Podcast Recommendations For Nervous System Soothing

A Spotify playlist with some of my favorite podcast episodes on managing emotional dysregulation and understanding our nervous systems. These are episodes I recommend again and again as a therapist in Oakland, CA. 

As a therapist, I want you to know more about your inner world...and your nervous system. Understanding your nervous system can play a significant role in supporting and improving your mental health. The nervous system, which includes the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) and the peripheral nervous system (nerves throughout the body), is responsible for regulating various bodily functions, including your emotional and psychological well-being. Below are podcasts with generalized information and information how to manage an overactive nervous system.

Here's how understanding your nervous system can benefit your mental health:

1. Recognizing stress responses: The nervous system is intricately involved in the body's stress response. Understanding how your nervous system responds to stress can help you identify and recognize the physical and emotional signs of stress, such as increased heart rate, muscle tension, racing thoughts, or changes in mood. This awareness allows you to take proactive steps to manage stress effectively.
2. Regulating emotions: The nervous system plays a role in regulating emotions by coordinating the release of neurotransmitters and hormones in the brain. Understanding how your nervous system influences your emotional state can help you recognize patterns and triggers that affect your mood. By becoming aware of these patterns, you can develop strategies to regulate and stabilize your emotions more effectively.
3. Managing anxiety and fear: The sympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system is responsible for the body's "fight-or-flight" response, which is triggered in situations of perceived danger or threat. Understanding how this response works can help you recognize and manage anxiety and fear more effectively. By employing relaxation techniques, deep breathing exercises, or grounding techniques, you can activate the parasympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system, which promotes relaxation and a sense of calm.
4. Building resilience: Knowledge about your nervous system can help you develop resilience, which is the ability to bounce back from adversity. Understanding that your nervous system responds to stress and trauma can help you appreciate that your reactions are a natural part of your biology. This understanding can reduce self-judgment and self-blame, allowing you to focus on building coping mechanisms and seeking support when needed.
5. Self-care and self-regulation: Understanding how your nervous system functions can guide you in developing self-care practices that support your mental health. Activities such as regular exercise, mindfulness and relaxation techniques, and  adequate sleep can positively influence your nervous system and promote mental well-being.

---

Looking from a trauma therapist in Oakland, CA? Learn more here.

Looking for a queer couples therapist in Oakland, CA? Learn more here. ​

podcasts to calm down