The three major states of the nervous system are important to understand because they have a major impact on our health and well-being. According to the Polyvagal Theory by Dr. Stephen Porges, there are three major states of the nervous system : ventral vagal, sympathetic, and dorsal vagal. The ventral vagal state is the body's resting state, sympathetic is the body's fight-or-flight state, and dorsal vagal is the body's freeze+shutdown state.
The ventral vagal state (also known as the parasympathetic state) is characterized by slow, deep breathing, a relaxed heart rate, and a calm mind - it allows us to heal, to grow, and to thrive.
The sympathetic state is characterized by fast, shallow breathing, a racing heart, and a mind that is focused on survival - otherwise known as "fight or flight". When we are in a sympathetic state, we are in a state of elevated stress and responsiveness, which also inhibits safe socialization, openness, and compassion.
The dorsal vagal state is characterized by a complete shutdown of the body's systems, and the onset of dense emotions such as hopelessness and apathy. This state is triggered the gut, also known as the Enteric Nervous System (ENS) by external stressors that are perceived as dangerous and overwhelming.
When we understand how each state of the nervous system feels and is activated, we can better take care of ourselves by communicating to the body through our nervous system. We can learn to shift into the ventral vagal state when we need to calm down, rest and heal. We can learn to up-regulate and tap into sympathetic when we need to be alert and focused. And we can learn to tap into stillness through the dorsal vagal when we need to calm down and de-stress.
Andrew is Co-CEO at NEUROFIT, and a Caltech graduate with 10 years of tech + product experience touching millions of lives at NASA, Snapchat, Headspace, Yale's Center For Emotional Intelligence, and his own wellness startups.
After facing two decades of chronic stress, burnout and C-PSTD, he launched NEUROFIT to provide an effective, data-driven, and accessible solution to these challenges.