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Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

theguardian.com

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Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#91

Post by karaterobot »

tempaway43355 wrote: post #2

One of my children has severe epilepsy and has a Vagus Nerve Stimulation device implanted - Sentiva 1000 https://www.livanova.com/epilepsy-vnstherapy/en-gb/hcp/produ... It has really helped although obviously it took surgery and then also nine months of slowly tweaking the settings. Before the VNS they could (for example) not go on a trampoline for more than a few minutes without having a seizure, but now they're fin…

Here's a silly question: does your child feel the nerve stimulation when it happens?

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#92

Post by TriNetra »

adriand wrote: post #69
blueyes wrote: post #56

For me, the amazing thing about the Vagus nerve is that you can stimulate it with your breathing. And since the Vagus nerve affects the autonomic nervous system (involuntary, not consciously controlled) while breathing choices are conscious, this is one of the few ways that humans can directly impact important aspects of their psychology and physiology, like how calm they feel. Mindfulness + breath choices + vagus ne…

This might go beyond how you feel and into direct biological impacts. I don’t listen to the Huberman Lab podcast much these days but I did listen to the episode with David Linden, which I found quite interesting. [1] At one point, they are discussing the mind/body axis and the latest scientific developments in exploring how mental states can affect the body. There is a fascinating although very untested - but, testab…

Chakras are real so as Kundalini [0]. However, these aren't physical in nature, rather, they are on subtle body of consciousness. Now, that's not possible to prove scientifically yet, but with your dedicated regular practice, you can experience them yourself as this guy on HN did [1] which inspired me to start my own exploration (back in 2014) and have intense experiences which remains with me.

0: https://www.amazon.in/Kundalini-untold-story-Om-Swami/dp/818... 1: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6910041

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#93

Post by bjourne »

My dad has had deep brain stimulation (not the same as vagnus nerve stimulation, but in the same area) for over ten years. It helps a lot with his dystonia but he has developed severe paranoia which gets progressively worse. Of course you can't say that one caused the other, but I think it is reasonable to be cautious about devices that put electricity in your brain. Benefits are often instant side-effects may slowly accumulate over the years.

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#94

Post by georgeburdell »

TriNetra wrote: post #92
adriand wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This might go beyond how you feel and into direct biological impacts. I don’t listen to the Huberman Lab podcast much these days but I did listen to the episode with David Linden, which I found quite interesting. [1] At one point, they are discussing the mind/body axis and the latest scientific developments in exploring how mental states can affect the body. There is a fascinating although very untested - but, testab…

Chakras are real so as Kundalini [0]. However, these aren't physical in nature, rather, they are on subtle body of consciousness. Now, that's not possible to prove scientifically yet, but with your dedicated regular practice, you can experience them yourself as this guy on HN did [1] which inspired me to start my own exploration (back in 2014) and have intense experiences which remains with me. 0: https://www.amazon.…

[flagged]

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#95

Post by gourabmi »

georgeburdell wrote: post #94
TriNetra wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Chakras are real so as Kundalini [0]. However, these aren't physical in nature, rather, they are on subtle body of consciousness. Now, that's not possible to prove scientifically yet, but with your dedicated regular practice, you can experience them yourself as this guy on HN did [1] which inspired me to start my own exploration (back in 2014) and have intense experiences which remains with me. 0: https://www.amazon.…

[flagged]

Just because it isn't published in a journal with latin1 characters doesn't mean it isn't true

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#96

Post by jvanderbot »

gourabmi wrote: post #95
georgeburdell wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

Just because it isn't published in a journal with latin1 characters doesn't mean it isn't true

> Now, that's not possible to prove scientifically yet

It may be that there is something to the idea that there are ways of stimulating certain parts of the body that can produce something like vagus nerve effects, but asserting it's true by the name given in an ancient mythology is a great way to derail any conversation.

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#97

Post by Bloating »

jwestbury wrote: post #5

Nerve stimulation implants are really exciting. I have sleep apnea, and while I take to CPAP therapy pretty well, I hate having to travel with the device and I hate its limitations. When we travel, I have to ensure there's an outlet somewhere near my bed; I can't camp without a massive battery pack for my CPAP; I can't go backpacking; and even cuddling my wife at night is a challenge because of the hose hanging off m…

Check eBay for medistrom batteries. I can get 1 night for AirSense 10 (w/o humidity); 2 nights using resmed portable cpap & no issues backpacking with the portable cpap so long as I can get a periodic recharge.

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#98

Post by tempaway43355 »

karaterobot wrote: post #91
tempaway43355 wrote: post #2

One of my children has severe epilepsy and has a Vagus Nerve Stimulation device implanted - Sentiva 1000 https://www.livanova.com/epilepsy-vnstherapy/en-gb/hcp/produ... It has really helped although obviously it took surgery and then also nine months of slowly tweaking the settings. Before the VNS they could (for example) not go on a trampoline for more than a few minutes without having a seizure, but now they're fin…

Here's a silly question: does your child feel the nerve stimulation when it happens?

Thats a good question not a silly one. They don't have the communication skills to tell me but they dont seem to be aware of it. Apparently some people experience it as a tingling sensation in throat or neck.

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#99

Post by Enginerrrd »

georgeburdell wrote: post #94
TriNetra wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Chakras are real so as Kundalini [0]. However, these aren't physical in nature, rather, they are on subtle body of consciousness. Now, that's not possible to prove scientifically yet, but with your dedicated regular practice, you can experience them yourself as this guy on HN did [1] which inspired me to start my own exploration (back in 2014) and have intense experiences which remains with me. 0: https://www.amazon.…

[flagged]

There's definitely something to chakras. They were always my go to example of a thing to make fun of for being utterly absurd, without substance and based on something deeply unscientific.

Then, after several months of intense meditation I started getting strong somatosensory perception in areas of my body traditionally associated with chakras, and Kundalini awakenings and the like. Terms I only picked up on after researching what might be happening.

In short, it strongly appears that if you take a group of people and have them perform certain practices for an extended period of time, you will create a relatively consistent cluster of symptoms.

Eastern mythology/religions have their own language to describe these phenomenona, and the alleged mechanisms are obviously ridiculous, but there is nevertheless something oddly consistent about reported experiences.

Thus, I think it's pretty sound to conclude that there is something "real" going on, creating a relatively consistent pattern of somatosensory experiences. The mechanism is almost certainly explainable by neuroscience but has received little serious exploration due to its purported mechanism and religious background.

Re: Growing scientific interest in vagus nerve stimulation

#100

Post by BizarroLand »

blueyes wrote: post #56

For me, the amazing thing about the Vagus nerve is that you can stimulate it with your breathing. And since the Vagus nerve affects the autonomic nervous system (involuntary, not consciously controlled) while breathing choices are conscious, this is one of the few ways that humans can directly impact important aspects of their psychology and physiology, like how calm they feel. Mindfulness + breath choices + vagus ne…

Just by box breathing you can willfully lower your blood pressure and heart rate a good percentage (low double digits) with only a little practice.
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