Stress Connection
Posted on February 22, 2009 |
You fly past a cop while you’re going 20 miles over the speed limit, or you’re about to give a speech or go on a job interview. All of a sudden, you feel
cramping stomach pain, the need to rush to the bathroom. What gives?
Blame the enteric nervous system (ENS). It’s your gut’s “brain,” and it has its own muscles, nerves and neurotransmitters, which tell the gut to move its contents through the body.
The ENS is always communicating with your brain, sending signals back and forth. But when you’re stressed, there are an abnormal number of signals
firing away. That can lead to discomfort, says Dr. Foxx-Orenstein. The vagus nerve, which runs from the brain to the intestines, is also at play here, says Mehmet C. Oz, MD, director of the Cardiovascular Institute at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City and coauthor of the You health books. “There’s a very close connection between your brain and your gut, so it’s not surprising to think that if your brain is overstressed, the same thing is happening through meditation, exercise, deep breathing, yoga, or whatever works for you, may help ease your symptoms.