Feeling anxious and disconnected are signs of a nervous system that’s out of balance. Something as small as a curt message from your boss can be perceived by your body as a threat—which triggers a change in your vagus nerve (a cranial nerve that runs from your brain to your abdomen). In The Vagus Nerve Reset, somatic therapist Anna Ferguson offers easy tools and exercises, grounded in the science of Polyvagal Theory, to help train your nervous system to stop overreacting and start responding more calmly to day-to-day stressors. By tuning in to your vagus nerve you can gently shape your nervous system to achieve greater resilience, improved sleep and digestion, relief from anxiety, and healing from past traumas.

As with Heal Your Nervous System, this book also offers a solid grounding on the workings of the nervous system, so we are fully prepared for healing. Anna guides us through the process of using various healing tools to help us cope with the challenges faced in modern life.

Anna Ferguson talks about how we each have a set of needs that need to be met in order for our nervous system to feel safe. As well as the basics such as having water and shelter, these also include feeling secure and loved/belonging. We learn about listening to our needs, and cultivating body awareness, as well as various breathing and physical techniques to calm the mind. There is a mention of using restorative yoga to connect the body and mind – one of my absolute favourite techniques.

As you progress through the stages, you will learn more and more techniques and hopefully find those which you personally connect with and find useful. The key part of success is integrating your chosen techniques into your daily routine. This is why your choice is so important, and it must be something you resonate with. I love that the author gives us so much freedom with choices and options.

A great start for anyone wanting to learn about the vagus nerve and its impact on our functioning.
The first half of the book is a primer for the less knowledgeable and the second have is a guide to putting strategies for the reset into practice.

Thanks to Zeitgeist and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

“Trauma is anything that is too much, too fast, too soon,“Ferguson quotes in this book. The Vagus Nerve Reset is a wonderful understanding of the roots of our stress and trauma in our bodies and what we can do to regulate them. Ferguson starts with a scientific approach in part one, explaining the vagus nerve and the connected systems. This includes both the physical as well as social systems that impact the stresses of our bodies.

The second part of the book is an opportunity to reset your vagal system; starting with an inventory of our base and working into a deeper understanding of our mind-body connection, Ferguson presents an easily accessible approach.

I really enjoyed this book and have a better understanding of the vagus nerve and our stress systems because of it.

The Vagus Nerve Reset is a very readable and informative book. The science speak was not easy to get through at all. I learned a lot about the importance of calming down the vagus nerve and how it affects the body.

The Vagus Nerve Reset by Anna Ferguson was a very interesting read. So much I didn't know and wasn't aware of. There are so many books out there that are just psycho babel and the author hasn't experience anything. Anna has actually experienced trauma and uses what she has learned and used for healing. It would have been nice to have some visual ques to some of the techniques and maybe a diagram of the vagus nerve. All in all, I think The Vagus Nerve Reset is a good starting point and helpful techniques to guide you a long your healing journey.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity read this ebook. I plan on using the information I gained to help me along my own journey to healing.

I love self help books and this did not disappoint! I am a yoga teacher always looking for new ways to help my students to destress and calm and I’ve definitely taken away some advise to share and apply to my own life! The polyvagal nervous system fascinates me so this is definitely way up there for me!

It is a hot topic at the moment and more and more people are talking about the vagus nerve, so I wanted to read this to find out more.

The book empowers individuals to work with their bodies, ultimately transforming their responses to life's challenges, with some great techniques to work on in stressful situations, help for those with anxiety or have experienced trauma.

I've been hearing more and more about the vagus nerve so that's why I was interested in this book. It offers a practical guide to harnessing the body's natural healing potential. By understanding the vagus nerve's role in stress response and utilizing exercises rooted in Polyvagal Theory, readers can cultivate resilience, improve sleep and digestion, and find relief from anxiety and past trauma. The book empowers individuals to work with their bodies, ultimately transforming their responses to life's challenges.

Very interesting. Enjoyed the techniques for resetting the vagus nerve. If you are looking for stress management or anxiety relief this book would be helpful. A must read!

I found this book really confronting in the best possible way - that means it's working! Trust the process that Ferguson outlines (yes, this means NOT skipping ahead) and you'll find yourself in a mentally, phsyically and spiritually better space.

The Vagus Nerve Reset by Anna Ferguson is a decent intro to the vagus nerve. I didn’t find much new info, but there is value within. The practical information on how to apply a “reset” will surely be helpful to some. I found the presentation a bit robotic in its phrasing, yet recognize this may be a matter of personal preference. Overall, important and helpful material.

My thanks to NetGalley and Zeitgeist for allowing access to a digital ARC.

This book starts with a compelling experience on how the author discovered the connection to mind and body as a part of healing. The Vagus nerve is something I am hearing a lot about lately and there are many books and videos out about it. I think the key here is focusing on somatic healing (focus on the body) in addition to other cognitive healing methods (talk therapy, journaling, etc.) I think the combination can be powerful and have found moments like putting my legs up on the wall as a way to calm my nervous system (even when I can't always tell it needs to be calmed). The first half of the book is a review of the nervous system and then the latter part contains exercises and tips.

Thank you to Netgalley and Zeitgeist for an ARC and I voluntarily left this review.

I've recently discovered somatic healing and wanted to learn more about it. This book was very informative and easy to understand - it has given me a deeper insight into this practise and I now feel ready to put it into place in order to help heal my body.

The vagus nerve is key to many bodily functions, yet many people aren't familiar with it. The author does a wonderful job in explaining the link to digestion, heart rate, the stress response, etc. It's written in a way that non-medical professionals can understand it. There is a mention of the various health conditions linked to vagus nerve dysfunction, which includes dysautonomia, Long Covid, anxiety, depression, ME/CFS, among others. Ways to help calm the vagus nerve are included, such as deep breathing and mindfulness. It's amazing to see just how powerful and impact the vagus nerve has on our body/system. Practical solutions that are easy to do are included and will likely be helpful to the target audience. And I loved how the author encourages the reader to go at their own pace.

This book offers practical solutions for harnessing the power of the vagus nerve to reduce stress and overcome anxiety.

As someone who deals with misophonia and panic attacks, this book affirmed that I'm taking some of the right steps to effectively handle them.

Practical and easy solutions are offered to learn how to listen to your body and understand the mind/body/vagus nerve connection.

I've always wanted to know more about the vagus nerve therapy and the vagus nerve reset. It's a very interesting read, especiially for someone who hasn't previously studied this field. I'm trying to apply what I read and am really excited about beginning to see results!

My personal opinion is that some readers will benefit more from this book than others, depending on the wounds they are trying to heal. I struggle with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD), which originated in surviving a number of years of sadistic child sexual abuse (SCSA). I didn't find the suggestions in this book helpful. For one thing, there are some readers who will not benefit from being instructed to "list all their triggers" assumedly alone, without the support and guidance of a therapist. In years of intensive therapy, my trauma-informed therapist has never once asked me to list my triggers, and I was quite shaken by the idea of just sitting down by myself and literally going through those years, listing it all out... I don't know, I think it brings up a sense of shame, feeling out of control and overwhelmed, it brings up memories I simply don't have the capacity to deal with while also trying to cope with my daily tasks and responsibilities of normal life. Then there's figuring out your hierarchy of needs, which wasn't new to me, but did bring up some frustration. Whichever lowest level of the needs hierarchy you struggle with, I don't believe it's enough simply to say 'How will I fix this?' For some trauma survivors, that's just too much, too big a question, to address out of the blue. "I don't know, I guess I'll just go die real quick?" Again, it brings up a sense of inadequacy and shame. I suppose it probably depends what happened to you, and when, and what kind of support you had before the age of 7, and so on, but I can only speak for myself.

Please understand this is my personal response based on my own history of extreme trauma, and other readers may find something beneficial from reading this book. I was just disappointed because I'm trying to look out for books like this that may help me.

I received a copy of this book from Zeitgeist via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I appreciated this book and how it walks you through the emotional/physical connection. The excersices were helpful and the practices seem easy enough. There was quite a bit of repetition and selling their program.

As a functional nutritionist, many clients come to me with digestive issues. What they don't realize beforehand is how important the nervous system is to proper digestion. In our stressed world, many are living in "flight or fight", causing a cascade of health issues.

"The Vagus Nerve Reset" is a wonderful book that guides the reader into what the vagus nerve is and its importance in our overall well-being.

I will definitely add this book to my list of recommendations to my clients as the techniques and exercises to reset and stimulate the vagus nerve will be advantageous to everyone.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. #TheVagusNerveReset #NetGalley

"The Vagus Nerve Reset" is a comprehensive guide that delves into the fascinating world of the vagus nerve and its impact on our overall well-being. Anna Ferguson's book provides a clear and accessible exploration of this crucial component of the autonomic nervous system.

The author begins by introducing readers to the concept of the vagus nerve, explaining its role in regulating various bodily functions such as heart rate, digestion, and stress response. The language is accessible to medical professionals and lay readers, making the book suitable for a broad audience.

One of the strengths of the book lies in its practical approach. Ferguson not only explains the science behind the vagus nerve but also offers a variety of techniques and exercises to reset and stimulate it. These exercises include breathing techniques, mindfulness practices, and lifestyle adjustments. Readers will appreciate the hands-on approach, as it empowers them to actively engage in improving their well-being.

The book also delves into the connection between the vagus nerve and various health conditions, ranging from anxiety and depression to digestive issues. [Author's Name] provides evidence-based insights, citing relevant studies and research to support the information presented. This adds credibility to the book's claims and enhances its value for readers seeking a deeper understanding of the topic.

While the content is informative and well-organized, some readers may find certain sections a bit dense, especially if they are new to the subject. However, the author makes an effort to break down complex concepts into digestible portions, making them more accessible for readers with varying levels of familiarity with neurobiology.

In conclusion, "The Vagus Nerve Reset" is a valuable resource for those interested in improving their overall health and well-being through understanding and optimizing the function of the vagus nerve. With a balance of science and practical advice, Ferguson creates a book that educates and empowers readers to take control of their autonomic nervous system for a healthier and more balanced life.