You Can Feel Deeply Calm & Connected — Even When Your Nervous System Is Activated
For a long time, I believed that if your mind feels calm and clear, your nervous system must be relaxed too. But over time, I’ve learned that the two don’t always align.
That insight became even clearer when I — along with a few others — wore the Nuanic Smart Ring during a series of healing meditations I led at the Crush Movement Conference.
The data from our bodies told a different story. And it revealed a quiet but powerful truth that’s stayed with me ever since.
Now, I want to share it with you, too.
What Happened at Crush
The meditations I led at Crush were short — under 15 minutes — but intentionally deep. They were healing visualizations designed to help people let go, reconnect inward (even with their soul), and access clarity. The focus wasn’t on simply relaxing the body, but on emotional release, inner presence, and energetic reset.
To see how this kind of inner work might affect the stress levels in a setting like this, I—along with a few others—was wearing the Nuanic Smart Ring, a wearable that tracks real-time signals from the autonomic nervous system offering a glimpse into how the body responds to stress, calm, and emotional shifts.
And the setting couldn’t have been more challenging for these meditations.
Before the event, I had spent hours preparing and designing the Spaces of Wellbeing Lounge — the environment where I would guide these meditations. With the help of a few volunteers, I transformed a cold, echoey hallway into a soft, energetically grounded space. It was designed to feel calm, safe, and nurturing. It truly felt like something different in the middle of the event.
Photo: Maria Ramirez. First photo on the page: Kertu Salumets.
But no matter how much intention and energy work I put into the space, it was still a conference.
That meant:
- ambient noise all around
- people moving between sessions
- cold floors
- tiny pillows to sit on
- people being inspired, active and highly social
- and a general buzz in the air
So, this wasn’t a quiet retreat — it was real-life stillness in the middle of movement.
When I told people I’d be guiding meditations at a conference, I kept hearing the same thing:
“That’s one of the hardest places to lead meditation and healing work. How can anyone drop into themselves in a space like that?”
But that was the point
Together with Katja Presnal, the founder of Crush, we wanted to challenge that idea.To make space for the inner journey, even in the middle of a high-paced, highly stimulating environment, like a conference.
Deep Presence Was Felt — Even While the Nervous System Was Still Active
After the meditations, I received the most beautiful reflections.People were feeling good, happy, deeply connected and their minds were clear.
“It’s not just about calming down, it’s about something deeper and more expansive, a space that opens both within us and around us. Essi creates this space and atmosphere with a deep sense of safety.”
“Your meditations were crucial for my Crush experience. As ADHD person, events like Crush are super draining.”
And yet, some of the participants who were also wearing the Nuanic Smart Ring didn’t show a significant shift toward a more relaxed nervous system in their data.
This makes sense: while they felt clear and emotionally lighter, their bodies hadn’t fully shifted out of a mobilized or alert state — and that’s completely natural in a high-energy setting, like a conference.
But that contrast stayed with me.
Also, My Own Data Looked Different
A steady decline in electrodermal activity, a sign of increasing nervous system calm even while I was holding space and guiding others in those meditations in a lively environment.
This didn’t surprise me. I’ve been practicing meditation and energy healing since 2003. With time, you develop an inner doorway — access to presence and clarity that calms your nervous system— that becomes available even when everything around you is hectic.
But even for me, there was a limit.
During the final session of the day (maybe the deepest and most beautiful of them all), my own stress levels were not going down. And I was feeling that. The build-up of the day, the emotional holding, the energy I carried, it showed up also in the Nuanic data.
It’s All Backed by Research
Afterwards, I wanted to understand this all even better. I found out that this whole experience — the emotional clarity, feeling good vs. the nervous system relaxation — is backed by science.
✅ Mental clarity, emotional openness, and connection to self are top-down experiences. They come through the mind, imagination, and intention.
✅ Nervous system regulation is largely a bottom-up process — through breath, posture, safety cues, etc. — it can also be supported by top-down inputs like intention and mindfulness.
According to Polyvagal Theory (Stephen Porges), Somatic Experiencing (Peter Levine), etc, it’s normal to feel deeply calm and connected while your nervous system is still softening, slowly catching up.
And that’s not a problem.
That’s part of being human.
Heal with me for a sec.
Have you ever used a smart device, maybe a fitness tracker, a smart ring, or a meditation app and discovered something that surprised you?
Maybe the data didn’t match how you felt. Maybe it confirmed something you already knew deep down.
Take a moment and look within. What did it teach you about yourself?
Essi Koski-Lammi
Essi Koski-Lammi is a Wellbeing Trailblazer, Feminine Executive Coach, Healer, Clairvoyant and Conscious Interior Designer. She believes that how we live, work, and care for ourselves is deeply influenced by the connection between the spaces within and around us. With a diploma in interior design, over 22 years of experience in energy healing and meditation, MSC in Business and a strong background in global branding and marketing, Essi combines her expertise to empower women to transform their homes, businesses, and lives — and most importantly, themselves — so that every part of life feels aligned and truly their own.
