For the last few days, I‘ve been reading all that I can about the impact of COVID-19, or the coronavirus.
My concerns about the business, students, teachers, patients, kids, and the unknown future all converged to create uncertainty. This created anxiety and fear in me so much so that I was losing sleep.
When I made the decision to close our Yoga center for the next two weeks due to coronavirus concerns, I felt elated, knowing I did the right thing.
Now that I have clarity, I realize that wellness involves how well we respond and interact with the world.
With that said, let me explain how our brains work.
Sympathetic Vs Parasympathetic Nervous Systems
The brain has a stress response system which is unconsciously regulated. It controls our heart rate, digestion, respiratory rate, urination, and sexual arousal.
This system is called the autonomic nervous system which is further divided into two separate systems: sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.
Sympathetic nervous system controls our fight or flight mode, which activates when we’re stressed. It tends to raise our blood pressure and trigger our stress response. It’s what allows us to be ready to run from danger.
On the other hand, the parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for calmness and zen. This system activates when the stress response decreases and everything balances out.
With our current state of affairs, many of us have a “heightened” sympathetic response and are acting from a place of fear.
It’s during these times that we need to find grounding activities like Yoga to help our bodies create balance. When your body is in a state of parasympathetic dominance, it’s able to boost immunity, metabolism, detoxification, and think more positive thoughts.
So how about if we all collectively work on being productive during this time of high stress due to uncertainty?
Find Some Good in These Times of Uncertainty
I’m getting connected with my friends, family, and myself in ways I was not able to otherwise because of my “busy” schedule.
There’s a lot of good coming from this pandemic if we slow down enough to see it.
I’m able to clearly re-evaluate my business, schedule, and life in ways I have not been able to before.
So I encourage you to step away from the media long enough to focus on your goals and what you currently have, as opposed to the answers we lack regarding the coronavirus.
It’s during times like this that we can gain much needed peace long enough to realize what’s really important.
So breathe…….smile………
I am so grateful for each and every one of you. We hope to see you all back at our center soon.
Thanks for reading and as always, please visit our website at alkalinewellness.com.
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See you soon.