5 Sensory Resets to Calm Your Nervous System Naturally
Author: Dr. Kolin Durrant, Integrative Care Director, Doctor of Acupuncture & Chinese Medicine
In a world that constantly demands our attention, our nervous systems rarely receive the rest they deserve. We move from screen to screen and conversation to conversation, often unaware of how overstimulation affects the body and mind. The result is a persistent state of alert, known as the sympathetic response or fight or flight mode. This contributes to fatigue, irritability, anxiety, and reduced immune function.
A sensory reset is a holistic method for recalibrating the nervous system by engaging the five senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. These intentional practices activate the parasympathetic system, which governs rest and digestion, restoring calm, balance, and mental clarity.
At Saffron and Sage in San Diego, our holistic practitioners incorporate sensory therapies such as aromatherapy, breathwork, and sound healing to support nervous system regulation, embodiment, and grounded wellbeing.
1. Visual Reset: Soften the Mind Through Light and Color
Your visual environment holds significant power over your mood and stress response. Harsh artificial lighting, cluttered surroundings, and digital overstimulation can activate alert pathways in the brain, making relaxation more difficult.
A study published in Frontiers in Psychology found that exposure to natural environments and soft visual stimuli, such as greenery and natural light, significantly reduces heart rate and blood pressure while enhancing emotional regulation and cognitive clarity (Frontiers in Psychology).
To initiate a visual reset:
Step outside and gaze toward the horizon to release visual tension
Use warm-toned lighting in the evening to support circadian rhythms
Declutter your space to ease cognitive load
Add natural hues like green, blue, and soft neutrals to soothe the mind
At Saffron and Sage, our breathwork and meditation rooms are thoughtfully curated with muted lighting, organic textures, and calming visuals to create an atmosphere that invites the eyes and nervous system to rest simultaneously.
2. Auditory Reset: Use Sound to Shift Brain States
Sound directly influences the brain’s rhythm. Excessive noise, alerts, and high-volume environments can maintain a low-grade stress state without conscious awareness. Rhythmic or harmonic sound can do the opposite, restoring coherence to both the mind and body.
Research published in Brain Sciences shows that rhythmic auditory input, especially in the four to eight hertz range associated with theta brainwaves, promotes deep relaxation, focus, and emotional steadiness (Brain Sciences).
To practice an auditory reset:
Listen to instrumental or nature-based music during breaks
Use white noise or binaural beats while working or meditating
Attend sound therapy sessions or guided meditations
At Saffron and Sage, our sound healing offerings include instruments such as Tibetan bowls, gongs, and chimes, designed to entrain the nervous system into a more balanced and restorative state.
3. Tactile Reset: Reconnect Through Touch and Body Awareness
Touch is one of the most foundational regulators of the human nervous system. Whether through therapeutic massage, mindful movement, or even placing a hand over the heart, tactile input signals safety and presence to the brain. It can lower cortisol and heart rate while increasing oxytocin, the hormone linked to trust and connection.
A review in Frontiers in Psychology found that both therapeutic and self-administered touch significantly improve physiological stress markers by shifting the body out of vigilance and into connection (Frontiers in Psychology).
Tactile resets may include:
Placing your hands over your chest and abdomen while breathing slowly
Using a dry brush or practicing self-massage to awaken awareness
Receiving regular therapeutic bodywork, such as massage or acupuncture
At Saffron and Sage, modalities including somatic therapy, cupping, and integrative massage are used to guide members back into their physical body, restoring embodied safety and sensory grounding.
4. Olfactory Reset: Calming the Mind Through Scent
The sense of smell accesses the limbic system more directly than any other sense. This is the brain’s emotional center, which is why certain aromas can instantly shift mood, release memory, or evoke calm.
Essential oils like lavender, sandalwood, and bergamot have been shown to stabilize mood, ease anxiety, and support deeper sleep. One study in Molecules demonstrated that lavender oil inhalation reduces sympathetic activation while improving overall emotional balance (Molecules).
Simple ways to engage in an olfactory reset:
Diffuse essential oils during rest or work periods
Apply calming blends to the pulse points before meditation or sleep
Inhale therapeutic scents with slow breathing to deepen relaxation
At Saffron and Sage, aromatherapy is interwoven into numerous offerings, from facial therapy to restorative yoga, supporting the body’s sensory pathways and emotional equilibrium through intentional scent rituals.
5. Taste Reset: Mindful Eating to Ground the Body
Taste is a sensory gateway into the present moment. Beyond flavor, it invites awareness of nourishment, texture, and warmth. Mindful eating encourages slow breathing and parasympathetic activation, especially when meals are free from distraction.
Warm, mineral-rich foods and grounding spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, and ginger support digestion and restore the body’s rhythm.
To engage in a taste-based reset:
Begin meals with slow breathing and gratitude
Savor each bite fully without distraction
Choose nutrient-dense foods with warming or calming properties
At Saffron and Sage, our nutrition programs emphasize both the composition of the diet and the experience of eating. Through nutritional counseling, we encourage clients to view meals as opportunities to tune in, regulate, and restore connection with the body.
Integrating Sensory Resets into Daily Life
Though each of these practices can be used independently, their power increases when integrated across the day. The senses are portals into the nervous system. By intentionally stimulating or soothing them, we return the body to its natural equilibrium.
A sample daily practice may include:
Morning exposure to natural light while practicing breath awareness
Calming music between meetings to transition with ease
Midday aromatherapy or mindful tea drinking to ground attention
Evening bodywork or warm baths to invite tactile calm
Gratitude at the close of each meal to complete the cycle of nourishment
At Saffron and Sage, sensory therapies are embedded into every integrative care experience. Whether through acupuncture, sound, aromatherapy, or breathwork, each modality honors the body’s intuitive design for regulation and restoration.
Your Nervous System Deserves Care
Your nervous system is the central command for physical vitality and emotional steadiness. It requires consistent care, just like any other organ system. Sensory resets are not luxury treatments — they are fundamental forms of maintenance that bring the mind and body into rhythm.
Healing does not always begin with diagnosis or intervention. Sometimes it begins with what you see, hear, feel, smell, and taste.
Experience Sensory Healing at Saffron & Sage
Call 619-933-2340 or visit saffronsageliving.com to explore our integrative therapies designed to calm and reset your nervous system.
Whether through sound therapy, aromatherapy, or guided meditation, our San Diego holistic healthcare team will help you reconnect to your senses — and rediscover your natural state of calm.
Because healing starts with awareness — and awareness begins through the senses.