How to Use sympathetic nervous system in a Sentence

sympathetic nervous system

noun
  • The sympathetic nervous system is the gas pedal that speeds up the systems involved in fight or flight.
    Arash Javanbakht, Discover Magazine, 7 Sep. 2023
  • The whole idea is to move from the sympathetic nervous system, fight or flight, to the parasympethic system, rest and digest.
    Nina Sovich, WSJ, 20 Sep. 2018
  • The sympathetic nervous system is part of your body's fight-or-flight response.
    Cathy Cassata, Health, 29 July 2023
  • Epidurals affect the sympathetic nervous system, or a series of nerves that spread from your spine to your body.
    Samantha Lauriello, Health, 26 May 2024
  • This can trigger the sympathetic nervous system and send your body into fight-or-flight mode.
    Maggie O'Neill, SELF, 31 Mar. 2023
  • This then triggers the sympathetic nervous system, which prompts the release of hormones like cortisol via the adrenal glands.
    Georgia Day, Glamour, 8 Mar. 2024
  • Lipov said his research has shown that the block is safe and treats symptoms of an overactive sympathetic nervous system.
    Julia O'Malley, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Dec. 2022
  • This response is driven by what doctors call the sympathetic nervous system, the collection of neurons weaving from the spine into the rest of the body.
    Nicole Johnson, National Geographic, 30 Oct. 2020
  • Within that is the sympathetic nervous system, which controls your body’s response to stress.
    Erica Sweeney, Men's Health, 12 Jan. 2023
  • As a result, your sympathetic nervous system might kick in with shivering to warm you up and give you some energy.
    Julie Stewart, Men's Health, 29 June 2022
  • Researchers have long thought that the sympathetic nervous system arose with the evolution of jawed vertebrates.
    Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 May 2024
  • The sympathetic nervous system — that part of your body that swings into action when, for example, you’re chased by a bear — seems to have been permanently switched on in some patients.
    New York Times, 21 Jan. 2021
  • Your sympathetic nervous system, which causes blood vessels to narrow, is the source of this mechanism.
    Zahra Barnes, SELF, 15 Dec. 2017
  • The sympathetic nervous system makes sure the small blood vessels in your body’s tissue maintain a baseline level of constriction.
    Anne R. Crecelius, The Conversation, 20 June 2019
  • In your lungs, signals from the sympathetic nervous system dilate airways and often increase your breathing rate and depth.
    Arash Javanbakht, Discover Magazine, 7 Sep. 2023
  • Exposure to the cold activates the body’s sympathetic nervous system, which results in a burst of energy and alertness.
    Alex Janin, WSJ, 4 Nov. 2022
  • This takes the brakes off the sympathetic nervous system, unleashing the body’s stress response, including the release of adrenaline, Karsenty says.
    Emily Underwood, Science | AAAS, 12 Sep. 2019
  • When our brains perceive threats, fear is communicated throughout the body via stress hormones and the sympathetic nervous system, or our fight-or-flight response.
    Kristen Rogers, CNN, 8 June 2020
  • Also surprising was just how quickly the sympathetic nervous system set to work; in many of the mice’s hair follicles, MeSCs were completely lost within five days.
    Brigit Katz, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Jan. 2020
  • Cortisol is a hormone that increases activity in the sympathetic nervous system, which includes the heart, and its levels tend to peak first thing in the morning.
    Markham Heid, Time, 4 Nov. 2022
  • Deep breathing also calms the sympathetic nervous system and relieves stress.
    Hayden Carpenter, Outside Online, 20 May 2021
  • Every time a person stops breathing for a few seconds, the body's sympathetic nervous system goes into action and raises blood pressure.
    Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 17 Feb. 2022
  • That's when your sympathetic nervous system triggers your brain to release of a bunch of hormones, including adrenaline and noradrenaline, that rev your body up.
    Stephanie Dolgoff, Good Housekeeping, 14 June 2019
  • What's actually happening is, my sympathetic nervous system has decided to reroute the path of my blood to my muscles.
    Jessica Leon, EW.com, 14 Nov. 2022
  • But luckily, the sympathetic nervous system doesn’t waste time.
    Jade Wu Savvy Psychologist, Scientific American, 5 Nov. 2019
  • Every part of you, from your head to your stomach to your feet, has nerves to regulate important processes, which is why your sympathetic nervous system’s stress response can be so far-reaching.
    Brittany Risher, SELF, 2 Feb. 2018
  • The sympathetic nervous system’s default state of high alertness is suppressed when safety is perceived; these safety brakes are lifted under duress.
    Grace Leslie, Scientific American, 18 Sep. 2021
  • Beyond an initial stress reaction, the sympathetic nervous system also responds to levels of high noise, which can increase heart rate and cause blood pressure to rise, according to the NYT research.
    Byalexa Mikhail, Fortune Well, 12 June 2023
  • Instead of the immune system or stress hormones, researchers found the actual culprit was the sympathetic nervous system, responsible for the fight-or-flight response.
    Jennifer Walter, Discover Magazine, 22 Jan. 2020
  • In response to a threat, lightning-fast hormonal changes activate the sympathetic nervous system.
    Eleanor Morgan, refinery29.com, 13 July 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sympathetic nervous system.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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