4022: Hack Your Nervous System to Prevent Summer Blues by Ingrid Y Helander on Nervous System Regulation

Optimal Living Daily - Personal Development and Self-Improvement

Optimal Living Daily LLC

Education, Self-improvement, Health & Fitness, Mental Health

4.6 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 21 May 2026

⏱️ 11 minutes

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Summary

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 4022: Ingrid Y. Helander explores how fear of returning depression can quietly intensify anxiety and emotional shutdown, especially during the summer when sadness feels harder to hide. Drawing from Polyvagal Theory and Internal Family Systems, she offers simple ways to shift your nervous system toward safety, connection, and emotional balance so you can move through difficult feelings with more confidence and self-compassion. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://ingridyhelanderlmft.com/hack-your-nervous-system-to-prevent-summer-blues/ Quotes to ponder: “Any energy (even fear) is actually a great way to move out of symptoms that feel depressing.” “When you get overly anxious about becoming depressed and push those old feelings away, you are actually more likely to fall back into a depression.” “Breathe and recognize that you shift up and down between these portions of your nervous system all the time every day.” Episode references: Internal Family Systems: https://ifs-institute.com/ Polyvagal Theory: https://www.polyvagalinstitute.org/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Changes in sexual performance are more common than most people realise, and support doesn't need to feel awkward.
0:05.8	With MedExpress, everything happens privately online.
0:09.1	Start by completing a short consultation reviewed by UK registered clinicians.
0:13.3	If eligible, treatment is delivered discreetly to your home with ongoing support whenever you need it.
0:18.7	You're not alone in this. Visit medexpress.com.
0:21.8	dot-co.uk slash podcast to learn more. This is Optimal Living Daily. Hack your nervous system to prevent
0:28.7	summer blues by Ingrid Y. Helander of ingrid Yelander, lmft.com. And I'm Justin Mollick,
0:35.2	your personal narrator reading to you every single day of the year
0:38.6	with permission from the authors. We're going to get right to it today as we optimize your life.
0:47.7	Hack your nervous system to prevent summer blues by Ingrid Y Helander of ingrid Y. Helander, LMFT.com.
0:57.1	Summer is an especially tough time to feel down. In the winter, we can hide behind the cold and dark.
1:03.9	It's more acceptable to stay inside, to sleep more, and generally people understand when you feel blue.
1:10.3	But in the summer, it's like the whole
1:12.1	world disagrees with your presentation. Depression is horrible, and when you experience relief from it,
1:18.8	it's a feeling you want to keep far, far away. In my experience, people who have experienced
1:24.4	depression respond in a unique way to any questions about it.
1:28.8	They typically brush past the subject quickly and with few details, except to say,
1:33.2	I don't ever want to go back there again.
1:37.1	By contrast, after a physical illness, people more comfortably describe the symptoms and what happened.
1:43.5	Talking about an illness helps us
1:45.1	get clear, feel support, and move on. However, after depression, people frequently worry that
1:52.0	even talking about the previous pain will cause a relapse. Although it can feel like a risk
	...

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