At 40, My Body Broke Down: From Shingles to Nervous System Healing
- Christina McHugh
- Mar 19
- 3 min read
I Was 40 When My Body Said Enough
At 40 years old, I was a mother of two young children.
I was doing everything I thought I was supposed to do.
Holding it all together.
Taking care of everyone else.
Pushing through exhaustion.
I didn’t realize I had been living in stress for so long…
it had become my normal.
And then my body stopped me.
Not gently.
But in a way I couldn’t ignore.
The Day My Body Broke Down
In 2015, I developed shingles.
At first, I thought I had pulled a muscle.
Then the symptoms started to spread
“I didn’t realize I had been living in stress for so long… it had become my normal.”
The pain intensified in a way I had never experienced before.
And I remember thinking:
“What the Fk! What is going on?”**
“Feels like you're being stung by thousands of bees… hot needles… razor blades scraping your skin.”
A Moment From 2015
Back then, I wasn’t a teacher.
I wasn’t a guide.
I was a mother… in pain… trying to understand my own body.
I couldn’t sleep.
I couldn’t rest.
“The pain I am feeling is unbearable… the thought of clothing touching my skin makes me scream.”
At one point, I genuinely believed I might not make it through.
“I thought I was gonna die… it was the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my entire life.”
And all I could think was:
“Is this normal?”
"What I Didn’t Know Then..."
At the time, I thought I was just sick.
I didn’t understand what my body was trying to tell me.
Now I see it clearly:
My nervous system was completely overwhelmed.
The Missing Link: The Nervous System
When your body is stuck in stress (fight-or-flight), it cannot heal.
The immune system weakens
Inflammation increases
The body stays in survival mode
And here’s what most people don’t realize:
👉 You can’t think your way out of stress
👉 You have to signal safety to the body
"Breath Changed Everything"
The first real shift didn’t come from willpower.
It came from breath.
When I learned how to:
slow my breathing
use my diaphragm
regulate my nervous system
Everything started to change.
For the first time, my body felt safe.
And when the body feels safe…
It begins to heal.
From Breakdown to Alignment
That moment in 2015 changed the trajectory of my life.
It led me to:
Kundalini Yoga
Breathwork
Nervous system regulation
Sound healing
Deep self-awareness
What felt like a breakdown…was actually a turning point.
Transformation
Why This Matters For You
If you feel:
anxious
overwhelmed
exhausted
disconnected from your body
There is nothing wrong with you.
Your nervous system may simply be stuck in a stress pattern.
And it can be retrained.
Ready to Reset Your Nervous System?
If this story resonates, your body may already be asking for more than information — it’s asking for experience.
Breath is the fastest way to shift your body out of stress and back into safety.
That’s why I created:
Recode • Reset • Rise — Breath Reset Meditation Bundle
Inside you'll experience:
• Guided breath reset meditation
• Nervous system calming breathwork
• Vagus nerve activation techniques
• Deep relaxation for anxiety and stress
This is the exact work that changed my life.
Final Reflection
In 2015, I thought my body was failing me.
Now I understand…
It was speaking to me.
Your body is not broken.
It’s communicating.
You just need the right signal to begin.
—
Christina Elena McHughKundalini Instructor • Breathwork Facilitator
Yogic Cowgirl — Recode • Reset • Rise
Original Journal Entry (2015)
This article is based on my real-time experience documented in 2015.
If you’d like to see my original journal during that time:
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