The vagus nerve and feeling safe in your body
By Ruth Edwards · · 6 min read
The vagus nerve is the longest cranial nerve in the body, running from the brainstem through the face, throat, heart, lungs and digestive organs. It plays an important role in how your body regulates itself, but it’s only one part of a much bigger system. Rather than “stimulating” it, it’s more accurate to think about supporting your nervous system to become more flexible over time.
You might have heard the term vagus nerve being mentioned more and more, especially in conversations around anxiety, trauma and nervous system regulation.
But what actually is it, and why does it matter so much when it comes to how you feel day to day?
What is the vagus nerve?
The vagus nerve is the longest cranial nerve in the body. It runs from the brainstem down through the face, throat, heart, lungs and digestive organs.
It's a key part of the autonomic nervous system – the system responsible for regulating things like heart rate, breathing, digestion and stress responses.
The vagus nerve is part of the parasympathetic branch, which is involved in slowing things down, supporting recovery, and enabling states of connection and restoration. It also plays a role in communication between the brain and body, constantly sending and receiving information about what's happening internally.
Understanding nervous system states
Your nervous system is always shifting between different states depending on what's happening around you. Broadly speaking, these include:
The vagal terms here come from Polyvagal Theory, which many people find a useful way to describe these states, though researchers still debate it. These states are part of how your body responds and adapts. We need all of them.
The key is not to stay in one state all the time, but to be able to move between them and return towards balance when the situation has passed.
Why the vagus nerve matters
The vagus nerve plays an important role in how your body regulates itself, but it's only one part of a much bigger system.
Ideally, we don't stay in just one state. We move in and out of them throughout the day. What really matters is how easily your system can return towards balance after activation. This is sometimes described as nervous system flexibility or regulation capacity.
You may also hear the term vagal tone, which is one way of describing how effectively this pathway supports regulation in the body. Higher vagal tone is generally associated with a greater ability to:
- settle after stress
- adapt to changing situations
- feel more present and engaged
But this isn't just about the vagus nerve on its own. Your capacity to regulate is shaped by many factors, including your past experiences, your environment, your physiology, and the practices you engage in regularly.
The link between the body and emotional experience
Your emotional state isn't just created by your thoughts. It's shaped by what your body is experiencing.
If your nervous system detects something as threatening – whether that threat is happening now or is linked to something unresolved from the past – your body can respond automatically. And when your system is activated in that way, it can be harder to think clearly.
This may be why mindset tools don't always land when someone feels overwhelmed or shut down. It can help to settle your body first.
Supporting nervous system flexibility
You may have heard people talk about ‘stimulating the vagus nerve’. A more accurate way to think about this is supporting your nervous system to become more flexible over time. Some ways this can be supported include:
- Slow, rhythmic breathing – such as inhale for 5, exhale for 5, through the nose
- Longer exhales – which can support parasympathetic activity
- Gentle vocalisation – humming, singing or gargling
- Orienting to your environment – looking around and noticing what feels neutral or safe enough
- Grounding through the body – feeling your feet, your body in contact with a chair, or movement
- Cold water on the face – which can activate reflexes linked to the parasympathetic system
Used regularly, they are ways of helping your system build capacity and responsiveness over time.
You'll find more simple practices like these in my free guide, Get Out of Your Head.
Why this matters for healing
If your system has spent a long time in protective states, it doesn't simply switch out of them because life looks different now.
The brain and body don't always clearly distinguish between past and present if something hasn't been fully processed. So even when you know you're safe, your body may still respond as if there's a threat.
This is where body-based approaches become important. By working with the nervous system, you can begin to:
- reduce the intensity of those responses
- feel more present in your body
- respond rather than react
- gradually build a sense of safety from within
A final thought
This work isn't about forcing yourself to feel calm all the time. It's about supporting your system to become more adaptable, so it can respond when needed, and settle again afterwards.
Your body already has the capacity to regulate. Sometimes it just needs the right support, and the right conditions, to find its way back there.
If this speaks to you, this is the kind of work I do with clients – helping you understand your nervous system, build regulation skills, and gently process what your body has been holding, so you can feel more like yourself again.
Related support: Nervous system regulation coaching online · Narcissistic abuse recovery · Free body check-in
Quick answers
What is the vagus nerve?
The vagus nerve is the longest cranial nerve in the body. It runs from the brainstem down through the face, throat, heart, lungs and digestive organs.
Can you stimulate the vagus nerve to feel calmer?
You may hear people talk about stimulating the vagus nerve. A more accurate way to think about it is supporting your nervous system to become more flexible over time, because the vagus nerve is only one part of a much bigger system.
Why don’t mindset tools always work when I’m overwhelmed?
When your nervous system is activated, it can be harder to think clearly. Mindset tools may not land when someone feels overwhelmed or shut down, so it can help to settle your body first.
Is the goal to feel calm all the time?
No. The aim is to help your system become more adaptable, so it can respond when needed and settle again afterwards.
Sources
- Past and present: Ehlers, A. and Clark, D. M. (2000). A cognitive model of posttraumatic stress disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 38(4), 319–345. This model describes how trauma memories can feel as if they are happening now, in people with PTSD.
This article is for general information. Coaching is not a substitute for therapy or medical care. If you’re in the UK and need urgent help, call 999, NHS 111 (option 2) or Samaritans on 116 123. If you’re elsewhere, contact your local emergency services.
Ruth Edwards is a somatic trauma-informed coach and Brainspotting practitioner, working online worldwide and in person in Shropshire, UK. About Ruth
