Many people who have this experience for the first time don't know how to describe it.<\/p>
The class ended, and my body felt relaxed, which is understandable\u2014you've just finished exercising. But the feeling was more than just relaxation. There was an indescribable sense of stability, like something that had been hanging in the air had finally landed. The noise in my head quieted down a bit. There was a lightness in my chest, a grounded lightness.<\/p>
Some say it feels like the clarity that comes after crying. Others say it feels like the relief of having said something very important.<\/p>
This feeling is strange to many people\u2014I'm just moving my body, why do I have this feeling?<\/p>
The answer is related to a nerve.<\/p>
The vagus nerve is a bridge between the mind and body.<\/p>
The vagus nerve is one of the longest nerves in the human body.<\/p>
It starts from the brainstem, travels down through the neck, chest, and abdomen, connecting to the heart, lungs, digestive system, and numerous internal organs\u2014and then transmits signals from these organs back to the brain.<\/p>
It is the main trunk of the parasympathetic nervous system, responsible for the body's "rest and repair" mode\u2014slowing down the heartbeat, restoring digestion, getting the immune system working, and allowing the body to truly enter a recovery state.<\/p>
But the vagus nerve does much more than just regulate physiological functions.<\/p>
Neuroscientist Stephen Porges' Polyvagal Theory tells us that the vagus nerve is the neurobiological basis for human perception of "safety".<\/p>
When the ventral branch of the vagus nerve is activated, you feel safe, connected, and open\u2014a state where you can truly relax, truly feel, and truly connect with others. This state is the neurobiological condition for learning, healing, and growth.<\/p>
When the vagus nerve is not fully activated, and the sympathetic nervous system is dominant, your nervous system is in a mild defensive state\u2014a chronic, low-level tension that prevents you from truly relaxing, truly feeling, and truly being present.<\/p>
What does psychological counseling do?<\/p>
Good psychological counseling has a core function: building a sense of security.<\/p>
In a safe relationship, in a space where you are truly listened to and understood, the nervous system slowly retreats from its defensive state. The ventral branch of the vagus nerve is activated, and you begin to feel what is usually suppressed, to see the patterns that trap you in different ways, and to allow change to occur.<\/p>
The healing process in psychological counseling is, to a large extent, a process in which the nervous system is regulated in a safe relationship\u2014the vagus nerve is activated, the body moves from a defense mode to a connection mode, and only then can change occur.<\/p>
This is why good psychotherapists place great emphasis on the quality of the relationship, the sense of security in the space, and making the client feel seen and accepted\u2014these are the conditions for activating the ventral branch of the vagus nerve.<\/p>
Chanrou did the same thing through the entrance to her body.<\/p>
Chanrou and psychological counseling, from completely different perspectives, lead to the same destination\u2014activating the ventral branch of the vagus nerve, allowing the nervous system to shift from a defensive mode to a safe and connected mode.<\/p>
Psychological counseling starts with relationships and language, while Chanrou starts with the body and actions.<\/p>
Rhythmic breathing directly stimulates the vagus nerve.<\/p>
The vagus nerve runs along the neck and chest cavity and is very sensitive to the rhythm of breathing.<\/p>
Gentle, rhythmic breathing\u2014inhalation extending and exhalation contracting, both coordinated in a precise rhythm\u2014is one of the most direct ways to stimulate the vagus nerve. Each complete exhale is a gentle massage to the vagus nerve.<\/p>
Studies show that slow, rhythmic breathing is one of the most effective non-pharmacological ways to increase vagal tone. Higher vagal tone leads to better nervous system regulation, faster recovery from stress, and a greater emotional buffer.<\/p>
Thawing the thoracic vertebrae and ribs activates the ventral branch of the vagus nerve.<\/p>
The ventral branches of the vagus nerve are mainly distributed around the thoracic cavity, heart, and diaphragm. When modern people develop rounded shoulders, hunchbacks, and locked thoracic vertebrae due to high stress, this nerve pathway can be compressed.<\/p>
The graceful, non-linear arcs and three-dimensional spiral movements gently unfrozen the ribcage. As the spine flows smoothly forward, backward, and rotates like a river, it directly relaxes the fascia around the chest cavity, actively activates the vagus nerve, and guides the body to gracefully switch from a "fight or flight" state back to a state of "rest and repair."<\/p>
The undulation of the spine, the rhythm from the sacrum to the skull.<\/p>
The gentle undulations of the spine cause rhythmic expansion and contraction of the chest cavity. This movement provides a continuous and mild mechanical stimulation to the vagus nerve, which runs within the chest cavity.<\/p>
The wave transmission from the sacrum to the skull physiologically corresponds to the natural rhythm of the craniosacral system\u2014and this rhythm is an important part of vagal nerve regulation.<\/p>
A safe physical space creates conditions for connection.<\/p>
Chanrou's classes have a special atmosphere\u2014the teacher is fully present, the movements are rhythmic, the equipment provides continuous and gentle support, and the logic of practice is invitation rather than coercion.<\/p>
The multivariate vagus nerve theory tells us that the nervous system cannot truly relax until it feels safe. A sense of security is a neurobiological state\u2014it requires specific environmental signals to trigger the ventral branches of the vagus nerve.<\/p>
The rhythm, the teacher's presence, and the fluidity of movement in Chanrou's classroom\u2014these are all neurobiological signals of a sense of security.<\/p>
Internal organ massage can change the state of the nervous system from deep within.<\/p>
The vagus nerve connects to a large number of internal organs, and this connection is bidirectional\u2014the brain affects the internal organs, and the internal organs also affect the brain.<\/p>
The vagus nerve contains approximately 801 TP3T fibers that transmit signals from the internal organs to the brain\u2014the state of your internal organs directly affects the state of your nervous system, influencing your emotions and perception.<\/p>
The gentle undulations of the spine and the three-dimensional spiral movements provide a rhythmic and gentle massage to the internal organs in the abdominal and thoracic cavities. As the circulation of the internal organs improves and the accumulated tension is released, this signal travels along the vagus nerve back to the brain\u2014that feeling of being "cleansed from the inside out" is precisely the signal the brain receives after the improvement of the internal organ state.<\/p>
Anchoring: When the body finds its center of gravity<\/p>
A commonly used concept in psychological counseling is anchoring.<\/p>
When a person is in the midst of emotional turmoil, a counselor helps them find a stable inner reference point\u2014a place they can return to even when the outside world is chaotic.<\/p>
Gentle and graceful, let the body find its anchor.<\/p>
The Seed Center, the center of gravity deep within the pelvis, is the starting point for all of Chanrou's movements. As movements grow from the Seed Center, as the pelvis narrows to create internal support, the body feels a rooted stability\u2014the head extends upwards, the feet are rooted downwards, and the center is there, clear and stable.<\/p>
This physical anchoring doesn't just stay in the classroom. Many people have found that after practicing Chanrou for a period of time, their way of coping with stress has changed\u2014not because the problems have disappeared, but because their bodies have a stable center to return to. That center allows one to find oneself even in chaos.<\/p>
A sense of self-worth begins with self-awareness.<\/p>
A crucial aspect of psychological counseling is helping people rebuild their sense of self-worth\u2014feeling that they are worthy of being seen and that their existence is meaningful.<\/p>
Many people's sense of self-worth is based on external evaluations\u2014they only feel valuable when they perform well, are useful, and meet expectations. This sense of self-worth is fragile because it depends entirely on external responses.<\/p>
Chanrou, from a very different direction, touched upon the same thing.<\/p>
When you gradually develop a sense of your own body in class\u2014feeling the space in your spine, feeling your breath truly reaching your abdominal cavity, feeling the movement growing from the core of your being\u2014you are doing something very fundamental: you are getting to know yourself.<\/p>
This self-awareness brings a quiet, internally growing sense of value. It doesn't rely on anyone's evaluation or any external achievements\u2014it's simply because you feel yourself, feel that this body is real, sentient, and worthy of care.<\/p>
This sense of value is more solid than any external evaluation, because its roots lie within your own body.<\/p>
Why is this sense of security so rare?<\/p>
Modern life has made true security a scarce commodity.<\/p>
Work stress, complex interpersonal relationships, information overload, and constant comparison and judgment\u2014all of these keep the nervous system in a state of mild preparedness. The body never receives the signal that "it's safe now, you can completely let go."<\/p>
Psychological counseling creates a space for many people\u2014a relationship where they can truly be seen and feel truly safe.<\/p>
Chanrou, from the level of the body, created the same state.<\/p>
Both are things that the nervous system really needs.<\/p>
The feeling after class<\/p>
Now you can understand why taking Chanrou's class feels a bit like having completed a psychological consultation.<\/p>
That's the reality of neurobiology\u2014the ventral branch of the vagus nerve is activated, the nervous system switches from defense mode to connection mode, and the body feels safe.<\/p>
The thing that had been hanging in the air finally settled, the noise in your head quieted down, and that sense of peace in your chest\u2014that's your vagus nerve finally getting what it needed. That's your body finding its anchor. That's you, truly feeling yourself for an hour.<\/p>
Chanrou's pursuit of feeling and efficiency is about gently adjusting your nervous system.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u5f88\u591a\u4eba\u7b2c\u4e00\u6b21\u6709\u9019\u500b\u9ad4\u9a57\uff0c\u90fd\u4e0d\u77e5\u9053\u600e\u9ebc\u63cf\u8ff0\u3002 \u8ab2\u7d50\u675f\u4e86\uff0c\u8eab\u9ad4\u5f88\u653e\u9b06\uff0c\u9019\u500b\u53ef\u4ee5\u7406\u89e3\u2014\u2014\u4f60\u525b\u505a\u5b8c\u904b\u52d5\u3002\u4f46\u90a3\u500b\u611f\u89ba\u4e0d\u53ea […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":5800,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5799","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-36"],"blocksy_meta":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5799","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5799"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5799\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5801,"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5799\/revisions\/5801"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5800"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5799"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5799"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aterritory.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5799"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}