The reason why just relaxing on the sofa weekend isn’t enough for your health.
I am Takahiro Katou.I am surgeon Soubudai Surgical clinic.
Today I’d like to give you an image to help you understand how your autonomic nervous system relaxes and how to consciously let the tension out of your body. It is one of the treatments we give patients at this clinic, and you need it to control your body and to be healthy.
I will explain the reason why you need to do that consciously by comparing the human body to a car. In order to explain the reason why you need to do this consciously, I’d like you to imagine your body as a car.
We control the speed using a brake pedal and an accelerator while driving a car. Please imagine driving a car that has an accelerator but no brakes. That would be scary indeed.
Even if you pushed the accelerator a little, the car couldn’t stop completely without a brake pedal, even though it might lose some of its speed. But if you drive a car with a brake pedal, you can push the accelerator free from anxiety and increase the speed if you want.
Back to the human body － how does just relaxing on the sofa on the weekend after a busy week at work affect the human body and the autonomic nervous system?
It is the same as just taking your foot off the accelerator. It means that the speed is not fundamentally changed for the autonomic nervous system.
So, we suggest that you actively use your brake pedal for your body in the same way brakes are used in cars and trains decrease their speed.
Please think about how pushing the accelerator, taking your foot of the accelerator or actively applying a brake can affect your body. Repeated exercise of letting the tension out of your body can improve your ability of using the brake pedal and help you realize the impact that using, or failing to use, your natural brake pedal can have on your body. Then, you can understand that just relaxing on the sofa on the weekend is not enough to manage your tension and stay healthy.
Thank you.
相武台脳神経外科
Doctor with Zen spirit