Stress, Trauma & Why Your Nervous System Needs More Than Journaling
- Shane Warren
- Jul 10
- 4 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
As a therapist, I hate to break it to you, but… if your nervous system is stuck in survival mode, no amount of journaling, meditation apps, or positive affirmations are going to “fix” it.
Don’t get me wrong, I love journaling and I’ve seen meditation change lives; that is why I prescribe and teach both in my work. But if your body is still running like it’s being chased by a sabre-toothed tiger, you can’t “mindset” your way out of it.
Here’s why:
Your Nervous System: The Original Operating System
Your nervous system is a sprawling network of 86 billion neurons stretching from your brain to your body. It’s the control tower that decides whether you’re in:
Sympathetic mode (fight/flight): Adrenaline pumping, heart racing, digestion on pause, body braced for survival.
Parasympathetic mode (rest/digest): Calm heart rate, deep breath, food digesting properly, immune system switched on.
Every emotion you feel, every stress response you have, starts here.
But here’s the kicker: when stress hangs around too long, your HPA axis (hypothalamus–pituitary–adrenal system) gets stuck in overdrive.
That means:→ Cortisol stays high→ Digestion & immunity shut down→ Heart rate & blood pressure stay elevated. And when that happens not for hours, but for months, or years, stress stops being “temporary” and starts being trauma.
7 Practices That Help Reset Your Nervous System
The good news? Your body already knows how to heal. You just need to send it the right signals. Here are seven techniques grounded in both neuroscience and ancient wisdom that can help:
1. Neurogenic Tremoring (TRE)
Ever notice how animals shake after escaping danger? That’s their nervous system discharging trauma. Humans? We suppress it. Which is why we stay stuck.Gentle tremor-inducing exercises, known as TRE or Tension & Trauma Release Exercise, can release decades of stored stress from the body. It’s shaking therapy, but not in a nightclub way. You can start by just being brave enough to shake the body – shake off the stress.
2. Humming at 40–60 Hz
Bees, monks, singers, they’re all onto something. Humming at around 40-60 Hz stimulates the vagus nerve (your “calm switch”), boosting digestion, sleep, and emotional balance. Daily humming = a vibration massage for your nervous system.
3. 5-Second Breathing (or 4-7-8)
Your lungs are the remote control for your stress.Try this: Inhale for 5 seconds → Exhale for 5 seconds → Repeat. It balances oxygen & CO₂, lowers heart rate, and signals safety to the brain. The 4-7-8 breath (inhale 4, hold 7, exhale 8) is another gold standard.
4. Sound Healing Frequencies
Certain frequencies (432 Hz, 528 Hz) can literally shift brainwave states. Research shows they calm the amygdala and deepen relaxation. Ten minutes of sound healing can reset stress physiology. Yes, your Spotify or iTunes can double as therapy - so download some monks chanting and let yourself surrender to the zone.
5. EFT Tapping
Emotions live in the body. By gently tapping acupressure points while naming your feelings, you interrupt stress loops and send “reset” messages to your brain. One study even found EFT can lower cortisol levels by up to 43% in a single session. Grab our Tapping Journal in the resources centre of this website to get started on how to achieve this.
6. PMR (Progressive Muscle Relaxation)
Stress hides in your muscles. With PMR, you tense one muscle group, hold, then release teaching your brain the difference between tension and calm. It lowers anxiety and dramatically improves sleep. Yoga and Qi Gong are two exercise classes worth exploring to help with this.
7. Somatic Shaking
Ancient cultures danced, shook, and pulsed their way into altered states of healing. Neuroscience now confirms rhythmic shaking helps discharge trapped “survival energy.” Two minutes of shaking can leave you lighter, calmer, and more grounded. I’d challenge you to pick up our 33-Day Dance Challenge and give it a go, you will be amazed how different you feel.
The Big Lesson
Your nervous system doesn’t speak English. It speaks sensation. That’s why affirmations, journaling, and talking can only take you so far. To really heal stress and trauma, you need to work with the body, not against it.
So yes, therapy is talking. But it’s also humming, tapping, shaking, and breathing.
Your Reset Button Exists
To heal trauma, calm stress, and restore balance, focus on:
Somatic practices: TRE, shaking, body scans
Breathwork methods: 5-second breathing, 4-7-8, physiological sigh
Vagus nerve activation: humming, sound, cold exposure
It’s not just “in your head.” It’s in your body. And the beautiful truth… Your body already knows how to heal, you just have to give it the right signals.
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