Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider before making changes to your diet, lifestyle, or medical care.

Why Worry? Finding Calm in a Busy World | Windback NZ

Finding calm in a busy world: understanding your stress response

When we allow ourselves to become caught in worry, fear, or anxiety, something powerful happens in the body. Our sympathetic nervous system switches on. This is part of the fight-or-flight response, an ancient survival mechanism designed to keep us safe from immediate threats.

But here is the challenge. In our modern world, most of our “threats” are not wild animals, they are bills, deadlines,
and daily stress. When we live in a constant state of vigilance, the sympathetic nervous system never really switches off.

What happens in the body?

• The heart beats faster
• Breathing becomes shallow
• Muscles tighten
• Digestion slows down
• The body becomes more acidic and inflamed

Over time, this constant “on” switch places strain on the body. Tightened cell membranes may not receive nutrients as effectively, enzymes do not function optimally, and natural repair processes are disrupted. Left unchecked, this pattern of stress can contribute to fatigue and poor resilience.

The opposite system: rest and repair

The good news is that we also have the parasympathetic
nervous system, sometimes called the rest and digest system. This is where healing, repair, and restoration occur. We feel calmer, digestion improves, sleep deepens, and the body’s energy returns to balance.

How to reset your nervous system

You do not need to live in a state of constant vigilance. Simple daily practices can gently shift you from fight-or-flight
into rest-and-repair:

• The physiological sigh (Dr Andrew Huberman’s tip) – Take a deep inhale, then a quick second sip of air at the top, followed by a long, slow exhale. Just one to three of these cycles can rapidly calm the nervous system and lower stress in minutes.
• Breathe deeply – Try 4-7-8 breathin (inhale for four, hold for seven, exhale for eight). This activates the vagus nerve and helps ease tension.
• Ground yourself – Step outside barefoot, notice the sky, and take in fresh air.
• Faith and focus – Replace “what if things go wrong?” with “what if things go right?” This mindset shift can help ease worry.
• Move mindfully – Gentle walking, stretching, or yoga may help release tension and signal safety to the body.
• Gratitude practice – Write down three small things that went well today. This helps redirect the brain away from fear and into trust.

Dr Casey Means on stress and health

Functional medicine doctor and author Dr Casey Means often reminds us that stress is not just in the mind. It directly shapes the body’s chemistry. When we live in fight-or-flight mode:

• Blood sugar can rise as the body prepares for quick energy, even if we are not running from danger.
• Inflammation increases, making us more vulnerable to long-term imbalance.
• Mitochondria (our cellular “power plants”) may struggle, leading to tiredness and reduced resilience.

Her advice is to create a daily rhythm that reassures your body it is safe. Practices like mindful breathing, balanced
nutrition, quality sleep, and time in nature help activate the body’s restorative pathways.

She also highlights two useful strategies:

• Using a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) – Many people are surprised to see that stressful meetings or emotional tension cause blood sugar to spike in a similar way to eating processed food. This awareness can be a powerful motivator to manage stress more intentionally.
• Building “stress buffers” into your day – Do not wait until you are overwhelmed. Schedule breaks for breathing, stretching, or reflection before the pressure builds. These micro-moments of calm change how your body processes bigger challenges.

This aligns with the calming breathwork of Dr Andrew Huberman’s physiological sigh. Together, they show us that even
small, intentional moments of calm can support health at a deep cellular level.

A personal reflection

I have often noticed in my own life that the things I worried about most intensely never actually happened. Instead, the real challenges were the ones I never even saw coming. This taught me something valuable. Worrying is rarely useful.

What is useful is asking, “What is the worst that could happen?” and then calmly putting a plan in place to address it if it does. Once you have done that, there is nothing left for the
mind to circle around. You can release the worry and redirect your energy into living.

A gentle reminder

Stress is part of life, but we do not have to live in stress. By giving your nervous system moments of calm, you support your body’s ability to restore balance and thrive.

When you choose calm over fear, you invite healing. When you trust that life is unfolding for you, not against you, your body listens.

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