Why We Need to Rub Down
Rubbing down stimulates three key sensors in the skin that mimics your passage through the birth canal. The birthing process has many effects and benefits, including forcing the amniotic fluid out of your lungs so you can breathe air for the first time. That skin-to-skin contact in a head to toe direction activates a reflex in the newborn’s skin surface which stimulates the liver which then turns on all the glands in the infant’s body. Prior to this moment, nutrition came pre-digested from mom, but this process activates the digestive program in the infant for the first time.
Rubbing down reactivates that digestive program which allows us to create and dispense the digestive enzymes from the gallbladder, pancreas, the acid from the stomach, and the pre and probiotics from the appendix at just the right time in the digestive cycle. The valves must open and close on cue to move the broken-down food through the digestive track as we absorb the nutrients and eventually eliminate the waste products. This requires a neurological program that uses a great deal of blood to carry all the nutrients to the liver and beyond. This precise operation needs rest as our other organ systems take a backseat for a while. It is imperative that the brain and muscles relinquish some blood flow and relax!
I have just outlined the transition from the fight/flight program to the digestion program with relaxation for mind and body. You activate this transition every time you rub down! It takes approximately 18 hours to complete one digestive cycle, and calming the brain and body allows that transition to take place.
Rubbing down helps with digestion, makes the neuro-transitions easier, calms us down, aids with sleep, quiets our brains and much more! So, please continue to rub down multiple times each day!