The Nervous System and Spiritual Awakening

What if you found what you had always wanted? What if peace on Earth actually occurred? Would you be able to recognize and embrace it?

As a Galactic Shaman, I’ve learned to navigate many different environments while being fully immersed in each one. From a very young age, high sensitivity and hypervigilance demanded that I discern between true danger to my mental, emotional, and physical bodies, and what was simply the echo of past trauma responses, fears, or instinctual impulses. Add subtle spiritual energies to the mix, and life can easily become overwhelming—until the presence of Spirit within is revealed and remembered.

From that space, healing mastery begins. Not as a pursuit of dominance or perfection, but as a surrender into harmony—into the sacred union of love, peace, and joy.

Many of us grew up in less-than-ideal environments. Others may have had relatively happy childhoods, and yet still, unconscious patterns emerge that shape how we think, feel, and respond. As we gain more freedom to feel and express ourselves, a deeper presence often awakens, calling us to heal what once kept us safe but now limits our expansion.

At the center of all of this is the nervous system. This beautiful, intricate system serves as both a guide and a feedback loop—one that reveals how our bodies respond to what we are thinking, feeling, and sensing, consciously or not. This response might be triggered by a conversation, a memory, a subtle energetic imprint, or occasionally, a real external threat. Often, however, it is a habitual thought rooted in the past that has no true relevance to the present moment. And that distortion can cloud, obstruct, or sabotage what is trying to emerge in our lives.

Our nervous systems are wired by past experience to detect threat and seek safety. But when prolonged stress or trauma has occurred—especially in early childhood—the system becomes dysregulated. This is what psychology now refers to as complex trauma. Coping mechanisms emerge: ways of adapting to our environment, whether through avoidance, pleasing others, dissociating, or hyper-controlling our surroundings. These strategies helped us survive, but they are not meant to define how we live.

One of the most insightful tools I’ve encountered for understanding these patterns is Stephen Porges’s Polyvagal Theory. Introduced to the scientific community in 1994, this theory revealed that the autonomic nervous system (ANS)—long thought to simply include the sympathetic (fight/flight) and parasympathetic (rest/digest) branches—actually includes two distinct parasympathetic responses:

• Dorsal Vagal: The older branch, associated with freeze, collapse, dissociation, and emotional withdrawal.
• Ventral Vagal: The newer, mammalian branch, associated with connection, regulation, presence, and feeling safe in the body.

Through the lens of Polyvagal Theory, we begin to understand that the nervous system constantly scans for safety or danger through a process called neuroception—a subconscious bodily awareness that interprets signals long before the conscious mind does.

The issue arises when we get stuck in these survival responses. Many people unknowingly live in a chronic state of sympathetic activation (anxiety, hypervigilance, anger) or dorsal shutdown (numbness, depression, withdrawal). The nervous system becomes addicted to these states—not because they feel good, but because they feel familiar.

This is the foundation of many relationship challenges and patterns of self-sabotage. When a calm, safe person enters our life after a string of intense or chaotic dynamics, their energy may feel "off" or even boring. The absence of nervous system stimulation is perceived as a threat by a dysregulated system. The opportunity for transformation is there, but it can be missed.

Some of us may unconsciously provoke drama or test boundaries just to reactivate the familiar stress loop. If the other person does not match this pattern—if they remain grounded—it can reflect back to us our own discomfort. This is where healing begins.

Eckhart Tolle describes this as the "pain body"—an energetic form composed of old emotional pain that feeds on conflict and unconscious suffering. It resists presence because presence dissolves it. The pain body clings to old identity, and when we try to move forward in love, peace, and joy, it will often protest.

Healers are especially prone to re-creating these dynamics in their relationships or client work. Without strong discernment and boundaries, they may unconsciously choose partners or clients that trigger their unhealed wounds—trying to resolve what couldn’t be healed in their family of origin. This can lead to patterns of fawning, people-pleasing, undervaluing one’s time, or feeling responsible for someone else’s healing.

The good news? Healing is always available.

Breath, meditation, movement, sound, and presence can all help regulate the nervous system and shift us into the ventral vagal state of connection and flow. These practices strengthen our ability to be with discomfort without collapsing into it. Over time, we build capacity. We grow roots.

Galactic Breathing, for example, is one practice I teach that integrates conscious breath with spiritual connection. Along with gentle movement, vocal toning, community connection, and somatic awareness, these tools help rewire the system to know that safety is available now.

As you begin to experience nervous system regulation, don’t be surprised if peace feels uncomfortable at first. It is not uncommon to feel restless or to want to stir things up again. But if you can sit with the stillness and breathe into the discomfort, something beautiful will arise: the realization that you are not only safe—you are healing deeper into wholeness and reclaiming all parts of Self. You are more powerful than you could ever imagine through this connection and vulnerability.

My Invitation to You:
Each day, take a few conscious breaths. Feel what’s present in your body. Notice any places of tension, numbness, or agitation. Instead of fixing them, meet them. Hold them. Breathe them into presence as the multidimensional being you are.

And then remember: You are loved. You are held. You are the Universe breathing through a body, choosing to awaken.

As you breathe, speak your desires out loud—not to convince the world, but to remind yourself of your readiness. And as you do, you may find the Universe doesn’t respond by giving you something new… but by showing you that it was already here.

With love, breath, and presence,
Jason Donaldson, MA
Galactic Shaman