The Brain is Magical
On this ride of sickness and health and those places between, I've experienced some fascinating things, and in the process, learned some incredibly random things about human physiology.
I've talked about my adrenal issues before... If you need a refresh or a crash-course in what adrenal glands are and what they do, go here: The Hidden Causes Behind Hormone Imbalances
When your body's brain-adrenal-thyroid-gut axis gets thrown off, it's challenging to get it back on track. That's something I've been working on for the last couple years, since my doctor tested my cortisol levels and they came back very wacky.
Some things I've done to try to heal my whole system, including my adrenals:
- Paleo-ish diet
- No more coffee (not even decaf... tragic, but worth it)
- Reducing stress
- Healing my gut issues
The thing about healing yourself with diet and nutrition, is that it's actually very nuanced... and not a cookie-cutter program. Many of us need slightly different things. So in addition to the input I got from my doctor, and the intensive research I do, I've been experimenting with various foods and supplements for awhile now. To do this, you have to be zen with the fact that this can be a roller coaster ride... sometimes you get the blend right, sometimes it's *almost* right, and sometimes you totally f-up and have to start over.
Lately, things have been very right. This is aside from the recent corn-glutening incident, where a restaurant accidentally let some corn kernals slip into my paleo bowl... that was ugly. I was sick for a week. But, aside from that, things are really really good.
And this is the funny physiology part of the story... I noticed awhile back, after starting this healing diet, that when I'm having a good day, and things are balanced, I sing to myself a lot. Really cheesy songs, either pop songs or absurd ones I make up myself. And I dance really goofy to these songs in my head when people aren't looking. I told my doc that it kinds feels like there's a dancing Muppet inside that's screaming to get out.
This is a video representation of my neurological activity on healthy days:
So, being me, I can't just notice this pattern and move on with it... no... I have to figure out *why* this happens.
Now, I'm not a neurologist by any stretch of the imagination, BUT, I have uncovered some interesting info on how brains, music, and hormones interact.
As another aside about health and autoimmune conditions like mine, there is TONS of research out there about the effects of gluten intolerance on the brain. It's a bad combination, it can cause mental ilness, anxiety, memory loss, etc. and some post-mortem studies of Celiac sufferers have discovered their brains are often covered in scar tissue. No bueno. So any healthy signals from my brain make me very, very happy.
So back to the reasons why my brain starts to literally sing when it's healthy... (nerd out and click the links!!)
Firstly, dopamine and music in the brain are connected. There seems to be a lot of info out there about how listening to music causes a dopamine surge, but I'm wondering if the opposite can occur... if a surge in dopamine can cause more musical happenings in the brain.
Too much cortisol *may* sometimes cause a condition where you get songs stuck in your head to an maddening degree (I'm happy that's not my issue!) http://hormoneguru.wordpress.com/2008/11/05/broken-record-songs-stuck-in-your-head-part-2/ This seems to point to a connection between adrenal functioning and a musical brain.
Fascinating, right?????? Our bodies are such a beautiful symphony of all of these harmonious, complicated processes.
This is only the beginning of my research into this topic. Can't wait to learn more!
Oh, and I should probably go over what I've been doing lately that might have triggered this burst of good health. Yes?
I've been doing a few slightly different things in addition to still being on my usual healing diet:
- More bone broth
- Taking my Green Pastures Fermented Cod Liver Oil everyday! (get this kind, not the crap at the grocery store!)
- These fun little royal jelly/ginseng shots.
- And, very importantly, I started taking a bit of licorice root extract. Holy moly, this stuff makes me feel AMAZING. If you have adrenal fatigue, check out this miracle root! (If you have high blood pressure, or similar issues, seek the help of a natural doctor for dosage)
Another great thing about my health lately? I know my hormones are getting more in balance, because I didn't have any PMS, no breast soreness, and very little cramping this month! Bingo! This is when I know I'm doing something really right.
MAHNA MAHNA....
