The Nourishing Food of Nervous System Education

I was about 6 years into my healing journey when I discovered the role the nervous system plays in healing from trauma and chronic stress. By healing journey, I mean healing from a childhood of abuse and neglect. Side effects of being raised by a mom whose unresolved childhood trauma led to paranoid schizophrenia, NPD and manic depression.

My journey started with therapy. At around 18, I found myself in the office of an angel who helped me understand that my home was not normal. That it was, in fact, abusive. She gave me a check list for abuse and I checked off almost everything on it.

It was her that helped me realize I needed to move away from my parents home.

After that, things were not all well and good. I was a mess - and chose to put myself in messy relationships with messy people. I was dysfunctional inside. But I worked hard at my retail job, I participated in church leadership, and I did well in college as an honour roll student.

I had a boyfriend who was dealing with severe addiction. And I spent all my time managing him. Thinking that he needed to change and that I was the one who could make him change (of course!!) And that my life couldn’t be good until he did change.

Finally, by grace, after about 3 years together I realized that actually - I was really messed up. And that I was the one who needed healing and change. And I was the one who needed to take responsibility for my life.

I remember finding Melody Beattie’s beautiful book “codependent no more”.

I laid on the floor of my apartment at the time listening to the book on audio from my laptop. Crying. Asking God for help.
it was another step on the healing journey.

After some time, I left that relationship. And I spent a couple years alone away from messy situations. During that time I continued therapy. This was another therapist in my college city. Another angel. With her, over a period of about 3 years, I worked through patterns of self-loathing and enmeshment. What really changed my life during that time was the patterns of dissociation that opened up and shifted with her guidance.

I swam twice a day at the YMCA. I was still going to church at that time. I tried vegetarian, then raw vegan. I watched no television. I read only spiritual books including the Bible. I did some fasting. I confronted my parents.

After a few years of that - I met my husband. The beginning of that was another layer of healing - re-arranged my brain and body around attachment and healthy relationships. But that’s a story for another day.

After years of healing work, spiritual, mental, emotional - I discovered Dr. Peter Levine’s book - Waking the Tiger. Dr Levine is the founder of Somatic Experiencing - a revolutionary model of trauma healing that is heavily influenced by Dr Stephen Porges’ work on the Vagus Nerve. The Vagus Nerve is a branch of the autonomic nervous system that has a major role to play in emotions, connections, and relationships.

Something in my body knew: this was the final piece! This body-focused work was the medicine that would change everything.

I devoured it. I studied Dr Levine’s work, I read Dr Porges book: Polyvagal Theory, and then I was led to Dr Allan Schore’s work on the right brain, then I was led to Dr Gabor Mate’s work and it goes on and on.

I sought out a somatic experiencing practitioner.

Everything I was learning and experiencing was like nourishing food for my body and soul. And I devoured it. The nervous system work was allowing for an even deeper integration of all the other work I had done in the years before.

It was helping my cells and nervous system build the foundations of resilience that had not been built in early life. I could feel the changes and re-organization happening inside my being.

Now, I train in Somatic Experiencing at the Intermediate Level, as well as in the Biology of Trauma with Dr. Aimie Apigian. Two modalities I will study for the rest of my life.

What I have realized on my journey is that understanding the role the nervous system plays in whole-body health, stress patterns, and relationships is essential not just for people like me who grew up in extreme conditions. But for everyone.

For performance, cognitive ability, stress management, resilience, and relationships.

Knowing how your body works at the nervous system level changes everything.

What I have discovered in my time as a healing and alignment coach to high-performers and entrepreneurs is that there are often underlying stress patterns in the body and brain that can make you more susceptible to entrepreneurial stress, overwhelm and burnout. Ultimately, they make it harder for you to build your entrepreneurial vision, hit your goals and feel healthy.

While you may be mentally tenacious and pushing yourself forward to achieve your goals (RESPECT to you for that). There is another way that will require less pushing and lead to a performance edge that you can't get just from grit.

And now I am bringing this nervous system education to Entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurship is a challenging way of life (and that’s why most of us like it!). But, understanding how your nervous system works when it comes to stress and energy production can help soften that challenge. When you know the underlying physiological pieces of the puzzle, you are so much more equipped to move with your body’s rhythm. That means: more energy, less stress, more capacity for stress, and more overall resilience and relational availability.

Your body is the key to healthy, sustainable success both in life and business.

On March 9, 10, and 11th I’m going to be teaching a series of live classes: The Entrepreneur Alive Classes!

You’ll learn:

The Three States of the Nervous System and how they show up in life and business when it comes to stress, meeting your goals, showing up authentically and growing your business.

The Unique Demands That Entrepreneurship Places on Your Nervous System.

And in the third class I’ll be giving you a full breakdown of the NEW Entrepreneur Alive Mastermind group that I am offering. You’ll get your questions answered and understand exactly how this program will help you create whole-body health and resilience on your entrepreneurial journey.

Sign up for the classes here: https://www.shylacash.com/entrepreneur-alive-class-sign-up-07209a3e-87b8-425e-a9fd-cd5748c83259?fbclid=IwAR3VRPqAPU8WRJ_qjJlkjOElKMLBGnwOztsbGnzYipIcnTaXjGGK0tRomYo 

See you there!