Knowing how to regulate your nervous system is key to breaking cycles of stress, overwhelm, and chronic tension. When your nervous system is stuck in survival mode, everyday challenges can feel bigger than they are, leaving you wired, drained, or both.
Awareness is the first step in finding relief, and you’re already there. From here, there are quick and simple techniques that can calm your nervous system quickly, along with practices that, over time, help your body and mind return to balance more easily.
In this post, you’ll discover eight effective techniques for learning how to regulate your nervous system, complete with follow-along videos to help you start building regulation skills immediately.
At re-origin, we specialize in brain retraining tools that help you go beyond short-term relief. Our neuroplasticity-based program shows you step-by-step how to regulate your nervous system and retrain old stress patterns, so your body can naturally return to health. This approach is especially helpful for people living with chronic stress, anxiety, fatigue, fibromyalgia, IBS, or other conditions linked to nervous system dysregulation. With a supportive community, live coaching, and flexible daily practices, we meet you where you are and guide you toward lasting change. Learn more about the re-origin program.
How to Regulate Your Nervous System Quickly
The eight exercises in this blog post are practical ways to explore how to regulate your nervous system quickly. Each of the exercises works in its own way; some through breath and visualization, others through touch, pressure, or gentle movement.
You may find that certain practices feel more effective or comfortable than others. Some can be done quietly in public, while others are better suited for a private space at home, such as your bed or couch.
The key is to approach these techniques with curiosity and self-compassion. There’s no need to force an outcome, and any feelings that arise—relaxation, resistance, or even discomfort—are perfectly okay. If something doesn’t feel right, simply slow down or pause. And if you still feel unsettled, try another exercise or repeat until you notice a shift.
Over time, you’ll discover the ones you love and find most effective, and they’ll give you the ability to calm your nervous system anytime, anywhere.
Guided Visualizations
One of the most effective techniques for anyone wondering how to regulate nervous system function is visualization. This practice combines relaxation with mental imagery to help calm both body and mind. By creating new associations in the brain that signal safety, ease, and self-compassion, visualizations can gradually reduce stress, ease muscle tension, and support long-term nervous system regulation. You can learn more about visualization for nervous system regulation here: Visualization for Nervous System Regulation: A Neuroplastic Approach to Healing Chronic Illness
To try it, find a quiet space where you won’t be interrupted. Sit or lie down comfortably, close your eyes, and follow along with gentle breathing, imagery, and affirmations. Even a few minutes each day can retrain your brain and body to respond more calmly to stress.
For beginners, guided visualizations are one of the easiest ways to get started. You don’t need any experience, just play the video below to experience it for yourself!
Bilateral Stimulation: The Butterfly Hug
The Butterfly Hug is a powerful technique to regulate the nervous system and restore calm in less than two minutes. By using bilateral stimulation—alternating gentle taps across the chest—this practice helps activate the parasympathetic nervous system, the branch responsible for rest, recovery, and relaxation.
This method is especially effective for anyone wanting to know how to regulate the nervous system quickly. By focusing on the bilateral stimulation, you can ease anxiety, muscle tension, fatigue, and other stress-related symptoms. Enhance the practice by adding deep breathing or affirmations such as “I am safe in this moment.”
Learn more about it in the video below:
Self-Compression
Self-compression is a simple, tactile way to calm your nervous system and reduce feelings of stress or overwhelm. This practice involves using gentle pressure—like hugging yourself, squeezing your arms or legs, or wrapping up in a favorite blanket—to trigger the release of “DOSE” chemicals: dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins. These feel-good hormones naturally help soothe the body and quiet anxious thoughts.
You can start small, such as clasping your hands and giving them a gentle squeeze, pressing lightly along your arms, or tucking your chin to your chest. At home, you might try curling up under a weighted blanket, hugging a pet, or holding a favorite stuffed animal. Each of these simple actions provides comforting pressure that signals safety to your brain.
Self-compression is especially helpful for anyone wondering how to regulate the nervous system quickly in public or at home.
Watch this video to see how it’s done:
Breathwork
Breathwork is one of the fastest ways to regulate your nervous system and shift into a calmer state. The key is to make your exhales longer than your inhales, which signals the body to slow down and activates the relaxation response. You can learn more about breathwork in this blog post: Somatic Breathwork: A Guide to Nervous System Reset
A simple pattern to try is inhale for 4 counts, exhale for 6 counts. Here’s how:
- Find a comfortable position and relax your body.
- Inhale through your nose for 4 counts.
- Exhale slowly through your mouth for 6 counts.
- Repeat this cycle for 2–3 minutes.
Even after just a few rounds, most people notice their body starting to relax and their mind feeling clearer. You can even try adding calming or pleasant music if you have headphones or are in a private space. If you’re in public, simply focus on your breath.
The video below also introduces a couple of other calming practices, so you can experiment and see which feels best for you. One viewer shared: “Did all three with the video and feel super relaxed right now. Thank you!”
Try it now:
Vagal Tone Exercises
Improving vagal tone is another effective way to regulate your nervous system and build resilience to stress. The vagus nerve is the body’s longest cranial nerve. Vagus nerve exercises helps shift you into the parasympathetic “rest and digest” state, and when practiced regularly, it can lower your baseline tension, making it easier to feel calm and recover from stress.
There are many ways to practice vagal toning, and here are a few simple techniques to try:
Humming
The vibration created when you hum helps stimulate the vagus nerve and promote relaxation. You can do this anywhere—quietly on a walk, while traveling, or at home.
Neck Massage
Gently massaging down the sides of the neck, just behind the ears, can release tension and signal safety to the body. Many people notice natural yawns or sighs as they do this, which is a sign that the nervous system is shifting into calm.
Physiological Sigh
This involves taking a deep inhale, followed by a second shorter sip of air, and then releasing a long exhale with a sigh. It’s a quick way to downshift into a more relaxed state.
These are just a few examples, and the best approach is to experiment and see which ones you enjoy most. You can also learn more about how to stimulate the vagus nerve in this blog post: How To Stimulate The Vagus Nerve For Anxiety Relief
Watch the full video for a demonstration:
Grounding
Grounding is a quick and effective way to calm your nervous system by reconnecting with your body and the support beneath you. This simple practice can be as short or long as you’d like, whether you’re standing with your feet rooted into the floor, sitting back in a chair, or lying down on a yoga mat or bed.
The exercise begins with a few deep breaths and a sigh, then guides you to focus on the part of your body that is in contact with the surface beneath you. It might be your feet, your back, or your whole body if you’re lying down.
Grounding is a versatile tool for reducing anxiety and regulating your nervous system, especially when you need to feel steady and supported.
Try it for yourself in this guided session:
Lymphatic Stimulation (Tapping)
Lymphatic stimulation is a quick and simple bottom-up technique that helps calm the nervous system by using the body to send signals of safety back to the brain. Instead of trying to “think your way” into relaxation, this exercise relies on gentle tapping movements to release tension, improve circulation, and restore balance.
Lightly tap along the back and inside of each arm, move up toward the neck, then tap the center of the chest and under the arms near the rib cage. You might even notice a yawn, which is a natural sign that your nervous system is shifting toward relaxation!
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Progressive muscle relaxation is a practical way to reset your system when you feel anxious, tense, or “tired but wired.” This method uses the body to send strong signals of release to the brain.
The process is simple:
- Tense a muscle group (for example, your shoulders or thighs) for 2–3 seconds.
- Exhale with a sigh and release all tension from your muscles.
- Move through areas of the body (shoulders, arms, stomach, legs), first creating tension and before releasing.
- Each time, take a moment to notice the feeling of deeper relaxation, like stepping down a staircase.
This technique is especially effective for those moments when you feel stuck in fight or flight mode. By first creating tension and then letting it go, your nervous system learns how to relax more deeply.
Try it here:
How Does The Nervous System Work?
At its core, the nervous system is your body’s communication network. It constantly sends and receives signals to keep everything from thought to movement to digestion, running smoothly. The central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord) acts as the control center, processing information and making decisions. The peripheral nervous system carries those messages to and from the rest of the body.1
Both the central and peripheral nervous system works on two levels:
- Voluntary nervous system (somatic nervous system): actions you consciously choose, like moving your arm or speaking.
- Involuntary nervous system (autonomic nervous system) processes that happen without effort, like breathing, heartbeat, and digestion.
The autonomic nervous system is especially important for balance. It has two sides working in tandem: the sympathetic system, which activates your “fight or flight” response and prepares your body for mental or physical activity, and the parasympathetic system, which restores calm and promotes healing. Together, they allow you to adapt to challenges, recover afterward, and maintain stability in body and mind.2
Understanding Nervous System Dysregulation
The nervous system is designed to enable you to shift smoothly between states of alertness and relaxation. But modern life often overwhelms this system. Chronic stress, past trauma, and even ongoing health challenges can trap the body in survival mode. Instead of moving fluidly between “fight or flight” and “rest and digest,” the system can get stuck, leaving you wired, exhausted, or both. Being stuck in a sympathetic state can have real physiological effects (physical symptoms), such as high blood pressure, metabolic issues, or stress and dysfunction of other organs like kidneys.3
When this happens, symptoms show up not only in your mind but across the whole body: sleep issues like insomnia, gut problems like IBS, brain fog, anxiety, and a heightened sensitivity to stress. Over time, constant activation wears down the body’s resilience, making recovery harder and overall health decline.
If you’d like to dive deeper into why dysregulation happens and how to restore balance, we recommend reading our full guide on nervous system regulation.
How To Regulate Your Nervous System with Brain Retraining
When the nervous system gets stuck in patterns of stress, it can feel like your body and mind are working against you. Brain retraining offers a way out by using neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to change and form new pathways.
At re-origin, our program shows you how to interrupt old stress loops and replace them with healthier patterns. Through simple daily practices, you can restore resilience, regain a sense of calm and gradually shift your body back into full health. Along the way, you’ll have access to ongoing support, a connected community, and resources designed to help you integrate these changes into everyday life.
Instead of just coping with symptoms, brain retraining helps you create lasting change at the root level. Learn more about the re-origin program here.
FAQ
How do you tell if your nervous system is overloaded?
When the nervous system is overloaded or dysregulated, symptoms can show up in both the mind and body. Common signs include trouble sleeping, digestive issues, brain fog, anxiety, frequent headaches, muscle tension, or feeling constantly on edge. Over time, being stuck in “fight or flight” can also contribute to high blood pressure, metabolic problems, and stress-related dysfunction in organs like the kidneys.
How do you fix a dysregulated nervous system?
The key is to help your body shift out of survival mode and back into balance. Techniques like guided visualizations, breathwork, the Butterfly Hug, self-compression, grounding, lymphatic stimulation, progressive muscle relaxation, and vagal tone exercises are all proven ways to support regulation. Brain retraining programs, such as re-origin, go a step further by teaching you how to interrupt old stress loops and create new, healthier patterns using neuroplasticity.
What is the fastest way to regulate your nervous system?
Most nervous system regulation activities don’t take long. Most require just a few moments or minutes. What works quickly for one person might take more time for another, so the key is to experiment. For some, breathwork with longer exhales brings immediate relief. Others may find the Butterfly Hug, grounding, or self-compression more effective. Even 90 seconds of practice can sometimes create a noticeable shift, but it varies from person to person. The important part is trying different techniques until you discover which ones help you calm your nervous system most reliably.
How long does it take to regulate your nervous system?
It depends on your situation and the tools you use. Quick techniques can bring relief almost immediately, but building long-term resilience takes consistent practice. With daily tools like visualization, breathwork, or brain retraining, many people notice improvements within weeks. Over time, you’ll discover which practices work best for you and be able to calm your nervous system anytime, anywhere.
