Did you know that the latest research shows that by improving your limbic system function, you can more easily heal from mold illness?
It’s a vicious cycle because when you have mold illness, your emotions – which are driven by your limbic system – tend to fly high and low almost whimsically at times. Yet these emotions are exactly what can keep you stuck – and not getting well. Research agrees that emotions influence everything we do – healing included! So where do emotions come from and how can you take back control of them and expedite your healing?
Get to Know Your Limbic System
First, your limbic system is in your brain – a complex and important part of your body, right!?
Your limbic system is buried deep within the brain, underneath the cerebral cortex, and above your brainstem. It’s the part of your brain responsible for your behavioral and emotional responses – especially the fight, flight, or freeze response to threats.
Specifically, research has found a connection between your limbic system and feelings of motivation, reward, learning, and memory. It also produces hormones that regulate your autonomic nervous system, which influences the function of your internal organs.
The four main structures of the limbic system are the amygdala, hippocampus, hypothalamus, and cingulate gyrus. Ideally, they all work together to keep your body going at its physical best and your mental and emotional states stable. However, one or more parts of your limbic system can become dysfunctional.
1 Amygdala
The amygdala is made up of two almond-shaped structures located right next to the hippocampus. It plays a central role in your emotional responses like feelings of anxiety, pleasure, fear, and anger. The amygdala is responsible for identifying and categorizing stimulation. It determines what is a threat, what can be ignored, and what is desirable. It also attaches emotional content to your memories, giving you the power to store those memories. This is why you remember the memories that trigger the strongest emotions.
Your amygdala responds immediately to any internal or external threats and sends out the message to your body to activate that fight, flight, or freeze response. It will trigger the release of stress hormones such as cortisol, adrenaline, and epinephrine which cause physical symptoms such as making your pupils dilate, or your muscles get tense. Your blood pressure will rise, your heart rate will increase, and you will breathe deeper.
2 Hippocampus
The hippocampus is beside the amygdala. This allows you to learn and remember information. The hippocampus forms and stores new memories and solidifies short-term memories into long-term memories. It connects your emotions with your senses which is why you associate some smells, tastes, or sounds with certain memories. The hippocampus stores information related to past traumas as well, which is why you can sometimes simply hear, see, or smell something that triggers a panic attack.
Chronic stress and high levels of the stress hormone, cortisol, can physically decrease both the size of the hippocampus and the number of neurons in the area. That “brain fog” you have – or when you are constantly forgetting things – might be from the changes to your stressed-out hippocampus. The good news is that the hippocampus can regenerate through a process called neurogenesis.
3 Hypothalamus
Your hypothalamus is one of the busiest parts of your brain, taking in and sending out much information. It regulates the hormones that guide your autonomic nervous system, which is responsible for your pulse rate, blood pressure, and breathing, among other functions. The hypothalamus also plays a role in hunger, thirst, metabolism, sensory processing, sex drive, sleep/wake cycle, and more.
4 Cingulate Gyrus
Your cingulate gyrus is part of the limbic cortex and provides a pathway from the thalamus to the hippocampus. It supports your cognitive and attention processing skills. It is responsible for your emotional response to pain and your association of memories to smells. Your cingulate gyrus also enables you to focus your attention on threatening stimuli, generating protective behavior like fight, flight, or freeze.
Now you can see how exposure to multiple traumas and chronic stressors could make your limbic system hypersensitive, ultimately impacting your brain and body. Mold illness alone, because of the brain inflammation it causes, can trigger this poor limbic system function.
And when your limbic system goes all out of balance, it causes many of your bodily functions to get off balance, including your autonomic nervous system. This is also why limbic system dysfunction can show up as different symptoms for different people, making it hard to recognize!
Recognize Symptoms of Poor Limbic System Function
If you already know that mold illness can show up as many different symptoms, you might now realize that it’s no surprise for these to also be symptoms of poor limbic system function:
Increased sensitivity to light, sound, touch, smell, or taste
Brain fog, decreased focus, or memory problems
Fatigue
Headaches and unexplained pain or discomfort
Speech problems
Sensitivity to electromagnetic fields
Dizziness or light-headedness
Difficulty regulating body temperature
Unexplained fluctuations in blood pressure and heart rate
Unusual reactions or sensitivity to chemicals, supplements, or medications
Digestive issues such as constipation, diarrhea, bloating, and gas
Mood swings and irritability
Anxiety, depression, and panic attacks
Now you better understand why healthy limbic system function is vital to your overall health, and how trauma and chronic stressors can contribute to the many symptoms in your body.
3 Steps to Improve Your Limbic System Function and Heal from Mold Illness
1 Cultivate a positive mindset
The first thing you need to do to rebuild your limbic system and get well from mold illness is to cultivate a positive mindset for healing. One way to do that is to take total responsibility for your healing. Commit to doing whatever it takes to get well. Believe that you will heal. Take it one day at a time because it is a journey.
Create a vision of the future you want and work toward that. This includes reminding yourself of that future and why you want it. You can do this by keeping a journal of all your wins, even the little ones – maybe even rewarding yourself for having done what it takes.
2 Break free from negative neural patterns
Next, you need to stop doing things that support the negative patterns that cause your symptoms. It’s important to note that this step is a completely different and separate act from creating a positive mindset. This step involves saying no to dwelling on the symptoms you are having and keeping your eye on your healthy future instead.
Stop talking about your symptoms to others, stop looking up new ways to fix your symptoms, and quit looking for why you have this or that symptom. All of these acts release more stress hormones in your body, which just keep the negative loop going. Give your mind and body a break. They deserve it! Think like a healthy person. They don’t monitor every little thing they are eating, how they are sleeping, and so on.
This step also requires you to avoid stressful stimuli – anything that triggers that stress response for you. Don’t be around toxic people, don’t try to control things you can’t, and stay away from the news, horror movies, etc. Instead, surround yourself with encouraging, loving, supportive people, and good news. Show gratitude over every little thing, continue healthy pastimes, learn something new on your bucket list and laugh as much as possible. Protect your positive state.
3 Work on your vagus nerve
Your vagus nerve starts at your brain stem and goes all the way to your gut. “Vagus” means “wandering,” and makes a great name for this long, important nerve! Information goes in both directions along this nerve. Toxins, infections, and gut inflammation can all trigger inflammation of your vagus nerve and keep the stress loop going. So make sure you take great care of this nerve, and all your body parts alongside it, because it can literally help you get well (or not)!
To summarize, healthy limbic system function is key to your overall health and in your journey to healing from mold illness or many illnesses. Take exceptional care of your limbic system by committing to doing whatever it takes to get well with a positive mindset, freeing yourself from negative neural patterns, and taking care of your vagus nerve.
It’s not easy, I admit, especially when you’re exhausted. If you would like help navigating your healing journey and staying positive, click here to set up your complimentary Breakthrough call.
