I recently came across a study that was a good reminder about calmness. It wasn’t about meditation or supplements, but about how breathing and cold exposure can literally reprogram the brain to regulate stress.
We all deal with pressure from work, relationships or just the daily pace of life. But what if you could train your body to recover faster, think clearer and feel balanced again?
In this post, you’ll learn how the Wim Hof Method unlocks the body’s natural ability to self-regulate and how adding scent, like hinoki or Pause, can make that process even more effective.
The Study That Started It All
In 2018, researchers at Wayne State University released a study called Brain Over Body that confirmed something really cool. Wim Hof could consciously control parts of his brain responsible for stress regulation and body temperature even while fully submerged in ice.
By monitoring brain activity, scientists discovered that his method triggered a release of endocannabinoids, natural chemical messengers that help regulate the immune system, hormones, inflammation, mood and dopamine production. These are the same systems that keep the body in balance.
The finding was groundbreaking. If breathing, cold exposure and the right mindset could activate these natural compounds, it meant the human body could self-regulate far more than previously thought. This is something that I've been learning on my own, which led me to creating a business around regulating the nervous system.
The Power of Self-Regulation
A follow-up study trained four new participants in the Wim Hof Method for six weeks, combining breathing, cold exposure and what researchers called Hormetic Enhanced Interoceptive Refocusing, a mindset practice that involves consciously refocusing attention away from stress and trusting that the body knows what to do.
PET scans showed a 20% increase in CB1 receptor activity, confirming that endocannabinoid pathways could be consciously activated, not only by Wim Hof himself but also by ordinary people.
This was the missing piece in understanding why the method improved mood, immunity and recovery. It showed that with intentional stress, the right kind of eustress, the body can rebalance itself and restore calm from the inside out.
The Science of Calm and Hinoki
The human body doesn’t just respond to intense stressors like cold and breath retention. It also reacts to subtle sensory signals that tell the nervous system it’s safe. Scent is one of the fastest and most direct of these signals.
Hinoki oil contains compounds like alpha-pinene and bornyl acetate that influence the same pathways connected to parasympathetic activation and endocannabinoid regulation. When you inhale hinoki, those compounds reach the limbic system, the part of the brain that governs mood, memory and emotion. This naturally lowers cortisol and helps the body move from fight or flight into rest and repair.
The Pause blend pairs hinoki with yuzu, creating a balance between grounding calm and bright clarity. Used with breathwork, it reinforces the body’s internal message of safety, helping the same regulatory systems that Wim Hof’s method targets, just through a gentler doorway.
While cold exposure and breathwork challenge the nervous system through intensity, hinoki and Pause train calm through stillness. Both lead to the same outcome: balance. I like to combine all three at least once a week. I had to one of my favorite wellness spots, do 5 minutes of breathing while smelling hinoki or Pause and then I do my cold plunge session. After, I do another 5 minutes of breathing with hinoki. That routine completely resets my mood and allows me to move on with my day at a controlled pace.
Small Rituals, Big Shifts
Whether it’s immersing yourself in cold water or simply taking five slow breaths with hinoki, you’re doing the same thing at a biological level. You're reminding your body it has everything it needs to self-regulate.
Calm isn’t just a mental state. It’s chemistry and physiology. Knowing how to use that to your advantage leads to higher productivity, less stress and deeper rest. This is why I decided to dedicate so much of my time learning how to regulate the nervous system. When you learn that as a skill, it makes every other part of your wellness routine easier. And life less stressful.
