<aside> <img src="/icons/light-bulb_blue.svg" alt="/icons/light-bulb_blue.svg" width="40px" /> There are two states of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)

Note: The ANS controls all of your automatic functions, meaning no thought is required to execute them. They “just happen”, thanks to the ANS.

1) Fight-or-flight

Here our sympathetic nervous system (SNS) winds you up to perform optimally in the presence of a stressor or stimulus.

For example, if a lion walked in the door next to you, your sympathetic nervous system would:

• Metabolise a huge amount of energy (so it’s available to get away)
• Dilate your pupils (so you can see better)
• Increase your heart rate (so you can run, fight, or hide)
• Stream glucose into the blood stream to make it available for cells
• Shift blood to muscle tissue away from organs (so you can move quickly if needed)
• Flood the body with adrenaline and cortisol to provide a rush of energy

Your immune system will dial down, as will other “less essential functions” such as digestion, hormonal balance…

None of these are needed in the presence of a threat.

We are built to deal with these stressors in the short-term, but usually with-in a state of hours the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) pulls you down into a calm and relaxed state.

2) Rest and digest

In this case the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) takes control and promotes a state of calm and relaxation.

The body wants to relax if it can. In a state where you have nothing to contend with, the PNS:

• Slows heart rate and breathing rate
• Lowers blood pressure
• Stimulates the stomach, pancreas, and intestines
• Constricts your pupils
• Constricts bronchi in the lungs as

A general winding down into a prime state of recovery and rejuvenation.

In ‣ you will discover how a chronic state of fight-or-flight (sympathetic activation) decays you from the inside out.

I also invite you to read my story of how my optimised athlete self tried to hard and sucked the life force out of himself…

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<aside> <img src="/icons/exclamation-mark-double_blue.svg" alt="/icons/exclamation-mark-double_blue.svg" width="40px" /> Read me story here:

My Story: More is Not Always Better

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