the stress hormones. So if I must continue generating them, how do I personally burn them up? I have no idea, yet. Still looking.

Sixth is high tech mediation

I am playing with frequency based meditation recordings. I don't really understand how frequencies work, but as it it the body electrics that are misfiring, applying (the right) frequencies to the body might help. I have downloaded a few frequency based audio recordings. I've done that in the past too with no effect, but the science moves on, so worth another shot. I have only just started with these so cannot attest to their efficacy. (Note that I have not included silent or spiritual meditation per se on this list, just high tech. Meditation will not burn up stress hormones. At best it can give a short break from producing them, after which the body MUST return to dealing with the stress hormones that are already coursing around and have not been used.)

Seventh is singing, humming or chanting

All of these activities stimulate the vagus nerve. Although the vagus nerve is shut down by stress hormones, a bit a stimulation can't hurt and it is easy to do. Maybe it can be encouraged to over-rule the stress hormones. Who knows? I particularly like this recording from Spryfuel to hum to, (number 6 above), so two birds with one stone, so to speak.

Eighth is effective grounding

We need to discharge negative environmental frequencies that build up in our bodies. Walking on healthy ground breathing clean air for at least half hour a day, but preferably more (I live in an upstairs flat, so double trouble). I go to the beach each night and walk as far as I can (not far) barefoot. It's a start, but there are lots of grounding devices around if you have the money for them.

If anyone has any other information or has seen any research papers on how to reset the body electrics and communication systems, please post links in the comments below.

It is too early to be posting an article on this, because it is all still so exploratory

POTS

dysautonomia