http://www.flourishchiropractic.ca/

Flourish Chiropractic Studio with Dr. Biljana, 759 Pape Avenue Suite 200, Toronto, ON (2025)

11/21/2025

Is your nervous system stuck on 'high'?

Ever feel like you're constantly on edge, even when there's no real threat? Polyvagal theory offers a framework for understanding why, and gentle chiropractic care might be the key to finding your 'off' switch. 🙌

I've been nerding out on polyvagal theory lately. Specifically this podcast with Dr. Stephen Porges, the guy who came up with the whole thing, and honestly? It's completely reframed how I see the work I do.

Here's what blew my mind:

Your vagus nerve isn't just one thing. It's got multiple branches that create totally different states in your body. There's the old dorsal vagus that hits the shutdown button when you're overwhelmed (you know that feeling where you just freeze and can't even?). Then there's the ventral vagal complex, the newer branch that helps you feel socially connected, calm, and actually capable of healing.

When your nervous system feels safe, you shift into that ventral state where your body can finally rest, digest, repair.

But when you're stuck in fight-or-flight? Or worse, shutdown mode?

Your body's too busy keeping you alive to heal anything. It's like trying to renovate a house during a tornado... just not happening.

So here's where the gentle chiropractic piece comes in. And why I'm so passionate about the low-force work I do in my office.

The adjustments give your nervous system proprioceptive feedback. Basically, your brain gets the message: "Hey, you're safe in here. You can relax now."

I'm not fixing you. (I never could, and honestly, you don't need fixing.)

What I'm doing is helping your nervous system shift out of defense mode so your body can do what it's always known how to do.

Heal.

One thing Dr. Porges said that really stuck with me: my nervous system state matters too. If I'm frazzled when you walk through the door, you're going to feel that. We co-regulate with each other. Which is exactly why I care so much about creating a space where you can actually breathe.

The adjustment is only part of it.

There's also the connection, the warmth, the feeling that someone actually sees what you're going through and gets it.

If your body's been running on high alert and you can't seem to find the off switch, maybe your nervous system just needs a little support getting back to baseline. 💚

Ever notice how your shoulders are still up by your ears even though the stressful thing ended days ago? Drop a 💚 if that's been you lately.

11/20/2025

Is your 'normal' actually survival mode?

I can tell before someone even sits down.

Shoulders hiked up near their ears. Jaw clenched so tight I can see it from across the room. Quick, shallow breaths like they're rationing air.

There's this nervous energy that fills the space. They move fast, talk fast, and their whole posture looks like they're bracing for something.

When I put my hands on their spine? I feel it.

Rigid joints. Muscles holding tension like they're expecting impact. Very little breath moving through. Their body is in surveillance mode... like an animal that senses a predator nearby and goes completely still, ready to bolt at any second.

Except the predator is deadlines, family obligations, and the mental load of just being a human in 2025.

Here's what gets me though.

Most people have been living like this for so long they think it's just normal now. They've gotten used to the exhaustion, the tension, the way small stuff suddenly feels impossible. Your window of tolerance shrinks down to almost nothing when your nervous system's been working overtime trying to keep you safe.

Things that wouldn't have fazed you two years ago? Now they knock you over.

You're tired but wired. Can't remember the last time you took a full breath. Your baseline became tension instead of rest.

But here's the thing.

You're not broken. 💚

Your body's doing exactly what it's designed to do. It just hasn't gotten the memo that it's safe to power down. Chronic stress keeps your alarm system activated like a car idling way too high for way too long. The "off switch" gets blunted.

And your body stops feeling safe inside itself.

So when people ask me how long nervous system regulation takes, I think about Bo Bichette being out for six or seven weeks with a knee injury. Professional athlete. Young, fit, every resource available.

Still needed six weeks.

You're not going to regulate a nervous system that's been stuck for years in a handful of sessions. I work with people for several months before we see solid changes. Around the 12-appointment mark, I do a re-evaluation... and usually that's when the shifts become more obvious.

The breath changes first. Not perfect, but different. Your chest finally moves where before it was frozen. Then your spine softens in places where it was bracing. Sleep gets better... you're not staring at the ceiling till 5 AM anymore. Pain becomes less frequent, less intense, less Advil needed.

Your body can remember how to feel safe again.

It just needs time. Healing has a rhythm, and your nervous system needs consistent support to rebuild its capacity to rest, adapt, and recover without getting stuck in survival mode.

💚 Like this if you've been running on empty way too long. Comment "survival mode" if this resonates. Share this with someone who needs permission to slow down and give their body the time it actually needs.

11/18/2025

What my patients changed first

Across hundreds of visits, the same two shifts keep showing up: breathing cadence and micro-breaks from sitting. When we stack those with gentle care, the nerve calms and nights go better. I'll share exactly how they do it in real life.

Here's the pattern I notice constantly in my office.

Someone comes in with sciatica, we start working with their nervous system, and things begin shifting... but the people who get relief faster are also changing something at home.

Two specific things.

**First: breathing cadence**

Most people with sciatica hold their breath without realizing it. Or they're breathing shallow, up in their chest, like their whole body's bracing.

When your nervous system is stressed (and sciatica IS a stressed nervous system showing up as pain), your breathing changes. Short, tight, restricted.

What people actually do:
→ Set a timer for every 2 hours
→ Take 3-5 deep belly breaths
→ Slow inhale through nose, longer exhale through mouth

Simple.

The exhale matters most because it signals your nervous system that you're safe. When you're stuck in fight-or-flight mode your body literally won't let you take a long slow exhale.

So when you practice it intentionally, you're teaching your system to downshift out of that protective pattern.

Over weeks, your breathing starts changing on its own. You catch yourself taking deeper breaths naturally, without thinking about it, and that's when you know something's reorganizing underneath.

**Second: micro-breaks from sitting**

Sitting isn't the enemy.

But sitting for 3 straight hours while your nervous system is already locked up? That's when the sciatic nerve gets real cranky.

What they do:
→ Every 45-60 minutes, stand up
→ Walk to the kitchen, look out a window, anything vertical for 90 seconds
→ No formal stretching required (though you can if you want)

The movement signal alone helps your spine decompress slightly, blood flow improves, and the nerve gets a little breathing room.

One person ties it to water intake... every time she finishes a glass she gets up to refill it. Built-in micro-break.

Another sets a phone alarm labeled "move your butt" because the humor actually makes her follow through.

**Why these two work together**

Your sciatica didn't start yesterday. It's been building as a tension pattern in your nervous system for months, maybe years.

So we're not hunting for a magic bullet here.

We're looking for small repeated signals that help your nervous system reorganize how it holds and releases tension.

Breathing resets your nervous system state in real time. Micro-breaks prevent the compression from compounding hour after hour.

When you combine those habits with the gentle care we do in the office (which teaches your nervous system new movement patterns), everything stacks and the shifts come faster.

People tell me their pain drops, they sleep through the night better, they feel less reactive when stress hits during the day.

The nerve calms because the whole system calms.

**Not flashy but effective**

Nobody wants to hear that five breaths and standing up more often could help their sciatica. It sounds too simple, almost insulting when you're in serious pain.

But your nervous system responds to repetition and safety signals, not force.

When you give it different options consistently, it stops gripping so hard. It learns it doesn't have to brace against every little thing.

That's what creates space for actual healing.

So if you're dealing with sciatica (or know someone who is), start with these two shifts.

Breathing cadence every 2 hours. Micro-breaks from sitting every 45-60 minutes.

They work because they're working WITH your nervous system's natural intelligence, not fighting against it.

Drop a 🙋‍♀️ below if you're setting that breathing timer this week... and tell me what you're labeling your micro-break alarm 😊

11/18/2025

You’ve likely felt this before.

You’re busy with work, buying Christmas presents, wrapping them, making plans, checking them twice, arranging parties, making meal plans, inviting people over and then a week before Santa’s arrival your “back” goes out.

It's really not JUST bad luck or JUST your back. Your back is your messenger and it's trying to tell you your nervous system is overloaded.

Drop a purple heart if you can relate and more importantly, book an appointment now so that you get your spine and nervous system functioning optimally.

11/17/2025

I hear this every week.

"All my tests came back normal, but I just don't feel right."

Six months after the accident. Everything checked out. No broken bones, no torn ligaments, nothing that shows up on scans.

But you still don't feel like yourself.

Your medical team did their job - they ruled out structural damage, which is important.

But there's another layer to healing that doesn't show up on scans. In that split second of impact, your brainstem took over. Didn't ask permission, didn't wait for you to think about it. Muscles locked. Breath stopped. Everything braced.

Your body threw up an internal shield to protect your spine, your organs, your head.

Smart system.

But here's the thing... if the impact was too much, too fast, your nervous system couldn't fully process all that incoming force.

That energy got stored. In your tissues, your posture, even in how you breathe.

Research shows 32% of whiplash patients demonstrate PTSD reactions within four weeks. Your body literally encoded the accident as a threat pattern that keeps replaying.

Long after the physical healing wraps up, your system stays guarded.

Shoulders hiked. Breath shallow. Spine rigid.

Still preparing for another hit that isn't coming.

When someone lies on my table months after their accident, I'm looking at something different than what medical imaging captures.

Left shoulder not quite resting on the surface.

Breath that's guarded instead of free and easy.

Spine that's stuck in protection mode instead of moving in those smooth, wave-like patterns I'd normally see.

This is where nervous system work comes in - addressing the functional patterns that live beyond structural findings.

Your body never got the clear signal: "You survived. You're safe now."

And here's something I see people struggle with.

External timelines (insurance, work expectations) often don't match your body's healing timeline.

Your body? It operates on its own schedule.

The stress of trying to meet external deadlines can actually slow down your nervous system's ability to shift out of protection mode.

I encourage people to stay focused on what their body needs, even when outside pressures feel intense.

With gentle Network Spinal contacts, I help nervous systems recognize where they're still holding on.... and offer new strategies for releasing that stored stress.

When that shoulder finally drops and breath opens up, something shifts from a polyvagal perspective.

Your body moves out of defense mode into what's called the ventral vagal state (the branch of your nervous system associated with safety, connection, and restoration).

The panic that used to jump into your chest when someone pulled up behind you too fast?

It settles.

You can actually listen to your kids without feeling distracted and tense. You feel capable at work again instead of constantly second-guessing yourself.

Most importantly, that constant "I'm bracing for the next accident" feeling disappears.

Your nervous system learns it can choose safety over defense. And that single shift changes how you move through your whole life.

If you've been told "everything's fine" but you know deep down it isn't...

You're not broken.

Your body remembers what your mind wants to forget. But it also has the wisdom to heal when it feels safe enough to let go.

Comment 💚 below if this resonates. I read every single one, and honestly... knowing you're not alone in this experience matters more than you might think.

11/14/2025

From bracing to breathing.

That's the shift that changed everything for me as a chiropractor.

Most people walk into my office completely locked up. Their body's been holding tension for months... sometimes years. And they want relief yesterday.

I get it.

But when your nervous system is already maxed out, more force doesn't equal more healing.

Usually it just creates more problems.

I learned this through my own injury. I couldn't receive the traditional adjustments I'd been trained to give anymore. My body was screaming "too much input" and I finally understood what some of my patients had been trying to tell me.

Your tension isn't punishment.

It's protection.

When you've been stressed and overwhelmed for a long time, your nervous system shifts into defense mode and your spine literally contorts itself into a protective posture. Those tight spots that won't budge? They're not being stubborn. They're survival mechanisms keeping you safe.

So I start with tools that nudge your system toward rest and repair first.

Gentle touches, specific contacts, breathing cues. Things that whisper to your nervous system "you're safe here, you can let go now."

Once that guard drops, adjustments ask for less and hold more.

Your body stops fighting the care. It actually receives it. And you move easier with way less effort between visits. That's sustainable progress, not the kind that disappears by Tuesday.

Some days we go slow. Some days your body's ready for more. Either way, I'm matching my care to where your nervous system is right now, not forcing your body to match some technique I learned in school.

Because here's the thing...

Healing comes from inside you. When your nervous system functions better, a lot of those symptoms you've been chasing tend to just fall away on their own. That's your body doing what it does best when it finally gets the right conditions to thrive.

Less bracing.
More breathing.
Actual ease that lasts.

💚 Like this if you've felt your body holding tension as protection, and comment "YES" if you're ready to help it finally let go.

11/13/2025

The ache creeps back when you stop.

I see it all the time. Someone comes in, we work together for a few weeks, and they feel incredible. Their nervous system settles, pain fades, they're sleeping better and handling stress without their body throwing a fit.

Then life gets busy and appointments drop off.

A few months later? They're back where they started. Frustrated. Exhausted. Wondering if anything actually worked.

But here's what's really happening...

Your body doesn't just freeze the progress you made and hold it there forever. Without consistent support, it slides back into old patterns because that's what it knows. Your nervous system drifts from rest-and-repair back into fight-or-flight. Posture compensates. Tension rebuilds. And those adhesions (the sticky spots in your joints) can start forming in as little as two weeks when things aren't moving right.

It's like getting in shape, then stopping all movement and expecting your body to stay strong. Your system adapts to what you give it, for better or worse.

Continued care catches the slide early.

This isn't about creating dependence (I'm really not into that). It's about protecting the momentum you worked hard to build. When your nervous system stays regulated, you handle stress better, you notice when something's off before it turns into a problem, and you actually keep the wins instead of watching them disappear.

Some weeks you'll need more support. Other times, just a quick check-in. It shifts based on what's happening in your life.

But when care stops... progress stalls. And starting over every few months is exhausting in a way that's hard to explain until you've been stuck in that cycle.

You don't have to keep doing that.

Like this if you're done losing progress you worked hard for 💚 And comment "momentum" if this hit home.

11/13/2025

Shortly after I graduated (and that would be about 20 years ago now 😲) I found myself lying flat on my floor at home—literally unable to move.

My back had “given out”... just like that.

Sure, my body sent me some messages and I promptly placed them in the recycle bin never registering what it might be saying.

So, I became a chiropractor with discogenic pain, unable to practice, lift things, do groceries. You get the idea.

I’d done everything I told my patients to do and then some.

Nothing worked.

What I didn’t realize way back then, was that the pain in my back wasn’t just about my back.

It was about everything I’d been carrying. The LOADs of life had been accumulating in my spine and nervous system….FOR YEARS
😟Years of stress (I grew up and lived in a very stressful, chaotic household)
🏫Rigorous schooling.
🩺Building a practice.
☹️Holding it all together.

My body had been storing that tension for years and years—and one day, when things finally slowed down just a little, it all came crashing out.

A colleague said “hey why don’t you try something different.” She invited me into her office for care, and that’s when I discovered Network Spinal, a gentle form of chiropractic that helps your nervous system unwind old stress patterns instead of fighting them.
The light touch gave my brain new information—helping my spine release tension that force alone never could.

Now, I see this same story every day in practice:

Tight shoulders and shallow breathing.
Pain that gets worse under stress.
Posture that won’t “stay fixed.”

Because it’s not just posture—it’s your nervous system doing its best to protect you.

When we give it safety cues—through gentle care, breath, movement, or even small daily choices—it can finally relax.

So if your body’s been sending you signals lately, maybe it’s not breaking down…
Maybe it’s asking for something different.

Book your initial appointment and let's see what your nervous system is telling you.

11/12/2025

Desk workers swear by this 3 step plan.

From coders to counselors, the same trio keeps showing up.

You know that person at work whose neck never seems bothered by the eight-hour screen marathon? They're not just lucky. They figured out something most people miss - that neck pain isn't really about your neck at all.

It's your nervous system responding to threat.

And when you're hunched forward staring at a screen for hours, your body reads that as stress. Your neck muscles tighten up to protect you, your breathing gets shallow, and by 3 PM you feel like someone tied a knot at the base of your skull.

Here's the checklist that actually works:

**Micro-mobility every 45 minutes**

Not stretching. Just movement. Look up, down, side to side... let your neck remember it can move in more than one direction. Takes maybe 20 seconds.

Your nervous system needs reminders that you're safe to move, that nothing's hunting you, that you can look around without danger.

**Screen at eye level**

Stop tilting your head down.

When your screen sits too low, your neck muscles are holding up about 10-12 pounds (the weight of your head) at a terrible angle for hours on end. They fatigue. They complain. And eventually, they start sending pain signals because they're exhausted.

Raise your laptop, adjust your monitor, stack some books under it... whatever gets your head back to neutral.

**Gentle chiropractic care for your nervous system**

Network Spinal - the type of care I offer - works with your nervous system directly. When your neck joints have been stuck in stress patterns for weeks or months, they need help releasing that tension. No popping, no forcing. Just gentle contacts that help your body recognize it's safe to let go of the bracing.

Because here's what I see all the time: people do the stretches, they fix their desk setup, but their nervous system is still stuck in protection mode. The tension comes right back.

When we support your nervous system to downregulate - to actually shift out of that constant stress response - those other two steps work so much better. Your body stops fighting you.

Most people wait until the pain is unbearable.

Some people have found that addressing this early makes a difference. Your neck is just doing its job - responding to stress and poor positioning the only way it knows how. By tightening up.

Give your nervous system better input (proper positioning, regular movement, and support to release old patterns), and it stops creating tension in the first place.

Your neck's been working overtime trying to keep you safe.

Maybe it's time to let it relax.

If you're reading this with tight shoulders and a stiff neck... start with your screen height today. Notice what shifts.

💚 Like this if you spend more than 4 hours a day at a screen & comment "neck" if you want more nervous system tips for desk workers.

11/11/2025

One number tells your stress story.

I've been using HRV readings with my patients for a while now, and it's become one of my favorite tools in understanding what's really going on beneath the surface.

HRV stands for heart rate variability.

Basically, it measures the tiny gaps between your heartbeats. And those gaps? They tell me whether your nervous system has the flexibility to handle stress or if it's stuck running on survival mode.

Here's what I find fascinating.

Most people already know something's off before the number ever confirms it. They'll describe feeling wired but exhausted at the same time. Or brain fog that just won't lift no matter how much they sleep. Sometimes it's pain that seems to move around without any clear pattern.

Your body's been trying to tell you the story all along. HRV just gives it a number.

When I see a higher HRV, that tells me your nervous system has some wiggle room. It can shift between being active and resting without getting stuck in either state. There's flexibility there.

But when it's low?

That's your system running on fumes. You're stuck in fight-or-flight even when you're trying to relax. There's no space between the beats because there's no space left in your nervous system.

I see this play out in two ways in my practice.

Sometimes someone comes in feeling "fine." They're pushing through like they always do. But their HRV is tanked. Their body is screaming, but they've gotten so good at ignoring it that they don't even hear it anymore.

Then there's the flip side.

Someone feels absolutely terrible. They're convinced something's really wrong. But their HRV shows me their nervous system is actually starting to regulate for the first time in months, maybe years. They're not falling apart... they're finally feeling what's been there all along because their body feels safe enough to show them.

That's the part that surprises people. Sometimes feeling worse means you're starting to heal.

So when I see someone's HRV dip, here are a few of the resets I reach for:

→ Box breathing. Breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 4, out for 4, hold for 4. It's simple, but it signals safety to your vagus nerve almost instantly.

→ Humming or even just sighing out loud. I know it sounds a little silly, but gentle vocalization like this activates your ventral vagal pathway and helps pull you out of that stress spiral.

→ A short walk outside without your phone. The combo of movement, fresh air, and zero mental distraction is one of the fastest nervous system resets I know.

None of these are complicated.

But they work because you're speaking directly to your autonomic nervous system... not trying to think your way out of a physiological state your body's already in.

If you've been feeling like your body's not on your side lately, maybe this is worth paying attention to. Your nervous system might just be asking for a little help getting back to baseline.

Ever felt "off" without being able to explain why? Give this a like. And drop a comment if you track HRV or any other body signals that help you understand what's going on with your stress 💚

11/11/2025

Thank-you for your service.
Forever grateful.

11/08/2025

If you came into my office with neck pain and headaches which only seems to show up after a serious of stressful event (even if they are minor), I’d likely approach it in way that you’ve ever experienced before

Instead of trying to “ fix” your neck pain and headaches, I’d look at your nervous system. When you are feeling overwhelmed and stressed, stress can accumulate in your nervous system like a cup filling up with water. At some point, your body, like the cup, can't contain the water or the stress and it starts to come out as neck pain and headaches.

I use low force chiropractic techniques which help your body unwind and your nervous system function optimally so that you handle what life throws at you better.

Drop a 💜 if you’ve tried chasing your symptoms and didn’t get anywhere

Flourish Chiropractic Studio with Dr. Biljana

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