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Aw c'mon, that's stretchin it a bit isn't it?
Biphasic Response
Mood swings got you down?
By: Dr. Suzanne LaCombe, December 27, 2008.
Updated: July 31, 2009.
Reviewed by: Dr. Carole Gaato
Can't understand why you're so tired after that last exam? Are you anxious one day and depressed the next? Read on for an intriguing psychophysiological explanation.
Let's take a look at the workings of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). It plays an essential role in regulating our moods and energy level. What's important to understand is that the ANS is constantly looking for ways to save energy, like the homeowner who'd always going around shutting of unused lights. You see, it operates on a conservation principle and is always attempting to return to an energy-efficient, balanced state called homeostasis.
This balance is dynamically maintained by two "competing" elements of the nervous system. Most people call them the "stress response" and the "relaxation response".
The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) is in charge of pumping us up, energizing us. This is otherwise known as the stress response although the SNS action is also used for moving us into positive "up" states like excitement. So, you'll notice this system in action when you're excited or frightened, or feeling stressed out.
The parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) operates to calm down the energy in the nervous system, in other words, to make us feel relaxed.
You might notice this down regulation when you're nicely cocooned on a white sandy beach amongst the palm trees. You'll notice it when you feel tired. Or…when you've just had the greatest sex ever!
The Biphasic Response
This expansion and contraction of energy in the nervous system is going on 24/7, like the ocean's tides. These two competing responses are referred to as the "biphasic response". "Bi" means "two" and "phasic" refers to the two energies of the nervous system, hence the term biphasic.
What's interesting is that these energetic swings are somewhat predictable. The larger the amplitude or intensity of the swings the more you will notice the boosting and dampening effects of these two systems.
Let me describe how.
Let's say you’ve been under several weeks of pressure at work trying to meet a report deadline. But you finish it (whew!), hand it in (yeehaw!) and feel terrific that's it's over. However the next day, you're so tired and everything feels somewhat muted or grey...not at all what you were expecting.
You think you oughta be happy that it's over but that's not how you're feeling. Your body feels so fatigued. You may even feel a little sad or "bummed out".
That heaviness in the body is the sensation of your nervous system correcting an energy imbalance. After the work project was completed the need for intense concentration and effort was over, so the parasympathetic system kicked in and in effect, de-energized you.
The parasympathetic nervous system needed to come on line because a cranked up nervous system is only optimal for short periods of time. In the hyped-up mode the heart rate is speedy and the blood is pumping heavy, a state that is not healthy if prolonged.
However, in your case, your nervous system came down so quickly that you shot past the point of homeostasis into a very low energy state. It is as if, as "high as you go, as low as you go". The degree that your sympathetic nervous system was hyped up is the degree you'll be pulled down via the parasympathetic nervous system.
But, like a bungee jumper, it was only a matter of time (maybe a few days) before your downward descent was arrested, and you snapped back to normal!
Related Topics
Regulation of the Nervous System
Sal (Newport Beach, USA)
I am curious to know what you think about CES (Cranial Electrotherapy Stimulation), and if there are members of your site who have tried it. I've been using this treatment at least three months - my depression appears to be diminishing.
I don't tolerate anti-depressants very well, and have had to rely on mood stabizers to help me from sinking into the pit. Things get complicated because I take thyroid medication for hypothyroidism. The CES seems to be a good way to go...
Sal
Hi Sal, I'm so glad you posted about this. There seems to be a lot of interest in this new emerging science - using electrical activity to change brain waves. I don't know much about it and I've only read short pieces on related treatments like transcranial magnetic stimulation and vagus nerve stimulation.
My gut reaction is that if it's gentle and pleasant, it's worth looking into.
I'm pleased to know you've found CES helpful. If you're up to it, can you keep us posted on how you're doing? I think it might interest a lot of folks who don't want the complications of medications.
Shrinklady
catgirl (California, USA)
Shrinklady, I'm wondering, in your opinion, if there's ever a time when the roller coaster ride becomes so overwhelming, that you would recommend meds. I ask this, because I recently began taking anti-depressants.
I've had a lot of huge things happen in the past 10 months, and it has completely thrown me off: death of my mom, separation from husband of 10 years, which entailed becoming a single mom and moving out of my house/neighborhood/support system of 10 years, loss of my job, and to top it all off, I've gotten lice twice!
I have a great therapist, and she supported my decision to go on meds, although when I asked her if I should go on meds 8 months ago, she recommended trying to work through it. So, what's your opinion on using meds to gain the balance in one's system, if good therapy and using the techniques mentioned here is not balancing one's system?
catgirl
Such a great question...and such a challenging one Catgirl. As I see it, there can be a place for medication when the stresses to the mind-body are such that a person is not able to manage day-to-day. What you have gone through in recent months is a significant as it combines not only a loss of resources (support system and finances) but it also adds in the stresses of being a single mom. There are just times when we have to keep on going (to provide for yourself and your family) and we just don't have the time and space to do it without some additional help - and sometimes this is a medication.
What a medication can do is smooth out the highs (anxiety) and lows (depression) so that we have the energy to do good therapy and keep on practicing the strategies for balancing the nervous system. As the stressors get sorted out, and you're feeling less overwhelmed, you and your therapist can talk about very slowly reducing the medication.
Band-aids (like a medication) can help protect the wound as the body mobilizes its healing powers.
Just so you know, there are numerous holistic solutions that might
also appeal to you. They are generally more easily tolerated by the
nervous system. They include homeopathy, naturopathy (e.g. Sam-e, St.
John's Wort) and acupuncture.
Hope it works out for you,
Shrinklady
Sage (Pennsylvannia, USA)
Thanks Suzanne that does help.
Sage
Sage (Pennsylvannia, United States)
Wow, that does explain a few things. But, once the parasympathetic nervous system had kicked in and we know why we feel like we crashed and burned is there any way to get back to normal (whatever normal may be) sooner.
Or maybe I am asking if it always going to be a rollar coaster or will things even out?
Sage
Absoutely Sage, there are ways of moving out of these states. The easiest way is to use your body. By resourcing your body in a titrated, gentle manner, you'll be helping the nervous system move back to baseline. No matter if you're in a heightened anxious or stressed out state or you're in the "couch potato" state, relaxing the body helps. It helps at both ends.
It's useful if you understand that the compensatory parasympathetic response is still dealing with a lot of pent up energy. It's just that now your body is feeling the effects of it.
Keep in mind that veging out on the couch in front of a television isn't relaxing to the body. It's too distracting for the left brain for it to be relaxing. However, yoga or a hot bath might do the trick. So might right-brain activities like looking at images or painting. The more awareness you can bring to your body during these moments can help the nervous system to learn how to manage energy better.
Body psychotherapy is an excellent therapy for this type of problem. It re-sets the nervous system so that eventually you don't go so high when you're stressed nor so low. It evens out the swings.
All therapies do as well especially if the therapist is skilled at helping clients contain and move through their emotions.
I'm partial to body psychotherapy because it seems much faster than other types probably because we get clients to track their sensations in the moment.
Hope that helps,
Shrinklady
Ismini (Athens, Greece)
Hi Suzanne! Very nice article! It explains very well what happens when we get really super-charged about a project or something challenging that we focus on and how. It explains that sense of feeling let down after feeling high for a while, even though we may have been successful in our endeavor.
Ismini (YourEmpowermentTherapist.com)
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