Stop the Panic: 3 Somatic Exercises to Reset Your Nervous System
When anxiety hits, your brain thinks it’s in danger. No amount of “thinking positive” will fix it because the alarm isn’t in your mind—it’s in your body.
These 3 somatic exercises work “bottom-up” to signal safety to your Vagus Nerve, effectively turning off the fight-or-flight response in under 5 minutes.
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1. The “Voo” Sound (Vagus Nerve Stimulation)
- Why it works: The Vagus Nerve passes through your vocal cords. Creating a low-frequency vibration physically massages the nerve, signaling your body to calm down.
- How to do it:
- Inhale deeply into your belly.
- On the exhale, make a low, foghorn-like sound: “Vooooooo.”
- Focus on feeling the vibration in your chest and belly.
- Repeat 3-5 times until you feel a “sigh” or yawn.
2. The Eye Orienting (The “Scanning” Technique)
- Why it works: When we are anxious, we get tunnel vision. Deliberately moving your eyes and neck tells your primal brain, “I have checked the environment, and there are no tigers here.”
- How to do it:
- Sit comfortably.
- Slowly turn your head to the far left, looking over your shoulder.
- Pause and find one specific object (a lamp, a plant). Name it in your head.
- Slowly pan all the way to the right. Find an object.
- Repeat slowly for 1 minute.
3. The Butterfly Hug (Bilateral Stimulation)
- Why it works: Tapping opposite sides of the body helps process stuck emotions and brings you back to the present moment.
- How to do it:
- Cross your arms over your chest, hooking your thumbs so your hands look like a butterfly.
- Tap your chest alternating left and right (tap, tap, tap, tap).
- Find a rhythm that mimics a resting heartbeat.
- Do this for 2 minutes while breathing slowly.
Pro Tip: If you have trouble making the “Voo” sound yourself, I recommend the Sensate device. It sits on your chest and uses infrasonic resonance to tone your Vagus Nerve automatically. It’s like a shortcut to calm.
Somatic Exercises 