Salina Family Chiropractic - Spokane WA

Parasympathetic Dominance

Sympathetic Dominance

The Autonomic Nervous System regulates the internal body processes that require no conscious awareness; for example, the rate of heart contractions, the rate of breathing, the amount of stomach acid secreted, and the speed at which food passes through the digestive tract. We divide the Autonomic Nervous System into Sympathetic and Parasympathetic sides and they can be easily thought of as our body’s gas pedal and brakes. The Parasympathetic side influences resting, nourishing, and repair aspects of our body. While Parasympathetic influence is necessary, allowing recharge and recovery from stresses, unbalance to dominance prevents the proper operation of the Sympathetic side. Each of the two sides uses specific counterbalancing minerals and nutrients to fuel their controlling mechanisms. Think Parasympathetic dominance as an indicator for the need to supply the missing minerals and nutrients that support the opposite, Sympathetic side – primarily acid ash minerals including Phosphorus. Too much braking means we need more acceleration.

Parasympathetic Dominance can be indicated by the presence of symptoms that both show a slowed down, under-energetic nature, and an under-functioning of the Sympathetic side such as frequent illness, slow to heal injuries, dislike of exercise, and lack of motivation. It is important to note that it is possible to swing between states of Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Dominance. Like a pendulum between both extremes and indicates a need to nutritionally support both sides.

Primary indicators of Parasympathetic Dominance symptoms:

 Joint Stiffness on arising  Muscle-leg-toe cramps at night
 “Butterfly” stomach, cramps  Eyes or nose watery
 Eyes blink often  Eyelids swollen, puffy
 Indigestion soon after meals  Always seem hungry; feel “lightheaded” often
 Digestion rapid  Vomiting frequent
 Hoarseness frequent  Breathing irregular
 Pulse slow; feels “irregular”  Gagging reflex slow
 Difficulty swallowing  Constipation, diarrhea alternating
 “Slow starter”  Get “chilled” infrequently
 Perspire easily  Circulation poor, sensitive to cold
 Subject to colds, asthma, bronchitis

Nutrition is essential to overall health! Feeding the body properly keeps our systems working well and working together. A deficiency within one system may cause an array of issues throughout the body.

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