“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well” (KJV, Psalm 139:14).
Heavenly Father designed a wonder-filled home for our eternal being to live in during our years here.
Yet, we often experience more pain than pleasantness in that home – the physical body – which is not Father’s goodwill.
Why?
“My people destroyed for lack of knowledge” (NIV, Hosea 4:6).
There is a belief in believers (of all things!) that Heavenly Father cares very much about spiritual things and as for physical things, well, we’re on our own. So, a common response is begging prayer for relief and healing.
First, more than anything in the entire multi-verses of existence, Father loves and cares for you. And me. His focus, and all of Heaven with Him, is on His love and belief in you and I, through the love and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, becoming who He created us to be.
Healing is a given. It’s the natural state He designed for the physical body.
Yet, children of God hurt in their physical bodies and pray, and when there is no perceivable change, feel that He does not care, and is not answering their prayers. Thus, we suffer twice: 1. for whatever issue is hurting us and 2. for perceiving He did not hear or care, etc. This is manipulated by Father’s ancient enemy to hurt Him and us.
When our prayers, directed in faith to our Heavenly Father, are not answered as we’d hoped, there are a couple of main reasons.
1. The prayer is answered in a different way or time than we expected.
2. The answer is bigger than we anticipated.
3. We’re not aiming in the right direction.
So, what’s (at least some of) this lack of knowledge that’s destroying the very people He loves so dearly?
Two States
There are two main states in the central nervous system (CNS) which is Father’s command center of operations for the physical body. The sympathetic prepares the body to act quickly to stressful or threatening situations by activating the fight or flight response. The parasympathetic nervous system calms the body and promotes the rest and digest response.
It Works Hard for You
The physical body works ‘round the clock for us. It does not differentiate between a real or perceived threat. If the physical body experiences a threat in a dream, encounters stress from relationships, communication, work, deadlines, etc., a traumatic memory triggered, or actual physical danger, it responds the same. It sends immediate help. This help response engages the whole body to meet the threat by a mass chemical release of the stress hormone and neurotransmitter adrenaline. This is a sympathetic nervous system response – fight, flight, or freeze. It’s Father’s way of making sure you have the energy you need to meet threats, protect yourself and others, and maintain safety.
However, if that adrenaline is not released from the body, then it can become trapped in the body as stored energy. Our bodies have to work harder, and they don’t recover in that state.
In addition to the chemical release, there are emotions, such as fear, anger, etc. Emotions have a heat signature. They can be “seen” by thermal imaging.
Creating Your World
“By faith we understand that the world has been created by the word of God so that what is seen has not been made out of things that are visible” (NASB, Hebrews 11:3).
We, too, create our “world” by things that are not visible. It’s by faith, too. However, that faith or belief may not be as we hope. We can have faith or belief in the negative. Think about that. It is with an intentional choice that we direct our faith and belief in Father’s word and design.
Those invisible intents and beliefs become visible as stress-inducing or traumatic situations face us. That causes invisible emotions to flow and chemicals to release in the physical body.
If they are not released, sooner rather than later, they “form” our physical bodies. They form pain in the body and dis-ease. However, because of the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ, there is redemption!
It is never too late to start anew. It is never too late to recognize and to release the backlog of pain that we’ve carried from past seasons. Jesus healed so many people who had been frozen in that unhealed state for many decades.
How to Shift Back to Parasympathetic State after a Shock or Trauma
Many times, it’s not healing that is needed, but a restoration of life and peace in the spirit and soul which has its true anchor in the Lord Jesus Christ rather than any healing modality without Him.
From that place what is needed is a release of the trauma and emotions that have been stored. If the stress is ongoing, it can throw off the balance of the physical body, keeping it in a state of hyper-vigilance, a heightened sympathetic state of the central nervous system.
To restore a felt sense of safety after an adrenaline-inducing experience, go to a safe, familiar place (if possible) and sit where your body feels support (a chair with a back, a bench, etc.). Look around the room and let your brain have time to register objects you know. After your brain has accessed the surroundings, it will signal the body that safety is restored. Then, the body can begin to shift to a parasympathetic state (rest and digest mode).
In the animal kingdom, creatures shake after a harrowing event.
It is their physical shaking that releases the energy and emotion of adrenaline and the other chemicals involved.
The point is this. Much pain and suffering in the physical body is a backlog of pent-up chemicals and stress hormones that were released by Father’s wonderful design to help us in moments and days of hardship and trauma.
These no longer serve us. It is time to recover your (parasympathetic) state!
Our prayers to “release it to the Lord” from our whole beings — everywhere it’s stored, spirit, soul, physical body — who will graciously take it while giving our “yes” to Him sometimes shifts it immediately. For sure, it jump-starts the process.
Some Physical Ways to Shift into the Parasympathetic State
The sympathetic state is the stress response of the body to meet an urgent need. It is Father’s wonderful design.
Staying in a sympathetic state will cause the body harm. It is akin to running a car engine without oil.
The parasympathetic state of the nervous system places the physical body in a condition of rest and digest. Here, healing is the natural state as the body repairs and rebuilds itself as Father designed.
1 Sit somewhere with support, look around the room, and let the brain register safety. When a deep sigh happens, it signals the release.
2 Shake it off. Physically. If you’re shaking, shake. It releases. If you can physically, shake or jump.
3 Let yourself cry – or scream (in a safe environment, possibly into a pillow).
4 Pray and tell Him honestly how you feel, remember King David used this often.
5 Write or journal. My English professor friend shared this, “An essay is to know (write) what I think. You come to know what you’re thinking as you write it out.”
6 Cold water or showers. Some athletes and healing modalities include ice baths. The cold shifts the nervous system into the parasympathetic state. Finishing bathing with 5, 15, or 20 seconds of cold water can help shift the nervous system.
7 Listen to water – in person, by app, by digital means, etc. The flow of water shifts the nervous system. Our Lord revealed His voice to John and He is the one who is our peace. “His voice was like the sound of many waters,” (NASB, Revelation 1:15).
8 Light. Allowing yourself to experience natural light, especially morning and evening sunlight, shifts the nervous system.
9 Nature. Father’s creation reveals Him and resounds with frequencies that our physical bodies need. Living plants, natural environments, trees, petting a pet, these living creatures allow us room to slow and to breathe and to shift our nervous system.
10 Breathe. Breathe, hold for 5 seconds, and release. Repeat. Taking time when we’re not in crisis to build our breathing helps shift and train our nervous system to be in and to revert to the parasympathetic state after an adrenaline-inducing experience.
11 Beauty. Whether it’s a flower in person or a flower in a picture, our brains recognize and respond to beauty. Our brains cannot exist in fear or love at the same time. It chooses. Notice the release and relaxation you feel as you intentionally choose to take a walk and notice a piece of beauty in Father’s masterful creation – or His creation in a picture.
12 Move. Take a walk. Employ gentle movement.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Hope Streams
Featured Image by danny moore from Pixabay
Comments are closed.