ABOUT sgb
These are minimally-invasive, swift treatments to reduce the intensity of the physical symptoms of anxiety. A hyperreactive fight or flight system can cause uncomfortable physical responses to anxiety such as body/muscle tension, heart palpitations, headache, chest or gastrointestinal discomfort, sweatiness, etc. These can cause further symptoms of anxiety such as restlessness, procrastination/avoidance, difficulties relaxing and with sleep.
Balancing the Nervous System
A hyperreactive fight or flight system often reflects unbalance of sympathetic (stellate ganglion) and parasympathetic (vagus) nervous systems. When we hear anxiety as being an upset of nerves, this is what we’re talking about. These two help govern many normal bodily functions. These functions are temporarily altered during a normal stress response as the body’s way of preparing to respond to the stress (fight or flight response), and this accounts for the physical anxiety symptoms some feel. If you react excessively to stress however, and too frequently, it can reduce life quality and function. Medications and therapy can help. These procedures offer a precise, swift intervention that can enhance and advance the effectiveness of these other tools. An intervention combining these procedures with other effective anxiety treatment (e.g. somatic therapy) can yield significant improvement in upwards of 70-80% of patients. For many, the symptom relief allows them to lower anxiety medication and progress further during somatic therapies (emdr 0 Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing).
What can a Stellate Ganglion Block do for you?
Both procedures are safety and precisely performed under ultrasound guidance, and takes 5-10 minutes, thus minimal disruption to your day’s schedule. It can significantly improve how your body responds to stress, allowing for improvement of function and general wellbeing. A stellate ganglion block involves injecting a numbing medication around the stellate ganglion and a vagus hydrodissection frees the vagus from its surrounding connective tissue wall, relieving compression.
A Stellate Ganglion Block can be an effective treatment for other conditions, including long-covid syndrome symptoms, complex regional pain syndrome, and other conditions caused or worsened by abnormal sympathetic nervous system function.
Frequently Asked Questions
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This depends on your needle tolerance. If you hate needles, do not worry, we have you covered. We offer very light and fast on/off sedation to cover the duration of the procedure, light enough that it wears off just as we’re finishing, allowing you to return to your day afterwards.
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These treatments are safe and THRIVE has performed hundreds. On the day of the procedure and approximately eight hours (or less) afterwards, you will experience a partial droopiness of your eyelid, partial eye redness, and watering, on the side of the procedure, due to the temporary effect of the numbing medication. This goes away all of the time and it is something we want to happen, as it is the sign of a successful stellate ganglion block.