The Relaxation Response

As you can see, there are multiple nuances to the concept of self-care. One thing they all come back to is the Relaxation Response.

You’ve probably heard of the Fight-Flight-or-Freeze Response. That’s your body’s reaction to stress, and as we were evolving and vulnerable to predators, they were good reactions to have! The FFF Response helps you react to perceived dangers so you can avoid them quickly.

The problem is that while most of us are no longer in danger of being attacked by lions or trampled on by elephants, our bodies haven’t caught up to this reality, and we’re likely to react to interpersonal conflict, transportation struggles, and other non-life threatening interactions in similar ways.

We can think of the Relaxation Response as the opposite of and the antidote to the FFF Response. When we’re under stress, our sympathetic nervous system goes into overdrive. The Relaxation Response helps soothe our sympathetic nervous system, clear out stress chemicals, and allows our parasympathetic nervous system to take over. In almost all of the Self-Care activities we discuss in this course, we’re essentially trying to cultivate the Relaxation Response.

What, exactly, happens during the Relaxation Response?

According to Psychology Today:

Deep relaxation and meditation allows the parasympathetic nervous system to become active by down-regulating the sympathetic nervous system. What happens is that once the sympathetic nervous system shuts down, the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA [gamma-Aminobutyric acid] is no longer prevented from acting on the GABA receptors that are present everywhere in the nervous system.

GABA is the brain’s own tranquilizer. It down-regulates the brain’s electricity. When GABA is active, brain waves in the slow theta range (4 to 7 Hertz) increase. While brain waves in the higher frequency range play an important role in concentration, communication and problem solving, theta waves are important for maintaining a good balance in brain chemicals.

...[Relaxation] thus ultimately slows down brain waves, which rejuvenates the brain’s chemistry and gives rise to a calmer state of mind... (1)

IMPORTANT: The Relaxation Response has its limits. While the majority of people report feeling better using the methods we’re going to cover in this course, people who are suffering from certain disorders such as depression, anxiety, and obsessive compulsive disorder (among others) can find that their symptoms worsen when used without “talk” therapy or medication. And that’s okay. These techniques are meant to make you feel better, not cure you of a mental health condition. And while numerous therapists do recommend these methods for their patients, most would not feel that they were an adequate substitute for therapy or medication. Please enjoy these techniques for what they are and don’t put pressure on them - or yourself - to be what they are not.

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