When I learnt about Homeostasis, I had another level of awe awaken in me about the wisdom contained within the human body. The body has complex mechanisms built in to it to regulate itself. You may say similar to the seasons in the Natural World being there to ensure the planet is fed and nourished, so do our bodies.
The Hypothalamus is where Homeostasis happens and sits just above the brain stem, just above the pituitary gland. It regulates, emotions, behaviour, body temperature, appetite and weight, childbirth, growth, breast milk production, sleep-wake cycle and sex drive. A lot! This happens all through the regulation of a cascade of hormones that get released through the pituitary gland.
The Hypothalamus gets feedback from our external and internal environments as well as by hormone feedback. If levels of hormones are well, which happens when medication is taken as well as when the body is stable, it assumes that the body doesn’t need supportive action. This is why when medication is removed it takes a while for the body to recognise that it’s needed again to regulate, and the body may go into emergency measures to correct the new imbalance.
Stress, a very common response to modern times, has a big impact on the regulation of all the systems. Particularly cortisol which can become less available as an anti-inflammatory to the Immune System when heavily used in the Stress response, so Chronic Inflammation is a common ailment I see.
The Nervous System, in particular the Vagus Nerve also impacts the Hypothalamus, using Neuroception, to notice when danger is present and bringing the necessary responses to the Autonomic and Parasympathetic nervous systems via the Hypothalamus to prepare the body. This can be interpreted as Anxiety, Panic Attacks, Depression or other symptoms when environments are particularly challenging for certain bodies.
The types of environments that modern life surrounds us with have drastically changed and as a consequence our regulating systems are working hard to catch up. Herbs are our allies to support us as they do. Herbs work with the Hypothalamus and nourish the systems around it, so that when herbs are removed the body is left more nourished and weaning off is not necessary as can be the case with pharmaceuticals.
Many ailments can be supported with herbs that support the bodies regulation. Send me a message if you’d like to discuss this more or to book a consultation
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