How is your body handling the demands of your life?

Stress is a daily occurrence in the life of most individuals. How your body handles stress can tell your doctor a lot about your overall health as well as your risk factors for any future health problems. For example, we’ve all heard of situations where someone we know, and perhaps care about, after just receiving a “clean bill of health” from their doctor, suddenly has a massive heart attack. These type of adverse cardiac events do not happen out-of-the -blue but rather take years to develop as a dysregulation our bodies regulatory capacity.

Modern testing of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) via an ANS Analysis is an assessment tool patients can use to monitor their stress and relaxation responses in office. An analysis allows a fast and easy way to gain insight into your health including testing for “burnout” disorder, an all too common occurrence in industrialized nations. Testing is performed through a scientifically developed medical software called The ANS Analysis. Developed over a 10 year research period by one of Germany’s most renowned experts, with nearly 20,000 studies demonstrating the importance and reproducibility of its results.

Why is the Autonomic Nervous System Important?

The autonomic nervous system or “automatic nervous system” is the body’s main control center. It is in charge of dozens of vital functions, including cardiovascular, respiratory, immune, digestive, and reproductive systems. Without regulation by the ANS none of these systems would function at all.

In many diseases the autonomic nervous system shows regulatory dysfunction such as in: cardiovascular disease, diabetic neuropathy, pain patients, depressed patients, IBS patients, patients with sleep disorders, fertility patients, and patients with vertigo and balance disorders,  among others.

Your Fight and Flight & Rest and Digest Nervous Systems and how they affect your health

The ANS is divided into two portions, the fight or flight nervous system (also called the sympathetic nervous system) and the rest and digest nervous system (also called the parasympathetic nervous system).

The fight or flight nervous system controls body functionality during times of stress and exertion and provides the body with a sense of heightened awareness, a key mechanism for survival. However, when dominant, this system places high energy demands on the body as well as suspending maintenance functions like tissue healing and digestion.

The rest and digest nervous system is the opposite of the fight or flight system, and therefore is required to counteract the high energy and stimulating effects of that system. This system is activated during periods of intense relaxation, deep breathing, and rest. When dominant, energy is restored and the body’s resources are dedicated to critical maintenance functions such as digestion, tissue repair, and a normal immune response.

What happens during the early stages of disease?

In the early stages of many disease patterns, the fight or flight system dominates, even during times of rest. This loss of adaptability has far reaching consequences for our health.

Thousands of scientific studies have proven that dominance of the fight or flight system is associated with adverse outcomes such as reduced life expectancy and increased morbidity and mortality.

What do my results look like?

In just seven minutes, the ANS Analysis assesses the condition of the fight or flight and rest and digest nervous system, showing you in an easy to understand bar graph whether your body is adapting to stress, and everyday life in a healthy way. Additionally the ANS Analysis is used as a way to teach proper breathing patterns to patients alongside its companion Vagusvit® software which is downloadable on most smartphone devices.

How Often Should You Have Your Autonomic Nervous System Checked?

As a routine checkup, typically twice a year offers patients a glimpse into the balance and functioning of their nervous system. As a way to measure therapy, the ANS Analysis may be used several times during a month to determine therapeutic progress.