When Your Vagus Goes Rogue: Why Your Digestion Feels Out of Control

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The symptoms we're looking at are: acid reflux, nausea, abdominal pain, cramping, diarrhea and erratic digestion. Additionally, feeling dizzy, light-headed or feeling faint.

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Your vagus nerve is like a superhighway connecting your brain to your stomach and intestines, not to mention your heart and diaphragm. 

The vagus nerve controls sphincters or valves throughout your gut and body.

In your esophagus you have 2 sphincters and when functioning normally they remain closed until they detect food or drink coming their way and then they open, only to close again once that has passed. Once closed, they also maintain a pressure downwards to prevent any food or stomach contents/acid from moving upwards, such as acid reflux. 

When the vagus nerve is out of balance it is typically underactive and the valves are too loose. The resulting symptoms include gastroparesis, chronic reflux, nausea and upper abdominal discomfort.

In this video I discuss what happens with an overactive vagus nerve where the rest and digest system (parasympathetic nervous system) is too dominant. In this case the valves can open too often or too early resulting in rapid gastric (stomach) emptying (dumping syndrome), bloating, cramping, diarrhea and erratic digestion from too much bile and/or pancreatic enzymes.

The cuases of overactive vagal stimulation include:
1. Hiatal hernia which stretches or compresses the vagus nerve.
2. Abdominal distention due to overeating or chronic bloating
3. Post-surgical changes - hiatal hernia surgery, as an example, is known to alter the vagus nerve pathway and create erratic firing.
4. Excess parasympathetic dominance from adrenal fatigue and low cortisol levels.
5. Neuroinflammation from chronic infections, mold toxicity or autoimmune activity.
6. High gastrin (a hormone that stimulates your stomach to produce acid) levels due to stopping PPI drugs - called PPI rebound.
7. Stress causing a vasovagal reaction of feeling light-headed, nausea or fainting.

You need to find a clinician who can help you assess which of these factors could be influencing how you're feeling. In a nutshell it's hiatal hernia, H. pylori, stress hormones, gut inflammation.
It's typically a natural solution; just find a clinician who is well versed on how to treat all of the above.

Home Tips
There are several things you can do on your own to balance the vagus.
1. Box breathing
2. Physiological sigh - I demonstrate this on the video
3. Humming - there's a specific way to do this correctly which I demonstrate.
4. Cold exposure

Testing
HRV - a home device can do this
gastric emptying studies - through a gastroenterologist
esophageal manometry - through a gastroenterologist

If you'd like help we're here for you. The best next step is to contact us for a consultation and then we can determine if what we do is a good fit for you. Call 727-335-0400.

References 

Travagli RA & Anselmi L. Vagal neurocircuitry and its influence on gastric motility. Neurogastroenterol Motil. 2016 【PubMed PMID: 26827968】

Mittal RK et al. Neuroregulation of the lower esophageal sphincter. Am J Physiol. 1995 【PubMed PMID: 10718459】

Browning KN & Travagli RA. Central nervous system control of gastrointestinal motility and secretion and modulation of gastrointestinal functions. Compr Physiol. 2014 【PubMed PMID: 24692155】

#vagusnerve #hiatalhernia #guthealth 

Disclaimer: The information provided in this video is intended for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or tre