Lymphatic Drainage & Dysautonomia
With poor circulation comes poor lymphatic drainage. Lymph is basically the filter of your body. When this is sluggish, there are things we can do to improve lymph flow to reduce illness, swelling, and inflammation. Here are 3 things I do when I feel swollen and puffy.
Legs up on the wall + diaphragmatic breathing: This is a great position to reduce blood pooling in your legs. I especially love it at the end of the day for 5 minutes paired with lots of slow, deep breaths to improve circulation. This position + breathwork gives your lymphatic system a little help when it’s working hard enough as is.
Manual lymphatic drainage: You can manually move your lymph around. This is done with really light pressure (just on the skin, not into the muscles). See the video below to practice moving lymph or you can find other techniques on youtube.
Walking + Hydration (with electrolytes): Walking acts as a pump to improve circulation throughout your body. If I’m feeling puffy and sluggish, I start with a gentle walk until I build up some sweat. Then, I follow with electrolytes to replenish my minerals.
These are just a few techniques that I use. Not everyone will have sluggish lymph flow, but with dysautonomia, it can definitely happen! This system is one that’s not usually talked about, but we do have tools to help support it.
Mindful Movement - Lymphatic Flow
Sometimes the small things make a huge difference in how we feel. Take a look to see how to support your lymph nodes!
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