What You Need To Know About Your Nervous System (That Yoga Never Taught You)

We often approach yoga as a physical or even spiritual practice, but rarely are we taught how yoga affects the nervous system, the central interface between stress, safety, and self-regulation.

From a scientific standpoint, the autonomic nervous system (ANS) governs much more than most people realize. It controls heart rate, breathing, digestion, immune function, muscle tension, and even our capacity to feel present, grounded, and socially connected.

The ANS includes three key branches:

• Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) – associated with fight-or-flight responses

• Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS) – associated with rest, digestion, and repair

• Within the PNS, Polyvagal Theory identifies two distinct branches:

  • Dorsal vagal (linked to freeze/shutdown responses)

  • Ventral vagal (associated with safety, connection, and regulation)

When we experience chronic stress — whether from trauma, overwork, burnout, or systemic pressure — our nervous system may become dysregulated. This can result in:

• Sympathetic dominance → anxiety, insomnia, irritability, gut issues

• Dorsal vagal shutdown → fatigue, dissociation, brain fog, disconnection

The challenge?

Most people don’t know this is what’s happening. They assume it’s a mindset issue. But it’s not. It’s your biology doing its job — attempting to protect you from perceived threat, often long after the threat has passed.

The good news is that neuroplasticity—the brain and nervous system’s capacity to change—means that healing is absolutely possible. And this is where yoga becomes more than just movement or mindfulness.

Research shows that practices like yoga and slow, conscious breathing increase GABA (a calming neurotransmitter), stimulate the vagus nerve (critical for down-regulating stress), and improve HRV (heart rate variability) — one of the best indicators of nervous system flexibility and health.

But here’s the key: not all yoga is equally supportive for nervous system healing. In fact, some fast-paced or intense practices may activate the very survival states you're trying to soothe. Knowing the difference is important. That’s why I created the Yoga & The Nervous System program.

This 6-session eCourse combines:

• Digestible psychology & neuroscience-based lectures

• Targeted asana and movement practices

• Evidence-informed breathwork

• Somatic awareness tools to restore safety and resilience

• And nervous system–aligned teaching frameworks for practitioners and teachers

You’ll learn why these practices work, how to apply them based on your own (or your students’) nervous system state, and how to integrate this into long-term regulation and recovery. Because healing isn’t about doing more — it’s about doing what works, for your body and your biology.

If you’re ready to stop surviving and start regulating, then add your name to the waitlist.

**Waitlistees get priority registration and exclusive discounts.