What are your Activators?
The nervous system communicates through nerves which send information between the environment, body, and the brain via nerve impulses. The brain interprets information it receives from the body and gives commands to the body to act.
Nerve impulses can be provoked by different kinds of information, including temperature, stress, movement, memories, hormones, the immune system, and the level of oxygen saturation in the blood. There are different kinds of channels in the nerves for each of these types of information.
When we are healthy and balanced, the ratio of these types of channels is also balanced. But the body can become more sensitive to a certain stimulus and even make more receptors for that stimulus if that channel is activated frequently. The ratio fluctuates based on what we need. When we are stressed, we have more stress channels. When we are sick, we have more immune channels.
Too many of one kind of channel makes you sensitive to that kind of stimulus. The good news is that these channels are replaced every 48 hours. If we understand what our activators are, we can decrease that type of stimulus and allow the channels to return to a balanced level so you are no longer extra sensitive to that kind of stimulus.
Knowing your activators also helps you prevent pain flares. One of my biggest pain activator is cold temperatures. This used to make winter really difficult for me because my right hand would go numb in the cold. Once I understood this, I got these amazing mittens from Burton that keep my hands toasty, and now I can play in the snow without worrying about provoking a pain spiral.
Cold provokes my pain because I have vata-type pain. From an Ayurvedic perspective, there are different types of pain profiles, and they manifest differently based on the individual's natural constitution and present state.
All pain is associated with vata because vata controls the nervous system, and pain is the nervous system's reaction to perceived threat, but there can also be vata, pitta, and kapha type pain.
Vata-type pain often affects the low back, sacrum, and nerves (think sciatica or carpal tunnel syndrome). It can also provoke arthritic joint pain because vata is drying. Vata-type pain is activated by cold, dry, windy weather, cold foods and drinks, dry and rough foods, stress, and a frenetic lifestyle.
There can also be a pitta component to pain, which would be sharp, burning, red, hot, and inflamed. This type of pain can increase in hot, humid weather, and be activated by hot and spicy foods and drinks (like coffee and alcohol), and situations that are agitating.
Kapha-type pain is usually dull, deep, and constant. Kapha often manifests as fluid based swelling, which can cause joint pain. This type of pain is activated by cold, damp weather, lack of movement, and foods that are heavy and sweet, including wheat, and dairy.
Each of these pain profiles has unique activators and requires specific treatment. For example, we would never put a healing salve with heat-building herbs on a pitta-inflamed joint that is already too hot, but it might really help a cold and boggy joint. Someone with arthritis has dry joints and should avoid drying foods, but someone with wet and fluid-filled joints would benefit from a little dryness in their diet.
Knowing your constitution and the type of pain you have can help you take a whole-being approach to healing. If you could use some support decoding what your body is telling you and decreasing the sensitivity of your nervous system, please reach out. I'd love to help you understand your pain and break the pain cycle.
