The Vagus Nerve – Our Body’s Healing Switch

After writing my previous article on the Autonomic nervous system, I travelled down a little Vagus nerve rabbit hole. The Vagus nerve is the main nerve of the parasympathetic nervous system and major pathway for the communication required between the brain and the body’s internal organs, such as the Heart, lungs and digestive system. If we can stimulate the Vagus nerve, we can restore balance to conditions such as depression and anxiety, potentially heart failure, and epilepsy too! Our systems work together to create Homeostasis – if we can work on stimulating the Vagus nerve, we can bring our bodies back into Homeostasis. That is not something to glaze over.

So now, in times where there are screens galore, magic potions and biohacks, we often overlook something profoundly powerful that’s been within us all along; the Vagus nerve. It’s absolutely the unsung hero of your nervous system, quietly orchestrating healing, calming your mind, and regulating vital functions. And the best bit, we can actually learn to work with it! This article is your guide to understanding the vagus nerve, why it matters so much for health, and how to ignite its healing magic, even in our chaotic, busy modern lives.

What is the Vagus Nerve & Why Should We Care?

The vagus nerve (from Latin vagus, meaning “wandering”) is the longest cranial nerve in the body. It runs from the brainstem, through the neck, down into the chest and abdomen, touching the heart (so cute), lungs, and digestive organs along the way. It’s a key part of the parasympathetic nervous system, the “rest and digest” branch.

When your vagus nerve is toned (like a muscle), your body is better able to:

• Calm down after stress
• Regulate heart rate and blood pressure
• Digest food properly
• Sleep more deeply
• Reduce inflammation
• Maintain a balanced mood

It is essentially your inner healing highway. Tell me that’s not cool.

Anxiety & The Vagus Nerve

I heard a quote a while back, and it’s so simple but for some reason it just hit differently; it was from Emma Stone and she said “Anxiety is something that is a part of me but it’s not who I am” – now it sounds obvious right? – but honestly to someone who has suffered with anxiety for the best part of 18 years, you really do start to believe that it IS who you are, so hearing this really made me contemplate that actually that’s right, anxiety is NOT who we are, it really is just an experience that we have, an emotion that we fell and face as part and parcel of being human.

Anxiety isn’t just a mental thing either, it’s a full-body experience that puts your nervous system on high alert. When you're anxious, your body flips into “fight or flight” mode, which is great if you’re running from a lion, but not so great when you're just trying to do your weekly shop in Tesco. Your heart races, your breath gets shallow, your digestion slows down, it’s your sympathetic nervous system kicking in. The problem is, when anxiety becomes chronic, your body starts to live in this stressed-out state, and that’s where the vagus nerve comes in.

The vagus nerve is like your internal chill-out switch. It helps activate the parasympathetic nervous system, the part that tells your body it's safe, so it can relax, digest, and recover. But when you're constantly stressed or anxious, the vagus nerve kind of gets ignored or overridden, making it harder for you to calm down naturally. Over time, this can affect everything from your mood and sleep to your gut health and immune system. But let’s look at the good news (there is some I promise!) – There are ways to wake the vagus nerve up; through things like breathwork, cold exposure, meditation, and even certain supplements. Supporting vagus nerve health is basically helping your body remember how to relax, which we could all use a bit more of these days. So let’s have a look at ways to stimulate the Vagus nerve…

How Do We Stimulate the Vagus Nerve?

Here’s the magic: the vagus nerve can be stimulated naturally, and regularly, through simple, gentle practices. You don’t need to retreat to a monastery or live off-grid (even though that’s great if you do), in fact, these techniques can be woven beautifully into our “normal” routines. Let’s have a look:

Breathwork (Slow It Down)
The vagus nerve responds to slow, deep, diaphragmatic breathing. This is not the shallow chest-breathing we do when scrolling or stressing.
Try this: Inhale slowly through the nose for 4 counts, hold for 4, exhale through the mouth for 6–8 counts. Do this for 2–5 minutes, especially when feeling anxious or before meals.

Cold Exposure (It Doesn’t Have to Be Wim Hof!)
Brief cold exposure, like splashing your face with cold water or ending your shower cold, stimulates the vagus nerve and activates the parasympathetic system.
Morning ritual tip: Rinse your face with cold water upon waking. Or end your warm shower with 30 seconds of cool water, building up tolerance.

Humming, Chanting, Singing
The vagus nerve runs near your vocal cords. Making sound (especially prolonged, low vibrations) activates it.
In practice: Hum gently during a walk, chant a mantra (like OM), or sing along to music in the car. It’s so healing and incredibly joyful (and people think you're nuts, it’s great!).

Mindful Eating
Digestion is heavily controlled by the vagus nerve. When we rush through meals, eat while stressed, or scroll during dinner, we hijack our ability to digest properly.
The ancient trick: Bless your food. Breathe before eating. Chew slowly. These aren't just quaint traditions, they’re vagal toners.

Connection & Safe Touch
The vagus nerve is deeply responsive to safe, nurturing relationships. This includes hugs, holding hands, eye contact, and kind words.
Vagal therapy for the modern world: Spend 10 minutes with someone you trust, fully present. No phone, no agenda. Just connection. This is pure medicine for the Soul and nectar for your nervous system.

Magnesium, Ashwaganda & CoQ10 – Supporting Vagal Tone

Magnesium, often referred to as nature’s relaxant, plays a crucial role in supporting parasympathetic nervous system activity. The “rest and digest” arm of the autonomic nervous system governed by the vagus nerve. Particularly in forms like magnesium glycinate or L-threonate, it helps calm the central nervous system, reduce excitatory neurotransmitter activity, and promote better sleep and stress recovery. In everyday life, individuals who experience chronic stress, poor sleep, or symptoms of anxiety may have an overactive sympathetic response, often manifesting as shallow breathing, rapid heartbeat, or digestive upset. Magnesium helps counter this by enhancing vagal tone, improving heart rate variability (HRV), and fostering the body’s ability to enter a more restorative state. It’s especially important given that many people are magnesium-deficient due to poor dietary intake or high stress levels, both of which can impair vagus nerve function.

Ashwagandha, an adaptogenic herb rooted in Ayurvedic medicine, supports vagus nerve health by modulating the stress response and promoting a more balanced autonomic nervous system. Chronic stress keeps the body in a prolonged fight-or-flight mode, reducing vagal activity and leading to symptoms like fatigue, irritability, and poor immune resilience. Ashwagandha helps recalibrate this system by lowering cortisol levels and enhancing the body’s resilience to physical and emotional stress. When the stress burden is reduced, the vagus nerve can function more optimally, allowing the parasympathetic system to dominate when appropriate. This translates to better mood stability, improved digestion, and more restful sleep, benefits that people can feel in their everyday routines. Ancient Purity Supplies Ashwaganda (Extract) 10:1

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), while best known for its role in cellular energy production and cardiovascular health, it also contributes to vagus nerve support by enhancing mitochondrial function and reducing oxidative stress. The vagus nerve is involved in regulating heart function, and studies suggest that CoQ10 can improve heart rate variability, a key biomarker of vagal activity. In practical terms, supplementing with CoQ10 can help individuals (especially those dealing with fatigue, brain fog, or heart-related issues) experience better energy levels and a more balanced nervous system. Since vagal tone is closely linked with overall vitality and resilience, CoQ10’s role in sustaining cellular health makes it an important, though often overlooked, ally in supporting the body’s neurovisceral pathways. Ancient Purity Supplies Highly Absorbable Liposomal CoQ10

Modern Life, Ancient Body (Let’s Make it Work!)

We live fast, but the vagus nerve is timeless. It doesn’t need all the gadgets or gurus. It needs space. Stillness. Warmth. Intention. Let’s have a look at how to make vagus nerve healing a part of life, not another to-do:

• During commutes: Try humming or deep breathing in traffic instead of getting tense.
• At your desk: Take 3 deep breaths every hour. Set a reminder if needed.
• Evening wind-down: End the day with a candle-lit bath, music, or breathwork, not a blue-lit doom scroll.
• With family: Eat together, tech-free. Laugh more. Hug more. All of it tones the vagus nerve. Also Read: The Power of Laughter

We’re constantly told healing comes from the outside; new tech, new trends etc, and while some of those are helpful, don’t forget the profound, ancient healing already built into your body. The vagus nerve reminds us that rest is productive. Stillness is medicine. Connection is essential. And healing is within. It’s not about escaping modern life, but bringing more nature, ritual, and presence into it.

Breathe. Hum. Slow down. Let your body remember how to heal. We were born with a complete pharmacy in our miraculous bodies of everything we’d ever need. We just need to slow down long enough, get quiet enough to remember what’s within.

“Did you know you can’t have thoughts while humming” – Aromalabnz