I hate my sympathetic nervous system

[Zephyrus055]

I hate my sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system governs your fight/flight responses. My SNS is rather active and sensitive, so I hate it intensely. Is there a way to have it surgically removed or impaired so that I will be calm and NTish even under the most anxious situations?

[Nemesis]

Wtf is it with you guys and hating sympathy/compassion and the like?

[PiccoloNamek]

Nemesis: Are you serious?

I find myself wishing for this very thing quite often. One day, I would like to use the power of science to subdue all of my primitive instincts, so that I can truly be pure of mind.

[Nemesis]

I change my previous statement to include the words "so many of" in that case.

[meshou]

No. It would kill you. They might make an exception, if you really made an impression, of course.

Try heroin. It has exactly the effects your after. But it has the effect of making your sympathetic nervous system much much MORE hairtrigger (the stimulus being the anticipation of heroin).

[meshou]

I change my previous statement to include the words "so many of" in that case.... No, really. You ARE joking, right?

[Serotonin]

I hate my sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system governs your fight/flight responses. My SNS is rather active and sensitive, so I hate it intensely. Is there a way to have it surgically removed or impaired so that I will be calm and NTish even under the most anxious situations?

Your are neglecting your root chakra my misguided friend. [/Chopra]

Fight or flight is there for a reason. Sure it's not a rational response, but we need our subliminal instincts as well as our conscious NT minds. The trick is to know when to use each one depending on the situation. If I got attacked by a dog with rabies I wouldn't be standing there quietly saying "Hm. Now what's the best course of action here". Your body already knows what the best course of action is without your mind needing to interfere.

[CoHo]

One day, I would like to use the power of science to subdue all of my primitive instincts, so that I can truly be pure of mind.

You can do that right now... it's called removing your sexual organs and slipping into a sensory deprivation chamber.

[Nemesis]

Alot of you guys come off as dismissing compassion as being useless and annoying. ALOT.

[meshou]

Alot of you guys come off as dismissing compassion as being useless and annoying. ALOT.Please, look up the Sympathetic Nervous System. Now. Please?

[Zephyrus055]

No. It would kill you. They might make an exception, if you really made an impression, of course.

Try heroin. It has exactly the effects your after. But it has the effect of making your sympathetic nervous system much much MORE hairtrigger (the stimulus being the anticipation of heroin).
Aww, oh.

Ok, so is there a way to minimize its expression without the use of detrimental drugs? Maybe there are natural physical/mental exercises that can potentially minimize its expression significantly?

[Nemesis]

Please, look up the Sympathetic Nervous System. Now. Please?
I already feel like an idiot.

*looks up*

Feeling confirmed. Why do you want to get rid of "fight or flight?"

[CoHo]

Ok, so is there a way to minimize its expression without the use of detrimental drugs?

That doesn't make sense
...
Minimising its expression would be detrimental

[Zephyrus055]

Your are neglecting your root chakra my misguided friend. [/Chopra]

Fight or flight is there for a reason. Sure it's not a rational response, but we need our subliminal instincts as well as our conscious NT minds. The trick is to know when to use each one depending on the situation. If I got attacked by a dog with rabies I wouldn't be standing there quietly saying "Hm. Now what's the best course of action here". Your body already knows what the best course of action is without your mind needing to interfere.

Eh, I know the SMS has its purpose, but mine being as sensitive as it is, it impairs my ability to deliver operations that could serve to my advantage.

[Zephyrus055]

That doesn't make sense
...
Minimising its expression would be detrimental
How so? It would allow me to do what's necessary without being impaired by bodily responses.

[ptGatsby]

I don't know much, but doesn't salt have an influence on this? I remember something about the 'locking' up portion having to do with salt...

[Serotonin]

Aww, oh.

Ok, so is there a way to minimize its expression without the use of detrimental drugs? Maybe there are natural physical/mental exercises that can potentially minimize its expression significantly?

I consciously tried to do that back in high school, and it was one of the worst things I could have done to my body.

You don't want to minimise its expression. The anxiety you feel is actually your mind attempting to counter the instinctive impulse of your "fight or flight". Imagine you are being bullied at school, getting slapped on the back of your head by about 5 people. The most satisfying thing for them is seeing you flinch or fight back futilely, so your mind will say "Ok, I just won't react when I'm hit and deprive them of that". The internalisation of this pain is bad news. It's a fast track to depression and digestive problems.

Fight back, even though they will laugh at you for doing so, or just run away. Don't try to rationalise dangerous situations at least until after the fact. Trust your body.

[meshou]

Try yoga, expecially if it's yoga with an instructor that will teach you how to totally relax, and possibly meditate. Make sure if you find one, it's NOT a pilates instructor who thinks it's the same thing with different names. A GOOD instructor can do wonders.

Yoga is ALL about total control of bodily responses. You spend about half the time mildly exciting yourself (heartrate goes up during poses), but between poses there's a lot of intentional cooling down-- and mastering that is as much a part of it as the poses.

Biofeedback could help you a WHOOOOOLE lot. It is mildly expensive. Journey to Wild Divine is the one I've played-- it's not that great as a game unless you'd like Myst with dippy spirituality thrown in-- but all the puzzles are based on getting your heart rate, blood pressure, and breating precisely controlled.

[meshou]

To add-- you don't want to totally kill it. Fuck, I've passed out and vomited myself awake (sober) several times due to mine being dicky, driving up my blood pressure, then dropping it. You just want the ability to intentionally calm it down some.

Stress CAN be your friend, especially since holding it together during stress DOES calm you down. The parasympethetic nervous system is much stronger, and produces feelings of calm and euphoria after stress. Explains how people act after injuries and cocaine.

[Blue]

If your looking to undamage your calm I suggest deep breathing. Focus on pulling the air towards the lowest part of your lungs first, expanding your abdomen. Like filling a glass of water from the bottom up. It has an immediate calming effect.

+Blue

Edit: meshou wins.

[joft]

i'm like this too

i'm wound so tight, i'm so highstrung, and stressed, etc

I find OCD like rituals or even just self-stimming to be very soothing, but that is only something I could do alone in secret (or in my brain in the case of my goddamn letter-grouping/counting mental tick)

[TPol]

Everything I would have said, meshou (your post #18)....even about the biofeedback computer program. I do wonder, however, if my doing yoga since I was 8 and a few other experiences may have dampened the "fight or flight" mechanism too much in me. I once got my fingers slammed in a car door. I didn't react at all except register the pain and think through what needed to be done. I calmly said to the person nearest the door handle, "Could you please open the door?" Other incidents since have made me wonder if there's another extreme where the system is too deadened. But, yes, I agree that yoga and meditation would be a worthwhile try.

[nomir_dva]

The Sympathetic Nervous System is a great thing to have in 'real-life' dangerous situations. Giving a presentation is not one of those. Unfortunately, evolution is a bit slower than human societal development. I share your problem, and I have no idea how to effectively fix it.