The Vagus Nerve & Why stress is not just in your mind, it is in your body
Most people are still being taught to manage stress from the mind and we are constantly being told think positive, calm your thoughts. Tell yourself you are safe, try to relax, try not to overreact. Try to be grateful, try to meditate and try harder!
But if the body is already living in a survival response, the thinking mind is often not the best place to begin. This is because stress is not just a thought pattern. It is a full-body physiological state. It changes your breathing, your heart rate, your digestion, your sleep, your muscle tone, your hormones, your inflammation, your posture, your face, your jaw, your gut, and your ability to feel safe inside yourself and this is where the vagus nerve becomes so important.
The vagus nerve is one of the main communication pathways between the brain and the body. It runs from the brainstem down through the neck and into the chest and abdomen, communicating with the throat, voice, lungs, heart, digestive system and internal organs. It is a major part of the parasympathetic nervous system, which is the branch involved in rest, digestion, repair and recovery. Medical sources describe the vagus nerve as carrying signals between the brain, heart and digestive system, and making up a large part of the parasympathetic nervous system.
So when we talk about the vagus nerve, we are not talking about a trend or a clever wellness phrase. We are talking about one of the body’s most important pathways for regulation, recovery and internal safety.
What the vagus nerve actually does
The vagus nerve helps the brain and body stay in constant conversation. It carries information from the body up to the brain, and from the brain back down to the body. This matters because the brain is not just sitting in the skull making decisions on its own. It is constantly reading signals from the body.
Is the breath shallow or steady?
Is the heart racing or settled?
Is the gut tense or digesting?
Is the throat tight?
Is the jaw clenched?
Is the body braced?
Is there enough safety here to rest, digest, connect and repair?
A large amount of vagal information is sensory, meaning the body is constantly reporting back to the brain about what is happening internally. This is one reason you can “know” you are safe in your mind but still feel unsafe in your body. The thinking part of you may understand that the threat has passed, but the body may still be behaving as if it has not.
The vagus nerve is involved in heart rate, breathing, digestion, gut-brain communication, inflammatory signalling and internal organ regulation. Research also links the vagus nerve with regulation of digestion, heart rate, respiratory rate and the brain-gut axis.
This is why long-term stress does not just make people “feel a bit anxious.” It can show up as poor sleep, digestive changes, jaw tension, headaches, fatigue, emotional overwhelm, inflammation, shallow breathing, chest tightness, neck pain, feeling wired but exhausted, or feeling completely shut down. The body is not being dramatic, it’s just responding.
Why the vagus nerve is vital
The vagus nerve is vital because it helps the body return from stress. We are meant to have a stress response. There is nothing wrong with fight or flight when it is needed. If you are in danger, your body should mobilise. Your heart rate should increase. Your muscles should prepare. Your attention should narrow. Your body should prioritise survival.
The problem comes when the body does not know how to come back afterwards and this is what I see in so many people.
They are not in an obvious emergency, but their body is still bracing. They are lying in bed, but their system is still alert. They are trying to rest, but their shoulders are up by their ears. They are sitting with family, but their chest feels tight. They are scrolling, working, caring, doing, organising, holding everyone else together but underneath, the body has not stood down.
This is the point where stress becomes less about the event and more about the state the body has learned to live in and when that state becomes familiar, people often start to think it is their personality.
“I’m just anxious.”
“I’m just bad at relaxing.”
“I’ve always been tense.”
“I’m just emotional.”
“I’m lazy.”
“I’m too sensitive.”
“I can’t switch off.”
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
Often, the issue is not who you are. It is the state your nervous system has been living in.
Regulation is not about being calm all the time
This is one of the biggest things I want people to understand… a regulated nervous system does not mean you are calm, peaceful and smiling all day. That is not regulation. That is either unrealistic, suppressed, or performed.
A healthy nervous system is not one that never reacts. It is one that can respond and then recover.
You can feel anger without becoming consumed by it.
You can feel grief without completely disappearing into it.
You can feel stress without your whole body tipping into panic.
You can work, move, think, speak and take action and then come back into rest.
You can be activated when life requires it, but you are not trapped there.
That is regulation and it’s capacity and the ability to move through different states without becoming stuck in them. So when I talk about working with the vagus nerve, I am not talking about turning people into calm little robots. I am talking about supporting the body’s ability to come back from survival mode. That is very different.
Fight, flight, freeze and shutdown
Most people understand fight or flight, but they do not always recognise freeze and shutdown.
Fight can look like irritability, anger, defensiveness, frustration, snapping, tension, jaw clenching and feeling ready to push back.
Flight can look like busyness, over-working, over-exercising, over-thinking, rushing, scrolling, cleaning, fixing, organising and being unable to stop.
Freeze can look like feeling stuck, overwhelmed, indecisive, foggy, unable to begin, unable to speak, unable to process, or trapped inside yourself.
Shutdown can feel heavier. It can look like numbness, exhaustion, withdrawal, flatness, low motivation, not caring, feeling disconnected, or feeling as if the body has pulled the plug.
People often judge themselves harshly for these states. They call themselves lazy, dramatic, weak, avoidant or too much but the body is not stupid. It is protective and so if your nervous system has learned that life is too much, too fast, too demanding, too unsafe, or too emotionally loaded, it will adapt. Sometimes that adaptation is mobilisation. Sometimes it is collapse. Sometimes it is bracing. Sometimes it is numbness.
The work is not to shame the body out of these patterns, the work is to give the body enough safety, consistency and support that it no longer has to keep using them in the same way.
Why you cannot always think your way out of stress
This is where so many people get stuck. They understand their trauma. They have read the books. They can explain their patterns. They know why they are anxious. They know where it comes from. They know they need boundaries. They know they should rest. They know they are safe now but the body still does not feel safe. That is because insight and regulation are not the same thing.
Insight can be powerful, but if the body is still living in a defensive state, you need a body-based doorway as well.
The nervous system responds to cues.
A steady voice. Warmth. Pressure. Breath. Rhythm. Safe touch. A softened jaw. A longer exhale. Gentle movement. The feeling of being met without being rushed. The feeling of not having to explain yourself. The feeling of being in a space where nothing is being demanded from you.
These things may sound simple, but to the nervous system they are information and they tell the body:
there is no immediate threat here.
you can lower the guard a little.
you can breathe.
you can digest.
you can soften.
you can come back.
This is why working with the body is not an optional extra. For many people, it is the missing piece.
The vagus nerve, breath and the body’s brake
One of the most direct ways we can influence the nervous system is through the breath. The breath is unusual because it is both automatic and something we can consciously work with. You do not have to remember to breathe, but you can choose to slow the breath, soften it, deepen it, or lengthen the exhale. This gives us a doorway into the autonomic nervous system.
When someone is stressed, the breath becomes shallow, high in the chest, fast or held. When the body begins to feel safer, the breath usually becomes slower, lower and less forced. This is why breathing practices are often recommended for stress and anxiety. NHS guidance, for example, recommends gentle breathing exercises where the breath is allowed to flow comfortably without being forced but I am careful with breathwork, because not everyone needs big dramatic breathing. For some people, especially those who are anxious, traumatised, menopausal, exhausted or already overwhelmed, forceful breathing can feel too much. So my approach is gentler.
Not “take a huge deep breath.”
Not “push through.”
Not “force calm.”
More like:
Let the body feel supported.
Let the jaw soften.
Let the shoulders drop.
Let the exhale be slightly longer.
Let the breath become a signal, not a performance.
The body does not need to be bullied into calm, it needs to be shown safety.
Why the face, throat and jaw matter
The vagus nerve is closely linked with areas many people hold stress: the throat, voice, face, jaw, neck and chest. This is one reason you can hear stress in someone’s voice. You can see it in the jaw. You can see it around the eyes. You can see it in the way someone holds their mouth, swallows, breathes, speaks or braces through the neck.
The face is not separate from the nervous system.
When someone has been under pressure for a long time, the face can begin to carry that state. The brow tightens. The jaw grips. The temples hold. The neck shortens. The shoulders lift. The throat can feel restricted. The breath becomes smaller. This is one of the reasons facial work can be so much deeper than people expect. A proper face, head, neck and jaw treatment is not just about skincare. It is not just about looking glowing or lifted. It is also about working with the places where the body has been holding tension and protection.
When the jaw softens, the breath often changes.
When the throat and neck soften, the chest can feel more open.
When the scalp releases, the whole head can feel lighter.
When the face is no longer bracing, the body often receives that message too.
This is why I see Tsuboki and facial massage as nervous-system work as well as facial therapy. Yes, the skin may look brighter. Yes, the face may look more rested. Yes, people may look less tense, less drawn, less held. But underneath that, the deeper change is often that the body has moved out of defence. The face has softened because the system has softened.
The vagus nerve, digestion and the gut
The vagus nerve is also a major part of the gut-brain connection. This matters because stress and digestion are deeply linked. When the body feels safe, digestion is prioritised. When the body feels under threat, digestion is often reduced, altered or disrupted because the body is prioritising survival. This is why stress can affect appetite, bloating, nausea, gut motility, IBS-type symptoms, reflux, constipation or urgency.
The body is not designed to digest beautifully while it thinks it is under attack. This is why so many people notice stomach gurgling, swallowing, deeper breathing or abdominal softening during Reiki or bodywork. It is not random. It can be a sign that the parasympathetic system is becoming more active and the body is moving towards rest and digestion.
I always notice these little signs in treatment because they matter.
A sigh matters.
A swallow matters.
A belly sound matters.
A jaw release matters.
A deeper breath matters.
They are often signs that the body has stopped fighting quite so hard.
The vagus nerve and inflammation
There is also an important relationship between the vagus nerve and inflammation. The body’s stress response, immune system and inflammatory pathways are not separate. Chronic stress can keep the body in a more defensive state, and the vagus nerve is one of the pathways involved in communication between the nervous system and immune system. Research has explored the role of the vagus nerve in inflammatory regulation, metabolic balance and internal organ function. This does not mean we make wild claims.
It does not mean Reiki “cures inflammation.”
It does not mean facial massage fixes chronic illness.
It does not mean nervous system work replaces medical care.
But it does mean the state of the nervous system matters.
A body that never comes down from stress is not in an ideal state for repair.
Rest is not laziness.
Stillness is not indulgent.
Regulation is not a luxury.
It is part of how the body maintains health.
Vagal tone: what people really mean
You may have heard the phrase “vagal tone.” In simple terms, vagal tone is often used to describe the strength, responsiveness or flexibility of the vagal system. I prefer to explain it as nervous-system flexibility.
Can your body respond to stress when it needs to?
Can it return to rest afterwards?
Can your heart rate, breath, digestion and emotional state adapt to what is happening?
Can you move between activation and recovery without getting stuck?
That flexibility is important because we do not want a nervous system that is switched off. We do not want a nervous system that is constantly on high alert. We want a system that can move. This is why the aim of the work is not to make you calm all the time. The aim is to help your body become more adaptable, more responsive and more able to recover.
How Reiki fits into this work
Reiki is often spoken about in such vague language that people miss what is actually happening in the room. A Reiki treatment is not just “lying there relaxing.” It is a very specific kind of therapeutic environment. You are fully clothed. You are warm. You are not being asked to talk. You are not being analysed. You are not having to perform. You are not being pulled into your story. You are not being forced to release anything. You are not being rushed and the body is given stillness, presence, quiet, gentle touch and time.
For a nervous system that has been living in demand, that can be profound. In Eastern Reiki, the practitioner is not there to force healing onto someone. The practitioner is there to practice presence, stillness, connection and create the perfect conditions for the person receiving Reiki. The treatment becomes a space where the body can begin to soften in its own time.
From a nervous-system perspective, this makes sense. The body is receiving cues of safety.
Warmth.
Stillness.
Steady hands.
A quiet room.
A calm practitioner.
No pressure.
No performance.
No demand.
For some people, this is the first time in a long time that nothing is being taken from them and they can simply receive.
How somatic therapy fits into this work
Somatic work means we include the body. We do not only ask, “What are you thinking?” We also ask…
What is your body doing with this?
Where is the tension?
What happens to the breath?
What happens in the chest?
Does the jaw tighten?
Do the shoulders lift?
Does the stomach contract?
Do you feel present or far away?
Do you feel energised, frozen, numb, restless or heavy?
This is not about obsessing over symptoms. It is about learning the language of the body.
In somatic massage body-work, the work is slow because the nervous system does not respond well to being rushed. We work with touch, grounding, breath awareness, fascia, Reiki, stillness and body-based support so the system can begin to reorganise from the inside. The aim is not to drag emotion out of the body. The aim is to create enough safety that the body does not have to keep gripping so tightly and that is a very different approach.
My approach at Holistic Care Durham
At Holistic Care Durham, nervous-system work is woven through everything I do.
It is in the Reiki.
It is in the Tsuboki facial work.
It is in the head, neck and jaw release.
It is in the restorative somatic therapy.
It is in the way the room is set up.
It is in the warmth, the quiet, the pacing, the scent, the bed, the way you are spoken to and the way the treatment is held.
This work is not about fixing you, it is not about making you perform healing. It is not about digging into trauma when the body is not ready. It is not about pushing for a release. It is not about pretending everything can be solved in one session. It is about creating the conditions where your body can begin to feel safe enough to soften. That might sound simple, but it is not small. For many people, safety in the body is the missing piece.
Treatments that support the vagus nerve and nervous system
Reiki
Reiki is a quiet, fully clothed treatment using gentle hands-on or hands-off practice. It supports deep rest, grounding, emotional steadiness and the body’s natural movement towards restoration. It is especially helpful for people who feel overwhelmed, depleted, anxious, grief-filled, sensitive, exhausted or disconnected from themselves.
Nervous System Reset
This is a longer, body-led treatment for people living with stress, tension, shutdown, burnout or emotional overwhelm. It may include Reiki, fascia-informed touch, grounding, breath awareness, slow bodywork and nervous-system support. The focus is not on forcing the body to release, but on helping it feel safe enough to stop bracing.
Tsuboki Facial Rituals
Tsuboki facial work supports the face, jaw, scalp, neck, lymph, fascia and acupressure points. It is ideal for people who hold stress in their face, grind their teeth, clench their jaw, feel tension around the brow or temples, or want a facial treatment that works much deeper than the skin.
Head, Neck and Face Massage
This treatment focuses on the areas where many people carry stress: shoulders, neck, scalp, jaw and face. It can be especially supportive for people who feel mentally busy, physically tense, head-heavy, or unable to switch off.
Distance Reiki
Distance Reiki allows you to receive a quiet, grounding Reiki treatment from home. This can be helpful if you feel tired, overstimulated, unwell, emotionally overwhelmed or unable to attend in person.
A simple vagus nerve practice
This is a small practice you can try now. Do not force it, do not try to make yourself calm. Just let the body receive a few cues of safety…
Sit or lie down and let your body feel supported. Place one hand on your chest and one hand on your lower belly.
Let your jaw loosen a little. Let your tongue rest. Let your shoulders drop away from your ears. Take a normal breath in through the nose, then let the breath out slowly and gently, as if you are sighing through the body rather than pushing air out.
Let the exhale be just slightly longer than the inhale. Then look around the room and name three ordinary things you can see… a wall, a window, the floor. A cup, a chair, a patch of light. This tells the body something important.
I am here, this is now. There is support underneath me. I do not have to hold quite so tightly in this moment.
That is where regulation often begins, not with a breakthrough. With the body recognising safety.
Book a nervous-system support treatment
If your body has been living in stress, tension, overwhelm, shutdown or constant bracing, you do not need to keep pushing through. My work is here to support the body in the way the body understands: through safety, stillness, therapeutic touch, Reiki, fascia-informed work, breath, warmth and presence.