Vagal tone, stress coping & childhood trauma; and salicylate excess lab results (mine*)

Also Positive Psychology exercise for increasing self-regulation and stress coping. *I get a new batch of lab results tomorrow. These were from Nov 4 when I had worse leg swelling, lymphedema.

Vagal tone was mentioned by The Barefoot Healer as being important for mitochondrial health. What is vagal tone though? I wasn’t sure. Or how to improve it? Breathing exercises but what else? Cold water face immersion - check, that is how I wake up in the morning. Laughter - I could use more of that. Other ideas and some of the breathing techniques: The Vagus Nerve, Your Secret Weapon in Fighting Stress, allied-services.org

“The vagus nerves are long nerves that connect the brain to several different parts of the body. One of the primary functions of the vagus nerves is the control of involuntary body functions such as digestion, heart rate, and breathing. Problems with the vagus nerves can cause a wide variety of symptoms depending on which part of the vagal nerve system is affected. Stimulation of the vagus nerves is sometimes used to treat epilepsy and may also be used to treat brain-related disorders such as depression and PTSD. […]

As part of the parasympathetic nervous system, the vagus nerves help control vital body functions such as:

• Heart rate

• Breathing

• Digestion

• Urination

• Immune system activity

In addition to its parasympathetic functions, the vagus nerve also plays a role in taste and touch perception, the movement of muscles involved in speech and swallowing, and mood regulation.

Vagal Nerve Disorders - Fast Facts, United Brain Association.

Music of healing frequencies can help vagal nerve function.

Image and lots more information are in this excellent post, a repost from GreenMedInfo, ‘VIBRATIONAL HEALING: Biological Mechanisms Underpinning Sound Therapy & Music Medicine’ - GreenMedInfo, by J. S. Reid (Substack)

Vagal Tone is a cardiovascular measurement that can be used as a clinical predictor of poor stress coping physiology, in youths and adults that may have had early chilldhood trauma. Poor vagal tone leaves the person over the long-term at higher risk for internalizing stress and having negative physical and mood symptoms in reaction to life stressors that other people might have handled with no problems or some normal level of worry or grieving or sadness or anger. (McLaughlin, et al., 2015)

Lack of ability to ‘self-regulate’ means that minor things like a cat’s meowing for something might cause a person to lose it ~ and have a ‘Karen’ moment in response to something fairly minor, or maybe major, but either issue might lead to a mood meltdown in someone with poor vagal tone - poor vagal nerve reactivity. Too low or too much nerve signaling might occur leading to the person seeming to act like a toddler . . . because toddlers also have to get better at internal self-regulation.

Photo by Alexander Dummer on Unsplash

Internalizing negative symptoms might mean the person bites their own fingernails when nervous or angry, while someone who externalizes negative symptoms might yell at the cat or throw something at the meowing cat. The blame is being externalized - thrown at the cat - instead of being internalized with feelings of not being good enough to handle life - and therefore maybe should be punished - by self if no one else seems to ‘care’ enough to discipline you. Children who grew up with physical punishments may seek out relationships or tolerate a work setting that is physically abusive, because they are used to it, and maybe they had learned a core feeling that they deserve punishment.

“Vagal tone is a measure of cardiovascular function that facilitates adaptive responses to environmental challenge. Low vagal tone is associated with poor emotional and attentional regulation in children and has been conceptualized as a marker of sensitivity to stress. [...] Low vagal tone is associated with internalizing psychopathology in adolescents exposed to high levels of stressors. Measurement of vagal tone in clinical settings might provide useful information about sensitivity to stress in child and adolescent clients." […] “Although measures of autonomic nervous system function are frequently used as clinical markers of disease risk, they have not typically been employed as risk markers by mental health clinicians. In the current report, we examine the extent to which specific aspects of autonomic nervous system function might provide valuable information to clinicians about sensitivity to stress—the propensity to experience negative outcomes following exposure to stressors—and, potentially, risk for psychopathology in children and adolescents.” (McLaughlin, et al., 2015)

If self-regulation is a problem then poor vagal tone may be involved.

“Vagal tone is a measure of parasympathetic nervous system control over heart rate (Allen, Chambers, & Towers, 2007; Berntson et al., 1997; Porges, 1992, 1995a, 2007). The parasympathetic nervous system is involved in functions that promote growth and restoration. During conditions of rest, the parasympathetic nervous system facilitates digestion, bodily repair, and energy conservation (Porges, 1995a, 1995b, 2007). Following exposure to a stressor, the parasympathetic nervous system typically functions to inhibit sympathetic nervous system activation, reduce heart rate and metabolic output, and return the body to homeostasis once the stressor has ended (Berntson et al., 1997; Porges, 1992, 1995a, 1995b, 2007). Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) is a noninvasive measure of parasympathetic influences on heart rate used to estimate vagal tone (Berntson, Cacioppo, & Quigley, 1993b; Grossman & Taylor, 2007; Porges, 1992, 1995a). RSA reflects a coupling of heart rate and respiration that leads to systematic variability in heart rate during inhalation as compared to exhalation (Allen et al., 2007; Berntson et al., 1993b), and a variety of studies indicate that RSA is a measure of parasympathetic nervous system functioning that reflects vagal influences on heart rate (Cacioppo et al., 1994; Grossman, Stemmler, & Meinhardt, 1990; Kollai & Mizsei, 1990; Porges, 2007). Because of the central role the parasympathetic nervous system plays in inhibiting arousal and promoting recovery following environmental challenges, vagal tone has been conceptualized as an important marker of self-regulation that has implications for social behavior (Appelhans & Luecken, 2006; Porges, 1995b, 2001b, 2007; Thayer & Lane, 2000).” (McLaughlin, et al., 2015)

How can we improve vagal tone? Various breathing techniques are available, similar to mindfulness or meditation practice, the goal is to practice daily new patterns of behavior. That sets up new calmer pathways for the brain to follow the next time a stressor occurs. Low level electrical stimulation may also be used clinically.

How can we build better self control? By practicing being less reactive to our impulses, urges or feelings - don’t give in to the sudden urges to do something. Make a plan and try to follow it. My Positive Psychology Toolkit (purchased) has an exercise designed to help a client practice more self control. The link includes the client handouts and a guidesheet for the clinician. PositivePsychology.com; Positive Psychology Toolkit; Increasing Self-Control through Repeated Practice, (pdf in my Dropbox)

Salicylate Excess - My own New Year’s Diet challenge - stop eating the favorite spices or foods silly self, they don’t work for me anymore.

The basic gist is, Just say no to yourself more often, and that literally builds a better future ability within your brain at saying no to yourself. That was my day one strategy for my own New Year’s diet challenge - yesterday I did not buy and eat commercial foods that I tend to overeat/binge on and which contain salicylates. I did pick up lab results from early November when my leg lymphedema had been really bad and now I know clinical indicators for salicylate excess. Your liver labs go wacky - which is part of the reason it is so important to identify the real underlying cause of the leg swelling instead of just calling it “venous insufficiency”. That is a symptom, a label, and it tells us nothing about why a person’s veins seem to be “insufficient”.

The Liver is what is harmed when people accidentally or on purpose overdose with OTC painkillers like Tylenol, aspirin, or ibuprofen.

Liver labs going wacky over the long term would mean that you are developing liver disease, and no one wants that. My labs also suggest that while I was taking plenty of methyl folate and B12. My hemoglobin was normal but my Red Blood Cell count was slightly low and my MCV and MCH were both elevated - overly large immature red blood cells which is an indicator for anemia associated with low folate and B12, but mine were really elevated not low. Hypochloridia, low stomach acid may be indicated by the elevated MCV and MCH. (Weatherby, Ferguson, 2002) My calcium was also low but I was very edemic at the time. Veganism and low protein intake also may have been revealed in the pattern of what was low and what was elevated.

• Alkaline Phosphatase was elevated, 169, with 44-121 IU/L as the normal range. - This suggests drug toxicities or liver disease.

• AST (SGOT), a liver or CVD enzyme, was elevated at 86, with a normal range of 0-40 IU/L.

• ALT (SGPT), a liver enzyme, was elevated at 68, with a normal range of 0-32 IU/L.

• Calcium, Total Protein, and Albumin, were all slightly low, but I was at least 5 pounds full of extra fluid - which can artificially dilute the concentration of chemicals within the blood - there is more water present in the body and protein tends to follow fluid, so if the fluid is collecting in extracellular spaces outside of veins and capillaries, then the albumin and calcium will tend to follow the fluid.

• My creatine was slightly high which might suggest some muscle breakdown or injury was occurring. Mine was 1.06, with a normal range of 0.57-1.00 mg/dl

• My C Reactive Protein was normal/low, which suggests I wasn’t too bad with autoimmune inflammation.

• My cholesterol was 77, normal range of 100-199 mg/dl. This could suggest veganism. I had started eating fish though during the month prior to these lab results. I had a redraw yesterday and will get new results tomorrow.

• Good news, my thyroid TSH was normal, my parathyroid hormone, PTH, was normal - suggesting that I was getting enough calcium actually. And my vitamin D, 25 hydroxy, the inactive form was normal, 48.7 ng/ml, normal range of 30-100.

To help understand the lab results I used the textbook by Dicken Weatherby, ND, and Scott Ferguson, ND, ‘Blood Chemistry and CBC Analysis; Clinical laboratory Testing from a Functional Perspective’, 2002, Bear Mountain Publishing. (Weatherby, Ferguson, 2002)

Positive Psychology excerpt:

“Some examples of self-control activities include: Controlling your impulse to jump into a conversation with your two cents; Controlling your impulse to give advice; Using your unpreferred hand to brush your teeth; Making your bed every day; Adjusting and maintaining a good posture; Allocating time for checking emails; Controlling your urge to check social media; Controlling your urge to check a text as soon as it comes through” PositivePsychology.com; Positive Psychology Toolkit; Increasing Self-Control through Repeated Practice, (pdf in my Dropbox)

I have been trying to have better posture, sit less, move more, including making my bed in the morning, and reducing my social media and email browsing time. I still need to improve my supplement box routine. I did better at taking my daily boxes, but now need to refill them and I have put that off while doing holiday preparation. New Year, time to focus more on my own health as I am better but still having some salicylate excess days. Starting the Mucinex/fibromyalgia protocol is involved, but it really does seem to help me. I need to do better with more calcium to phosphorus ratio, take my dimethylglycine, fill my vitamin boxes (I take a B complex, zinc, and a few others individually when I don’t have my daily boxes filled.)

Chronic illness with genetic differences is quite complicated and Multiple Chemical Sensitivity can be common when inflammation has been chronic. Substituting new foods, flavors, or behaviors can be the best way to help the brain build new pathways and ignore old ones - give the brain something else to do besides think about old favorites. Developing new favorites can help forget the old ones.

Adaptive Coping Strategies Wheel for Difficult Times, via PositivePsychology.com

Disclaimer: This information is being provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of Fair Use and is not intended to provide individual health care guidance.

Reference List

McLaughlin KA, Rith-Najarian L, Dirks MA, Sheridan MA. Low vagal tone magnifies the association between psychosocial stress exposure and internalizing psychopathology in adolescents. J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol. 2015;44(2):314-28. doi: 10.1080/15374416.2013.843464. Epub 2013 Oct 24. PMID: 24156380; PMCID: PMC4076387.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4076387/