You're Nervous System Isn't a Machine, It's a Garden
- Paulina Hupka
- Jun 2
- 3 min read
We've been told our bodies are machines: fuel them, track them, upgrade them. It sounds logical until you realize that logic alone can't explain burnout, disconnection or the ache in your chest when life moves too fast.
Machines are indeed part of life.
But what we keep forgetting is that we humans aren't machines.
You aren't made of metal and gears.
You aren't broken.
You don't need to be fixed, tracked, upgraded or "biohacked."
You are made of breath, blood, bone, and water.
You didn't outgrow the Earth, you grew from her.
You are nature.
Look at a root system and your nervous system. It's not just a resemblance, it's a remembrance.
When I saw it, something ancient clicked, something profound changed in me.
It's time we stop treating ourselves like machines and start tending to the wild, wise ecosystem we are.
We, our nervous system, need nourishment, patience and pruning so that over time we can harvest the fruits of our daily care.
Your Nervous System Doesn't Need More "Biohacking!"
Have You ever Tried to Control Your Nervous System?
...to optimize or control your body, what you eat or how you interact with people?
You tried to be thinner, healthier, stronger, smarter, faster, better, and be the first.
I've been there, too.
Modern life has become a factory line. And we learned to perform to maintain the system.
But as social beings, we want to belong. We want to be important. We want to be unique. We want to be recognized. So, we perform. We shrink our softness. We control our bodies. Because somewhere along the way, we learned that recognition meant survival.
Unfortunately, this forced focus is unnatural.
It's not our natural way of being, existing and living.
Of course, we enjoy the many benefits of modern life, like heat, housing, and bathrooms.
But you weren't designed to keep pace with a system that values output over being.
Your burnout isn't a personal failure, it's a biological protest.
Nature will always win.
Have you seen dandelions breaking through concrete? Quiet. Defiant. Slow. But inevitable.
Even though nature is slow and small, it will eventually find its way through the dark.
To find our way through, we must return to who we already are: important, unique and natural. And then, we find the people who make space for that truth.
Despite all our modern life-enriching technology and scientific breakthroughs, our bodies haven't evolved at the same rate as our lives have.
Our nervous system is still the garden that needs patience, sensory care and slow tending to feel grounded.
Embracing slowness and care feels impossible because the machine is running fast.
But this slowness isn't optional.
It's essential!
It's important to acknowledge this for yourself.
You can start by looking from the inside to the outside.
Look through your window - metaphorically and literally - while at work or dealing with your daily tasks. What you see is nature growing, blooming and thriving.
Your nervous system longs for what the garden already knows: Slow and steady growth, aligned with the seasons.
Bring it back into your life!
You don't have to completely disregard everything you have in your life; simply start small.
Grow your own sprouts.
Bring a bouquet or an indoor plant into your house.
Follow a trail without your phone.
Touch a tree.
Bring all your senses into this experience, and embrace a few moments in nature with nature.
Why is this helpful?
Because you are practicing mindful slowness.
That's the nourishment that calms and grounds your nervous system.
I believe that most things we humans, women, sensitive souls need are already available; we have just unlearned to embrace them.
So, I challenge you today. Step out of the machine. Put your hands in the soil of your life. Tend to what's been waiting. Your nervous system remembers the way back.
When you're ready to step into clarity, sensitive strength and solid ground, let's work together.
Life Coaching is an undervalued method to build motivation and actionable steps. Nutritional Counselling can help nourish your body, your nervous system to create fertile soil for growth, patience and depth.
