The Autonomic Nervous System

 







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The Parasympathetic Nervous System

What exactly does the Parasympathetic Nervous System do?

The parasympathetic nervous system is half of the autonomic nervous system [ANS]. Think of the ANS as the body's autopilot. It is tasked with connecting to smooth muscle (as found in the gastrointestinal tract, for example), cardiac muscle, and glands. The Parasympathetic Nervous System controls "rest and digest" functions, while the sympathetic nervous system activates the body's "fight or flight" response.

In the modern world, most people's fight-or-flight system is overly active, while the poor "rest and digest" functions get put on permanent hold. When the fight-or-flight system is over-active nothing else works as it should.

In addition to the heart, the parasympathetic nervous system governs the following internal organs:

Abdomen

• peritoneum
• stomach
• duodenum
• intestine
• colon
• liver
• spleen
• pancreas
• kidney
• adrenal gland
• appendix
• gall bladder

 Pelvis and perineum

• pelvis
• coccyx
• ovaries
• fallopian tube
• uterus
• vulva
• clitoris
• perineum
• urinary bladder
• testicles
• rectum

Here's a diagram that shows how the :Parasympathetic and Sympathetic Nervous Systems connect to the brain. (Parasympathetic connections are in Blue.)

In this picture from the 1918 edition of Gray's Anatomy of the Human Body, the parasympathetic nervous system's connections to the brain and spinal cord are in blue, and the sympathetic nervous system's connections are in red. The parasympathetic nerves are connected to the brain via cranial nerves (III, VII, IX, X) or the spinal nerves that emerge from the sacral vertebrae (S2, S3, S4). 

Edgar Cayce says that the Radial Appliance is the best way to
"reactivate" the Parasympathetic Nervous System. When this happens, everything works better. Sleep improves, digestion improves, metabolism improves, etc.