Non-Invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation: A New Revolutionary Method to Treat Anxiety

Non invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS) Revolutionary Approach in Treating Anxiety & Depression.

LEARNING A NEW REVOLUTIONARY METHOD TO TREAT . A PROOF OF CONCEPT.

By Pascal Grolaux, EUR OST. DO (UK), M.Ost. (CH), MIO, MICO, MNSAO

What is Non-Invasive Vagus Nerve Stimulation ?

Non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation is a natural, new kind of brain neuromodulation treatment.

It is the stimulation of the vagus nerve through a low electrical current without the need for surgery.

Is this new form of treatment safe and effective for anxiety?

More than 20 years of research about vagus nerve stimulation (invasive and non-invasive) has shown that this treatment is safe and effective in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorders.

According to a recent study conducted by our Osteopath, Pascal Grolaux in 2017; patients suffering from moderate to severe anxiety showed that non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation significantly improved symptoms clinically after 8 stimulation sessions only and that the improvement still lasted 2 months after the treatment (pre-print publication). Our study also confirmed that vagus nerve stimulation is safe and well tolerated.

How the vagus nerve plays a role in general anxiety disorders:

The vagus nerve is one of the main components of the autonomic nervous system, the other main one is the sympathetic nervous system, a.k.a. “fight or flight”. The autonomic nervous system controls neurological, endocrinal and immunological body’s processes. The vagus nerve innervates almost all of our internal organs and modulates nearly 80% of the total volume of the brain.

Anxiety disorders are associated with the imbalance and impairment of neuromodulation of key brain’s structures, increased inflammation (in the brain also) and over activity of the sympathetic nervous system (the flight or fight and the counterpart of the vagus nerve). In the end, there is an imbalance between the vagus tone and the sympathetic tone: the vagus tone being too low and the sympathetic too high.

The aim of vagus nerve stimulation for anxiety is to balance the brain’s neuro-transmission and to :

–  increase the secretion of neurotransmitters needed to improve and recover from anxiety

–  stimulate the natural anti-inflammatory effect of the vagus nerve.

We can easily detect the neurological imbalance of the autonomic system via short EKG recording. This is based on a specific analysis, called Heart Rate Variability analysis (HRV), a test that we conduct here at Kinesis Health Associates. Indeed, HRV increases in high vagus tone and decreases in low vagus tone.

How long does it take to see positive results from this treatment?

Several factors are considered for determining a time frame for results:

–          The severity and duration of the anxiety.

–          Your age as the vagus tone decreases naturally with ageing.

–          If there are other pathological disorders associated with anxiety (depression, or other mental illness, digestive trouble, etc.).

Every person is different, so there is no rule for the recovery time, but as we showed in our study, after 4 weeks of stimulation (2 sessions a week), we had clinical significance. For some, recovery may be quick and for others it may take longer.

We assess the balance of the autonomic nervous system (vagus nerve tone and flight or fight tone) with HRV analysis on a regular basis.

Give yourself a chance to recover from anxiety with this new revolutionary method!

Join us on Thursday, June 6th @ 7:30pm for a in-depth talk on the Mental health benefits of VNS; hosted by Pascal Grolaux.

Contact us to book a complimentary consultation.