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Are you someone who at times has great productivity and hyperfocus, but at other times can barely focus and get things done?

Do you have problems focusing and getting things done unless you’re under pressure? Do you tend to procrastinate?

Do you, after periods of high-intensity work — whether that’s physical or mental — crash and burn out afterward?

Do you feel that you dive deeply into an interest, but then lose interest and don’t know what just happened? Do you have serial interests, or even serial relationships?

Do you feel you have great abilities — you’re a quick learner, you go deep when you’re pursuing something you’re interested in, perhaps you’re even gifted — but then feel unable to harness those abilities and gifts, and feel like you’re on a roller coaster between hyperproductivity and an inability to focus and have motivation?

These are common patterns that I see in my practice, and they relate to arousal. I’m not referring to sexual arousal or emotional arousal, but arousal as far as our neurophysiology being in a place where we can ideally act — where we have focus, motivation, and energy — and not low arousal, where you can’t focus, and have low motivation, and low energy, nor hyper arousal, where we’re excessively focused in a physiologic stressed state. Many people find themselves fluctuating between both ends and having problems finding that sweet spot in the middle that allows them to sustain their interests, sustain the goals they’ve set for themselves, and harness their greatest gifts. Many of these individuals are extremely gifted — deep divers, can even be obsessive about their interests. But it can take that depth for people to function at a high level.

This newsletter and podcast are for educational purposes and aren’t a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please talk with your own doctor about any medical or psychiatric concerns.

What You’ll Learn

• (0:00) Recognizing the pattern of hyperfocus and burnout

• (3:43) What arousal actually means, physiologically

• (4:26) The RCCX connection

• (7:03) The crash, and why it happens

• (10:11) Finding our sweet spot — practical tools that help

Recognizing the Pattern

There’s a sweet spot of arousal where we have focus, motivation, and energy. On one side of it is low arousal — brain fog, low motivation, low energy, something that can look a lot like ADD in both children and adults. On the other side is hyper-arousal — when we have excessive focus and drive, often accompanied by physiological stress.

Many of the people I see fluctuate between both ends and struggle to find that middle place. They tend to have deep interests. They can dive deeply into something, even obsessive about it, and can have difficulty disengaging. When there is not enough stimulation, they tend to get bored. They often don’t enjoy small talk.

What Arousal Means Physiologically

When we talk about what can be happening here — when we are stressed, and again, when I’m talking about arousal, that’s a degree of stress, and we’re aiming for an optimal level of stress where we get things done and can enjoy what we’re doing.

What impacts arousal? One is cortisol. If we have adequate levels of cortisol, that gives us adequate energy. Along with cortisol, catecholamines fluctuate — things like norepinephrine, which gives us motivation, and dopamine, which helps us focus. Think of these three as moving up and down together for the most part. There are other things that can impact them separately, but generally they’re increasing together, and they can be decreased or low at the same time as well.

The RCCX Connection

The best explanation I’ve found for why some of us find ourselves at either end of the arousal spectrum and not easily in the middle sweet spot, is RCCX theory, developed by Dr. Sharon Meglathery. This is a theory I’ve described in previous newsletters and podcasts — it makes the connection between a gene for hypermobility, a gene for 21-hydroxylase (an enzyme in the hormone pathway that produces cortisol), and another gene that relates to autoimmunity. People don’t have to have all of these genes affected, but I’d say the most important one, from a psychiatric and brain-symptom perspective, is 21-hydroxylase, needed for the production of cortisol.

If we have a weakness on this gene — and it appears that likely 20% of people do — that could give us a baseline low cortisol level. It’s not as if we can pin this down to a single variant; there are likely a number of places on that gene that could be affected, and it’s not something that can currently be measured through genetic testing except in research settings. But if we have that weakness, we could still make adequate cortisol under stress — until we push it too far. Say, on one of these hyperproductive days, we push too far, and then we overwhelm that enzyme, and we don’t have enough cortisol.

So why would people who struggle with this already tend to be deep divers? It appears that a vulnerability in that enzyme, 21-hydroxylase, could have affected brain development in utero and in early life — causing higher androgens and spiking cortisol that can affect particular parts of the brain, including the amygdala, which senses threat and can contribute to this high-intensity difficulty putting on the brakes once we’re under stress. So these individuals, when they’re working on something, may have difficulty stopping — and then when they’re not able to keep producing the cortisol to meet the demands they’re placing on their physiology, they hit a wall.

The Crash — and Why It Happens

When the enzyme can no longer keep up with the demand, cortisol and those neurotransmitters drop — that’s the crash: low energy, poor focus, no motivation. For some people, hitting that wall can also trigger mast cell activation, through another mechanism I’ve talked about in a previous episode. There’s a hormone in the brain, corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), that tells the adrenal glands we need more cortisol. When that happens, CRH can bind to mast cells — inflammatory cells in the body — which release histamine and inflammatory mediators that can cause physical symptoms, and worsen fatigue and brain fog. Not everyone has this happen; most people with mast cell activation have something else going on too, like a biotoxin exposure.

This isn’t only about a single hard day. Zoom out, and I’ve seen people who were high-functioning — even hyper-functioning — for years, doing remarkable things across work, family, and adventure, before hitting a wall they never fully recovered from. Often there’s something else quietly using up their stress capacity underneath it all: mold or biotoxin exposure, mitochondrial dysfunction, a chronically stressful relationship, early attachment disruption, or even codependent relationship patterns that keep someone chronically stressed.

Once someone hits that wall, it’s common to unconsciously reach for something to bump cortisol and those neurotransmitters back up — compulsive eating, carbs, seeking stimulation online, risk-taking, or calling the one person who reliably stirs up drama. Beyond the physical crash, there’s a bigger cost: most people aren’t recognizing this as their neurophysiology. They’re experiencing it as being inconsistent, self-defeating, self-sabotaging, or a self-esteem problem, rather than recognizing it as a very common physiologic pattern involving our stress hormone pathways and neurotransmitters — and the bigger loss is all the abilities and gifts people aren’t able to harness because they’re on this roller coaster.

Finding the Sweet Spot

The first thing is to notice. Notice when you feel in that hypo-arousal state, when you’re having difficulty getting things done, and then recognize what you’re reaching for — is it carbs, is it eating, is it substances, is it the internet, is it risk-taking, is it the dramatic friend who stirs up trouble?

Notice

Also notice when you’re in a state of hyperarousal — doing an activity, powering through without being able to stop, unable to take breaks. If you’re observant enough, you’ll notice your muscles tightening around your neck and shoulders, and simply not being able to relax. When we notice which state of arousal we’re in, we know what tools we have access to, to help modulate it.

For High Arousal

When you’re in a state of hyperproductivity, the last thing you want to do is take a break. But to sustain a degree of productivity, it can require putting that intensity aside and taking a break, so the wall isn’t hit. Another approach is to alternate high-intensity work with low-intensity work — step away and move if the work is on a computer. It can help to chunk activities: set goals, and after reaching them, stop and take a break, rather than letting a project sprawl deeper and deeper. It’s also important to assess your stressors — stressors aren’t all negative, but if we’re not pacing, if we’re not setting aside time to calm our nervous system, we can still hit that wall. It’s really important to set an intention before starting — how it’s going to be broken up, setting a timer for how long before a break — to really be intentional.

For Low Arousal

Just recognizing that low baseline arousal can already have us thinking creatively about how to increase it. Do we need to change the setting where we’re working? Do we need to find a way to make what we’re doing more interesting — what is the why? Make it more creative. When we have that low arousal, instead of reaching for food or surfing the internet, we could instead have a creative outlet that’s stimulating and raises our arousal without being harmful to us. Movement is a way to raise arousal — getting up and moving around can help. It can also help to chunk activities and put a timer on; sometimes the challenge of getting something done in a certain amount of time will raise arousal on its own.

Everyone’s approach to this, and what works for them, will be different. But I do feel like this understanding can help us all recognize how we function best, recognize when we’re in that under-arousal or hyper-arousal state, and modulate — all with the intention of not being on that roller coaster, and instead finding that place in the middle where we can be in a state of flow, enjoying what we’re doing, finding meaning and purpose in it.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and experience. Have you found things that help you find your own sweet spot?

Until next time, take care.

Courtney

Courtney Snyder MD is a Holistic and Functional Child and Adult Psychiatrist who offers non-patient consultations to individuals and practitioners nationally and internationally in addition to her treatment practice serving FL, IN, KY, OH. Her educational content, shared through her website, Substack Newsletter, the Holistic Psychiatry Podcast and her YouTube Channel reaches readers and listeners in over 160 countries.

Resources

• RCCX Theory & Psychiatry. Dr. Sharon Meglathery

• RCCX Theory: Hypermobility, RCCX Theory, Mental Health & Complex Chronic Illness

• Recent newsletter on Hypersensitivity: High Sensitivity Through 3 Lenses (HSP, Pyrrole Disorder & RCCX Theory)

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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I recently joined Annika Taylor on The Wellness Rebel Podcast to talk about mold toxicity, and how it can cause not only physical symptoms, but also brain symptoms such as anxiety, depression, OCD, brain fog, mood swings, and in more severe cases, psychosis.

Watch the full conversation above. Below is a recap of our conversation, along with the resources we discussed along the way.

Chapters:0:00 Introduction to Mold and Mental Health1:47 Understanding Mold Exposure and Illness5:13 Personal Journey with Mold Illness8:40 Sources of Mold Exposure12:12 Physical Symptoms of Mold Toxicity18:54 Mental Health Impacts of Mold Exposure25:32 Identifying Mold in the Environment32:28 Treatment Options for Mold Toxicity

I. What Is Mold-Related Illness?

Mold-related illness can be broken down into three distinct categories that often get lumped together: mold allergy, mold toxicity, and mold colonization. Mold allergy, which most people are familiar with, is a reaction to outdoor or indoor mold spores. Mold toxicity is different: it happens when mycotoxins actually accumulate in the body, something that appears to affect roughly 25% of people who can't effectively remove the toxins on their own. This explains why one family member in a home with mold can get seriously ill while another in the same house is fine. Third is the lesser-known mold colonization, where mold spores take hold directly in the sinuses or even the GI tract. That means a person can be out of a moldy environment for years and still have an internal source of toxicity.

II. My Own Mold Story

My interest in mold began around 10 years ago when I was diagnosed with mold toxicity. For years prior, I had been dealing with chronic fatigue, symptoms of fibromyalgia, and vague neurological symptoms that neither my doctors nor I could explain. My daughter was also having complex chronic health issues that initially looked like developmental regression. Understanding the microbiome and dietary changes were helpful to both of us, as were the Walsh Research Institute's nutrient-based interventions, but the real turning point came when the topic of mold toxicity came across my radar in 2016.

Mycotoxin testing and testing of our home and my office confirmed that we had significant exposure and toxicity, which we were treated for and benefited significantly from.

III. When a Partner Isn't on Board: How Mold Treatment Affects the Whole Family

One thing that doesn't get talked about enough is how difficult it can be for someone to get out of or address an exposure if their spouse or partner is not on board. In my own case, I was fortunate — my then-husband was agreeable, especially when he realized how much clarity, decisiveness, and even sense of urgency I had. We'd dealt with significant health issues for a long time, and I didn't want something irreversible to emerge that would leave me in regret for not acting sooner. We acted on that instinct.

We were very lucky to find that we were eligible for insurance coverage, which covered an extended-stay hotel while we had our home remediated. For a lot of families, that's not the reality. If a partner isn't on the same page, it can become one of the biggest reasons someone doesn't end up leaving a house with mold — whether that obstacle gets talked about openly or not. There are those who don't believe mold toxicity is real, and those who don't want to believe it's real (consciously or unconsciously). Education, input from those with expertise, or even seeking couples therapy can be necessary.

It is important to remember that part of the treatment, namely addressing mold in the home, impacts the whole family.

IV. Where Mold Hides: Common Sources of Exposure

For most people who test positive for mold toxicity, the primary exposure is likely environmental, as opposed to mold in food. Leaks under sinks, problems around windows, roof leaks, chimney flashing, damp basements, and high ambient humidity are all common culprits. High humidity left unaddressed can be a big problem. Estimates of the percentage of homes that mold have crept up over the years, from 50% to 75% to, as some consultants now say, essentially every building to some degree. I've seen a couple of children with developmental issues who had mold in their mattresses from bedwetting.

V. The Physical Symptoms of Mold Toxicity

Mold toxicity often shows up as sinus issues (especially with colonization), asthma, and — notably in young children — recurring croup (spasmodic croup) and ear infections.

Many people with mold toxicity also develop mast cell activation, which triggers an exaggerated immune response affecting the skin, respiratory tract, GI tract, and/or bladder. Racing heart, air hunger, and stomach pain can occur. Neurological complaints can include electric "jolt" sensations, numbness and tingling, headaches, light sensitivity, and temperature dysregulation.

Many of these symptoms overlap with Lyme disease, EMF sensitivity, and other chronic conditions. The immune dysregulation caused by mold toxicity can contribute to a vulnerability to Lyme and its coinfections, Candida, SIBO, PANS, PANDAS, and more.

VI. The Brain and Mental Health Symptoms of Mold

Brain Fog, Fatigue, Anxiety, OCD, Psychosis, Mood Swings, Developmental Delays & Cognitive Decline

I don't know what psychiatric symptom mold toxicity can't cause. Brain fog and fatigue are especially common, as is anxiety. For some, mold toxicity can contribute to psychosis and/or dramatic mood swings. In children, mold toxicity can look like ADHD, anxiety, or developmental delays.

I see mold toxicity as something that aligns with — and amplifies — someone's existing genetic vulnerabilities rather than acting alone. Most of the patients I see with severe conditions like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or severe OCD have mold toxicity as a contributing factor, though, again, rarely the only factor.

The Neurotransmitter Connection

Mold toxicity can drive up pyrrole levels, which in turn depletes zinc and B6 — two nutrients essential for neurotransmitter functioning. It can also worsen copper-zinc imbalances through oxidative stress and interfere with methylation, both of which also impact neurotransmitter functioning.

A Client's Story: OCD and a Hidden Leak

Annika recalls when she became interested in helping those with mold toxicity. She shares the story of a friend whose severe, debilitating OCD — along with episodes of derealization and out-of-body sensations — turned out to trace back to black mold discovered behind a washing machine, the result of an old water leak. Once they addressed the mold, the connection became clear in hindsight.

VII. Mold Toxins Can Create a Threat Response in the Body & Brain

While we can have threats on the outside, mold toxicity is a threat we can have on the inside. When we are under threat, three systems tend to get activated: the immune system (as discussed with mast cell activation), the limbic system, and the autonomic nervous system. The limbic system puts the body into a vigilant, threat-scanning state — and for some people, that vigilance surfaces as OCD (an unconscious attempt to "make things right" when the body senses something is wrong), health anxiety, or a diffuse sense that something isn't okay.

The autonomic nervous system, meanwhile, can get stuck in fight-or-flight or shutdown mode instead of rest-and-digest. Annika is careful to frame this not something to fear, but something to understand — the goal isn't panic, it's empowerment.

VIII. Testing for Mold: Home and Body

Testing Your Environment

If there's visible water damage or visible mold, extensive testing usually isn't necessary. Generally, where there is water damage or water retained in a space, there will be mold growth. The priority becomes proper containment, and remediation. If there is no known issue and someone has mold toxicity (which could be from an old exposure), I recommend the ERMI-style dust test (I use Mycometrics), which measures water-damage-associated spore counts against outdoor spore counts from a simple cloth dust sample.

I caution against relying solely on air sampling from a home inspector, which I and many of my patients have found unreliable by itself — surface or dust testing gives a clearer picture. Petri-dish testing (I use Immunolytics) can help pinpoint which room is affected, though it misses a couple of important mold species.

Testing Your Body

For testing mycotoxins in the body, I use RealTime Labs, an at-home urine test that screens for five toxin families. Annika discusses her experience with another company, which showed false negatives — a patient with a "no mold" result went untreated for years while ongoing exposure continued.

To improve the accuracy of the test, I sometimes have patients do a sauna session or take glutathione in the days leading up to testing, to help mobilize toxins — though this isn't appropriate for everyone, particularly more sensitive patients.

IX. Treatment: Binders, Antifungals, and Diet

Environment:

Once someone has a positive test and a known or suspected source, I recommend having a consultant (separate from the remediation company, to avoid conflicts of interest) create a remediation plan — ideally with proper containment so the remediation process itself doesn't spread spores further. After remediation, a retest should be done to confirm the space is actually clean, ideally at the remediation company's expense if it isn't.

Binders:

On the body side, treatment typically starts with binders — chosen based on which toxins showed up on testing — such as bentonite clay, activated charcoal, chlorella, or cholestyramine (a prescription option that binds ochratoxin particularly well). I start sensitive patients low and slow, since mobilizing toxins can temporarily worsen symptoms.

Antifungals When Appropriate:

Depending on the response and whether colonization is present, treatment may progress to nasal or systemic antifungals.

Diet:

Because colonization is so common, minimizing sugar and refined carbs is very important, since these feed Candida and mold colonization directly. Foods with higher trace mold content — corn, peanuts, dried fruit, aged meats and cheeses, coffee, and non-shelled nuts — are also worth limiting, along with high-histamine foods for those who are histamine-reactive.

X. Where to Learn More

As Annika emphasizes: this isn't about fearing every corner of your home — it's about being empowered with the right information.

And as always, I welcome your thoughts, experience and questions.

Until next time,

Courtney

Courtney Snyder MD is a Holistic and Functional Child and Adult Psychiatrist who offers non-patient consultations to individuals and practitioners nationally and internationally in addition to her treatment practice serving FL, IN, KY, OH. Her educational content, shared through her website, Substack Newsletter, the Holistic Psychiatry Podcast and her YouTube Channel reaches readers and listeners in over 160 countries.

Resources

• Dr. Courtney Snyder's blog: How Mold Toxicity Impacts the Brain

• Home mold test (dust sample / ERMI-style)

• RealTime Labs mycotoxin urine testing

• Mold Symptom Questionnaire (Dr. Jill Crista)

• Mold Clean-Up Guide (Dr. Jill Carnahan)

• Finding mold consultants & remediation professionals (ISEAI)

• Annika Taylor’s website: Nourished by Nature

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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As a holistic and functional psychiatrist, I see many people who are highly sensitive. Most are deep divers into information and able to connect a lot of dots. Many are gifted. Many struggle with overwhelm and low stress tolerance. Some struggled with anxiety, inner tension, or feeling “too much” for as long as they can remember. Some feel different - that they don’t fit in.

As a holistic and functional psychiatrist with over twenty years in practice, I've worked with thousands of highly sensitive adults and children. Most are deep divers into information, able to connect a lot of dots — many are gifted. And yet many struggle with overwhelm, low stress tolerance, anxiety, or inner tension that has been there for as long as they can remember. Many feel different, like they don't quite fit in. What I've found is that sensitivity itself is rarely the problem — it’s the seeming vulnerability to brain-related or physical conditions.

Over the years I’ve found three different models to be especially useful in explaining some of the vulnerabilities and the strengths of those of us who are highly sensitive: Dr. Elaine Aron’s work on the Highly Sensitive Person (HSP), the nutritional medicine concept of Pyrrole Disorder, and Dr. Sharon Meglathery’s RCCX Theory. Each looks at a similar group of traits through a different lens — psychological, biochemical, and genetic, respectively.

Before I start, I want to emphasize that sensitivity is not a pathology or a diagnosis. It is actually a trait that has existed across human history for a reason. My goal is not to pathologize it, but to understand it — and to offer tools to those who have these traits but who are struggling with a condition more prevalent in those with these traits. As I go through these three frameworks, the overlap will be obvious and I’ll highlight what each of these has to offer that the others don’t.

What You'll Learn

• The HSP model provides validation and a language for sensitive individuals.

• Pyrrole Disorder involves an overproduction of pyrroles, leading to nutrient depletion of nutrients critical for neurotransmitter functioning.

• Pyrrole Disorder is common in brain-related conditions.

• RCCX Theory connects genetic vulnerabilities to sensitivity and chronic illness.

• Stress amplifies the experiences of highly sensitive individuals.

• Understanding these models can lead to effective treatment options.

• There are meaningful paths forward for those who are highly sensitive.

Chapters

• 00:00 Understanding High Sensitivity

• 02:26 The Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) Model

• 10:23 Exploring Pyrrole Disorder

• 18:18 RCCX Theory Explained

• 30:11 Intersecting Models: HSP, Pyrrole Disorder & RCCX Theory

• 34:40 Conclusion and Path Forward

I. THE HIGHLY SENSITIVE PERSON

In the early 1990s, psychologist Dr. Elaine Aron identified a personality trait she called Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS) — and the people who score high in it she called Highly Sensitive Persons, or HSPs.

This is not a diagnosis. It is a trait, present in roughly 15–20% of the population. It has been found across more than 100 species — from fruit flies to primates. This tells us it is evolutionarily conserved — it confers survival advantages. In any social group, having members who are wired to notice subtle cues, process information deeply, and detect threats before others do is extremely valuable. Fitting with this, many of these individuals, who also struggle with complex chronic health issues are considered the “canaries in the coal mine” since their bodies react to environmental triggers (environmental toxins, chemicals, or stressors) long before the rest of the population.

Dr. Aron captured the core features of this trait in an acronym she called DOES:

D — Depth of processing: HSPs think deeply, reflect before acting, and notice subtleties that others miss.

O — Overstimulation: Because they process so thoroughly, HSPs reach their threshold more quickly in high-stimulation environments.

E — Emotional reactivity and Empathy: HSPs feel emotions intensely and are highly attuned to the emotions of those around them.

S — Sensitivity to subtle stimuli: They pick up on things — in their environment, in social dynamics, in the body — that others simply don’t register.

As you can see, traits that are super powers, can become liabilities. The deep diver who loses sight of the big picture. The empath who absorbs everyone else’s energy as their own energy becomes depleted. The person who withdraws from the world because the stimulation has simply become too much.

HSP Research

Beyond the clinical observations, there is now a growing body of neuroscience and genetic research supporting this trait. There is evidence that the brains of sensitive people are doing more, processing more and feeling more.

fMRI studies (Acevedo, Aron et al., 2014) have shown that when HSPs view emotional images — particularly photos of loved ones expressing happiness or sadness — their brains show significantly greater activation in regions associated with awareness, empathy, and sensory integration.

Twin studies show that Sensory Processing Sensitivity (SPS) as defined by Dr. Aron is approximately 47% heritable. Small studies as opposed to large genome wide studies have focused on genetic variants involving dopamine and serotonin systems, such as a serotonin transport gene, a dopamine receptor gene, and COMT, which codes for the enzyme that metabolizes dopamine and norepinephrine.

While this hints at a biochemical dimension, the HSP framework doesn’t address this as directly as the other two models I’ll discuss, nor does it explain the higher prevalence of physical health conditions in those who are highly sensitive.

Research published in 2026 (Matsuzawa et al.) found that individuals high in SPS had substantially higher rates of depression (13.8%), anxiety disorder (10.5%), and developmental disorders, such as ADHD and ASD, compared to the general population.

Despite this overlap with developmental disorders: unlike, ADHD, HSPs typically have excellent concentration in quiet environments. And unlike the social deficits described in ASD, HSPs tend to have heightened social attunement. They often feel too much of what’s happening in social situations, not too little, even if they respond awkwardly at times.

Research shows that high sensory processing sensitivity is associated with more frequent physical symptoms — back pain, fatigue, digestive issues, frequent illness.

What This Framework Offers

The HSP model has given millions of people validation and a language for these traits that has allowed them to shift from “what is wrong with me” to “this is how I am wired.”

It also offers an evolutionary reframe. High sensitivity is not a mistake and is not pathologic. It is a feature of the human population that has served us.

What it doesn’t offer is a biological explanation for why some sensitive people suffer so acutely — or a path toward biochemical intervention.

II. PYRROLE DISORDER

Pyrrole disorder is a biochemical imbalance that has been recognized for decades, though it remains largely unknown in mainstream psychiatry. It involves an overproduction of pyrroles — metabolic byproducts that, on their own, are not a problem. When they are high, however, they can result in a depletion of zinc, B6 and a few other nutrients.

First identified in the 1950s and first treated with zinc and B6 in the 1980s, pyrrole disorder is one of the most common nutrient imbalances found in brain-related conditions — and one of the most treatable. Yet most people who have it have never heard of it. I learned about pyrroles in 2014 when I first trained with the Walsh Research Institute.

The Importance of Zinc, B6 & Magnesium

Vitamin B6 is required to synthesize dopamine, serotonin, and GABA — three of the most critical neurotransmitters for mood regulation, anxiety, and stress response. Zinc plays a profound role in the central nervous system, the immune system, gastrointestinal tract (which we now know has its own significant influence on brain health) and connective tissue (joints and skin).

Pyrrole Disorder Traits & Symptoms

The most consistent feature is low stress tolerance. People with elevated pyrroles are often described as those for whom life seems harder than it should be, every transition can be destabilizing and every large group or new environment feels like too much.

The overlap with the HSP profile is striking, but here, we start to see not only traits, but symptoms.

• Socially anxious, shy, or fearful since childhood, with severe inner tension

• Sensitive to bright light, loud noises, textures, and odors

• Avoids crowds, strangers, and new situations

• History of reading difficulty

• Poor short-term memory

• Underachievement

• Irritability, mood swings, bouts of depression

• Tends to stay up late; little or no dream recall; morning nausea

• White spots on fingernails; very dry skin; stretch marks; poor wound healing

• Joint pain

• Frequent infections or autoimmune tendencies

Most people with pyrrole disorder don’t have all of these symptoms — but the inner tension, the high sensitivity, and low stress intolerance are very common.

What the Data Shows

The Walsh Research Institute has collected data on over 30,000 patients. Elevated pyrroles were found in:

• 18% of those with ADHD

• 24% of those with depression

• 28% of those with behavioral disorders

• 35% of those with autism

• 35% of those with bipolar disorder

• 30% of those with schizophrenia

• 12% of those with PTSD

And in only 8% of healthy controls — meaning those with no psychiatric diagnosis.

What Causes Pyrrole Disorder?

For many, there appears to be a genetic component, but for others, pyrroles appear to have increased due to high physiologic or emotional stress. Examples include candida overgrowth or other forms of gut microbial imbalances, mold toxicity, heavy metals, chemical exposures, illness, emotional trauma, major life transitions or even growth spurts in children.

What This Framework Brings Us

Relative to the HSP framework, an understanding of pyrroles gives a specific, treatable biological mechanism. When zinc, B6, Magnesium and other nutrients are depleted, we know how the brain’s neurotransmitter functioning is affected — and we know what to do about it.

Treatment from a Walsh Research Institute trained practitioner typically involves a nutrient protocol of zinc (based on zinc and copper testing), B6 or its active form P5P, and other nutrients for pyrrole disorder and other nutrient imbalances identified. For many patients, a lifetime of chronic inner tension and fearfulness begins to shift within days to a couple of weeks of starting the nutrients.

Treatment doesn’t change one’s personality, but it can improve social discomfort, overwhelm, the anxiety, the depression that has been layered on top of that sensitivity.

Where zinc deficiency can impact a lot of the physical conditions that appear to be more common in those who are hypersensitive, it doesn’t fully explain the significant hormonal, inflammatory, connective tissue symptoms and autoimmunity we see in many who are hypersensitive.

III. RCCX THEORY

RCCX theory has been proposed by Dr. Sharon Meglathery, MD — a psychiatrist and internist whose own complex health history (which is very similar to my own) led her to one of the most compelling explanations I’ve encountered for why hypersensitivity, neurodivergence, psychiatric conditions, MCAS (Mast Cell Activation Syndrome), EDS (Ehlers Danlos Syndrome), POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome), CIRS (Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome) and/or CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) and autoimmunity tend to cluster together in certain individuals and families.

RCCX refers to a module of four genes on chromosome 6. Three of them appear to be particularly important to our health, and two of those have very high rates of mutation.

The Three Key Genes

(1) TNXB codes for a protein involved in connective tissue. Variants range from subtle joint hypermobility to Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. But connective tissue isn’t just about joints — it’s also about the permeability of the gut-blood barrier, the blood-brain barrier, and vulnerability to upper cervical (neck) instability, which can put tension on the vagus nerve and affect the entire autonomic nervous system.

(2) CYP21A2 is the most important gene in the module when it comes to psychiatric conditions. It codes for 21-hydroxylase, an enzyme needed to convert 17-hydroxyprogesterone into cortisol. When there is a mutation — and there can be many, of varying degrees — the body may struggle to meet the demand for cortisol under stress. A weakness on this gene could have two primary effects:

First — The theory holds that many people with CYP21A2 mutations, even without hypermobility, may develop what Dr. Meglathery calls a “brain wired for danger” — essentially, a nervous system calibrated toward threat detection from early in life, with minimal trauma required. A mutation on CYP21A2 may essentially result in relatively higher androgens impacting the amygdala — the brain’s fear and emotional center. Studies have found that hypermobile individuals (who often carry TNXB mutations) have a larger-than-normal amygdala.

Second — because of this mutation, the body may not be able to keep up with the body’s need for cortisol (especially when under stress). This deficit causes the brain to release corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) to signal the adrenal glands to produce more cortisol. CRH binds to mast cells and activates the immune system — leading to secondary brain inflammation. This is the inflammatory pathway that can result in a number of secondary health issues including MCAS, CIRS, POTS, CFS and more.

(3) C4 is involved in immune response and autoimmunity, and has been linked to schizophrenia. This gene variant is not as common as the first two referenced, though I do see a number of families who also have autoimmunity impacting multiple family members.

The CAPS Psychological Profile

Dr. Meglathery uses the term CAPS — CYP21A2 Mutation Associated Neuropsychiatric Spectrum — to describe the psychological profile she has observed in people with this genetic vulnerability. These traits can exist long before any formal psychiatric diagnosis, and they are not inherently pathological.

• Anxiety and over-arousal during times of stress — high adrenaline, insomnia, sometimes manic-like characteristics

• Under-arousal during low-stress periods — leading to ADD presentations, compulsive behaviors, or thrill-seeking to raise arousal

• High emotionality, sensitivity, and reactivity to environmental stimuli

• Sensory processing difficulties — typically over-stimulation in loud or chaotic environments

• A strong ability to read emotions in others, paired with social awkwardness in response

• Easily affected by events others would consider minor — an offhand comment, a disturbing movie

• A tendency toward nonconformity

• Special abilities: gifted musicians, scientists, creatives, systems thinkers

• Hyper-focus and obsession with areas of deep interest, often leading to remarkable accomplishments

• High tenacity and determination, when not derailed by overstimulation or past trauma

• Strong emotions — positive or negative — that can manifest as obsessional worrying, harm avoidance, OCD tendencies, or very high standards for self and others

Dr. Meglathery also notes — and I have observed this clinically — that people with this profile tend to find each other through friendships, partnerships and marriage. They are drawn together by shared sensitivities, emotional depth, and intellectual gifts. This means children are likely to receive a tendency towards CAPS from both sides.

Women who are appear to have CYP21A2 mutations often have a male-pattern finger length ratio — the ring finger longer than the index finger — a possible marker of androgen exposure during development.

What RCCX Offers

RCCX theory offers the broadest biological framework we have for understanding why sensitivity, psychiatric vulnerability, and complex chronic illness so often travel together in the same people and families. It connects the nervous system, the immune system, the hormonal system, and connective tissue under one genetic umbrella.

It also points toward specific interventions: nervous system regulation (limbic retraining, vagal work), mast cell management, and addressing the downstream biochemical consequences of cortisol dysregulation.

The limitation is that genetic testing for variants on the gene for 21-hydroxylase is not yet widely available, which is why this isn’t a gene that you’ll see referenced when it comes to HSP, though I would argue it is likely the most prevalent. RCCX remains a clinical theory — but one that explains the constellation of traits and symptoms of most of the people that I in my practice

IV. WHERE THESE MODELS INTERSECT

Where Might Pyrrole Disorder and RCCX Theory Meet?

The symptom overlap is almost complete: poor stress tolerance, sensory sensitivities, anxiety, inner tension, connective tissue symptoms, frequent infections, autoimmune tendencies. Relatively low zinc would impact most of these shared symptoms, but there may be a potentially deeper connection.

21-hydroxylase contains a pyrrole-like structure — heme — within it. Could a mutation resulting in abnormal 21-hydroxylase lead to a buildup of abnormal heme-like compounds, contributing directly to pyrrole disorder? This is not proven, but in an exchange about this with Dr. Meglathery, she indicated that she also believes there is a strong association, and the biochemical logic is compelling.

This matters, because we know what helps pyrrole disorder. We have a treatment — treatment that can complement what RCCX theory makes evident — that the stress response has to be addressed.

Stress (again from any cause - physiologic or emotional) is the great amplifier across all three models. Stress worsens the HSP experience, and tips the CYP21A2 mutation from manageable to destabilizing (through the hormonal consequences and the inflammatory cascade) and yes, it even causes pyrroles to increase.

BRINGING IT TOGETHER

For someone who is highly sensitive, and struggling with brain related or physical symptoms or conditions, pyrrole disorder and even RCCX theory are worth considering because they offer tools and start to answer, “What Can We Do About It?”

The three frameworks work together:

The HSP model offers validation and language. It shifts the frame from deficit to difference. It reminds us that sensitivity is not pathology — it is a trait with evolutionary value, and it comes with great strengths.

The Pyrrole model offers a treatable nutrient imbalance. It explains, at the neurotransmitter level, why stress hits harder for these individuals. Treatment doesn’t take away the sensitivity; it lifts the weight that has accumulated on top of it.

The RCCX model offers the broadest systems view. It connects the dots between what the body is doing — the immune activation, the hormonal dysregulation, the connective tissue involvement — and the psychiatric and psychological profile that tends to accompany it. It also provides additional tools: nervous system regulation, mast cell support, hormonal awareness.

If any of this resonates — the sensitivity, the inner tension, the feeling of always being at the edge of overwhelm — please know that there are roots to explore and meaningful paths forward.

If you are looking for someone trained by the Walsh Research Institute knowledgeable in assessing for and treating pyrrole disorder (and other common nutrient imbalances impacting brain health), or learning more about Dr. Aron’s work on HSP and Dr. Meglathery’s RCCX theory, I am providing those links below.

And as always, I welcome your thoughts, experience and questions.

Until next time,

Courtney

About the Author

Dr. Courtney Snyder MD is a Holistic and Functional Child and Adult Psychiatrist who offers non-patient consultations to individuals and practitioners nationally and internationally in addition to her treatment practice serving FL, IN, KY, OH. Her educational content, shared through her website, Substack Newsletter, the Holistic Psychiatry Podcast and YouTube Channel reaches readers and listeners in over 160 countries.

Resources

Walsh Research Institute: walshinstitute.org

RCCX Theory — Dr. Sharon Meglathery: rccxandillness.com

Dr. Elaine Aron — The Highly Sensitive Person: hsperson.com

Other Sources: Acevedo et al. 2014, “The Highly Sensitive Brain,” Brain & Behavior | Matsuzawa et al. 2026, Psychiatry & Clinical Neurosciences Reports

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, Dr. Courtney Snyder, a Holistic Child and Adult Psychiatrist discusses:

• The research into Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs) and health outcomes (at a population level)

• How early adversity can impact our physiology, biochemistry and thus neurotransmitter functioning

• Why ACEs scores are less meaningful at an individual level

• The role of Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) on mitigating the effects of adversity in childhood

• The gift of neuroplasticity and resources to help teach/train/rewire our nervous system to feel safe.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Holistic Psychiatry

01:25 Understanding Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

07:07 Impact of Early Stress on Physiology and Biochemistry

16:27 The Role of Positive Childhood Experiences

21:01 Vulnerability to Trauma and Genetic Factors

22:05 The Power of Positive Experiences in Healing

Positive Adaptive Childhood Experiences Study 2019 - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6747474/

To learn more visit:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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It is increasingly understood that our brain health is dependent on our having healthy nutrient levels. But how do nutrients actually impact our neurotransmitters.

We might assume that certain nutrient levels would cause certain symptoms or conditions. Instead, what we find are biotypes - one condition is often associated with a small handful of imbalances. For example, the biotypes of depression from the Walsh Research Institute, included undermethylation, overmethylation, pyrrole disorder, copper overload and metal toxicity. And reversely, one nutrient imbalance can contribute to a range of brain symptoms. Copper overload, for example, can be a factor in ADHD for one person, but for another contribute to panic or insomnia and still another rage or tantrums. There are some conditions, however, that have a very strong associations with specific nutrient imbalances. In this newsletter, I will address:

• 5 Ways Nutrients Impact Neurotransmitter Functioning

• Psychiatric Conditions That Can Almost Predict a Specific Nutrient Imbalance

The data comes from the Walsh Research Institute.

Nutrient Imbalances Can Be Due to Too Much or Too Little

I use the term nutrient imbalances, because it’s not just about deficiencies of certain nutrients. Specific nutrient overloads can impact brain health as well. This biochemical diversity means we don’t all have the same needs when it comes to diet and supplementation. Some of us, for example, can benefit from folate, but for others with excess folate, supplementation could worsen depression and anxiety. Those with copper overload can similarly have worsening of symptoms with copper supplementation, while others will have a need for copper.

What Causes Nutrient Imbalances

While it might seem that this is all about our intake of nutrients, we can come by these imbalances genetically. We can also acquire deficiencies and even overloads through high oxidative stress. This is when our body (including our brain) is dealing with too many insults, resulting in a depletion of our inherent antioxidants leaving us vulnerable to DNA and thus cell damage, inflammation and their consequences). Copper zinc imbalances and elevated pyrroles, which results in relatively low zinc and B6, are signs of oxidative stress.

Often an imbalance appears to have multiple causes. For example a woman with high copper causing high anxiety, could have a family history of high copper conditions (post partum depression, ADHD, angry outbursts) and thus have a likely genetic vulnerability. She may also, be taking a multivitamin with copper, eating a lot of chocolate (high in copper) dealing with high oxidative stress and not the least, be on an oral contraceptive (added estrogen can make copper go up).

5 Ways Nutrients Can Impact Neurotransmitter Functioning

Nutrients often function as co-factors, helping certain enzymes do their job. Specific nutrients are needed:

• For production of neurotransmitters. Vitamin B6, for example is needed to make serotonin, dopamine and GABA. B6 can be low in pyrrole disorder and thus contribute to a range of symptoms.

• To convert one neurotransmitter to another. Copper is needed to turn dopamine into norepinephrine (think adrenaline). If we are high in copper, we could have relatively low dopamine and high adrenaline states, which is what is seen in ADHD.

• To support enzymes involved in the breakdown of neurotransmitters. For example MAOA is an enzyme that needs Vitamin B2 to do its job breaking down serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine. If these aren’t broken down, there could be problems with activation and anxiety.

• To help receptors do their job. Receptors are what neurotransmitters bind to, resulting in a impulse being sent down the nerve cell. Zinc and magnesium help regulate the NMDA receptor. If not well regulated, there can be high activity, which can look like thoughts getting stuck - ruminations, obsessions in OCD, cravings in addiction, and even delusions in psychosis.

• Regulate the expression of genes for serotonin reuptake receptors. Folate causes an increase in the expression of these genes (and thus production of these receptors). This results in more serotonin being picked up and less available between nerve cells. This could be a problem for someone who already has low serotonin symptoms. SAMe, on the other hand, does the opposite and it can function like an SSRI.

Why One Diagnosis Isn’t Always Associated With One Imbalance

• Psychiatric conditions appear to have various causes. If someone comes to me with a diagnosis of depression, for example, that only tells me what type of symptoms they likely have. It doesn’t tell me if those symptoms are related to high copper, a methylation imbalance, elevated pyrroles, candida, a misaligned upper cervical spine , mast cell activation, mold toxicity, metal toxicity, hormone imbalances or a combination of any of these…….or something else.

• More often multiple factors appear to be aligning. It is not uncommon, for example, to have candida or mold causing high pyrroles causing low zinc, leading to high copper, and as an aside also be undermethylated.

• One “root cause” can contribute to a range of conditions and symptoms. Some people with high copper are diagnosed with depression or anxiety and others with ADHD. Some people who are undermethylated have OCD, others depression and still other schizophrenia. Very often, people will be have multiple diagnoses fitting with an imbalance. “Comorbidities” in psychiatry are the norm, rather than the exception.

Despite all of this, there are certain nutrient imbalances that occur so commonly in certain psychiatric conditions that they can almost be predicted .

Data From Walsh Research Institute

Simply knowing someone has a mental health condition makes it more likely that they will have a methylation imbalance - more often undermethylation.

The Walsh Research Institute has looked at the methylation status of 30,000 over 40 year and found that 70% of those with mental illness exhibit a methylation imbalance (undermethylation and overmethylation). This is relative to the general population, in which 30% had a methylation imbalance.

Other Data From the Walsh Research Institute:

• History of Postpartum Depression - 95% have copper overload

• ADHD - 68% have a copper zinc imbalance

• Autism Spectrum Disorder - 98% undermethylation, 98% low zinc

• Antisocial Personality Disorder - 95% undermethylation, 95% pyrrole disorder, 95% low zinc

• Oppositional Defiant Disorder - 85% undermethylation

• Schizoaffective Disorder - 90% undermethylation

• Anorexia - 82% undermethylation

• Schizophrenia - 70% undermethylation

• Violent behavior - 78% high copper

Evaluation & Labs Are Still Important

None of these are 100%. And, again, there is rarely one contributing factor, so a comprehensive evaluation and lab testing are still important. Even if I am fairly confident that someone is low in zinc, I don’t recommend starting zinc without checking zinc and copper levels. Starting zinc too rapidly can mobilize high copper and worsen symptoms. If copper is low, zinc can cause a further decrease.

Also, there are occasions when it can be difficult to address an imbalance, without addressing another contributing issue first. For example, I see some patients who are unable to tolerate treatment of undermethylation until they begin treatment for candida or mold.

There is always so much more data to share, when it comes to the Walsh Research Institute. I look forward to discussing biotypes of depression, ADHD and schizophrenia

in a future episode.

As always, I welcome your comments and questions.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about my discovery calls, non-patient consultations, and treatment practice, visit:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In light of the recent lawsuit against Meta and YouTube/Google, I want to share an overview of some of the research into the impacts of screen media on the development and mental health of children and teens. But more, I want to provide support and resources for parents.

In this episode, I discuss:

• The recent and expected deluge of lawsuits against social media platforms

• Research into:

• Infants and toddlers and screen time

• Online learning in schools

• Amount of time online in teens pre and post COVID

• Chatbots and generative AI

• Children’s exposure to pornography

• EMF, which has a greater impact on children than adults

• Support and resources for parents (see below)

• The importance of aligning with children and teens around shared goals

Referenced Resources

• Boston Children’s Digital Wellness Lab

• The 5 M’s of Digital Wellness

• Family Digital Wellness Guide

Assessing and Lowering EMF Exposure

EMF and the Brain

As always, I welcome your thoughts and questions. I learn a lot from your comments.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about my discovery calls, non-patient consultations, treatment or to inquire about mentoring, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this short episode, I discuss the relationship between accelerated aging “oxidative stress.” Oxidative stress is what accelerates aging, promotes chronic illness, including brain related conditions, and depletes our energy, focus and quality of life.

Our left brain would like to control our bodies and the natural order of things, while our right brain would have us paying more attention to our embodied short existence on this planet. Instead of focusing on “anti-aging,” we could consider ways to lower oxidative stress (in a relaxed way).

Here, I comment on:

• The double bind of aging in these times

• What oxidative stress is

• Signs and health conditions associated with oxidative stress

• Causes of oxidative stress

• General ways to address oxidative stress (more on this in future episodes)

• The importance of lowering oxidative stress in a relaxed way (so as to not have undo stress increasing oxidative stress!)

I look forward to sharing more details on limiting exposures, and supporting our antioxidant and detoxifications systems in future episodes.

As always, I welcome your thoughts and questions. I learn a lot from you.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about my discovery calls, non-patient consultations, treatment or to inquire about mentoring, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Referenced Resources:

Understanding the Impact of Toxins on the Brain and Brain Development

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I discuss panic attacks and underlying vulnerabilities that can increase the sensitivity of our alarm system.

• What is a panic attack and what does it feel like?

• What neurotransmitters are involved?

• What is panic disorder?

• What nutritional, genetic, and hormonal factors can be at play?

• What types of inflammation and toxicity can lead to panic attacks?

• How do the immune, limbic and autonomic nervous system contribute?

• How does insecure attachment, trauma and stress interact with these other vulnerabilities?

Takeaways

• Panic attacks occur when the brain’s alarm system is overly sensitive.

• Physical symptoms of panic attacks can be debilitating and terrifying.

• Underlying physiological factors contribute to vulnerability to panic attacks.

• Neurotransmitters like norepinephrine and GABA play crucial roles in panic disorders.

• Hormonal imbalances, especially in women, can increase the likelihood of panic attacks.

• Mast cells are involved in the immune response and can trigger panic symptoms.

• Biotoxins, such as mold toxins, can contribute to mast cell activation, limbic system dysfunction and autonomic nervous system dysfunction

• Limbic system dysfunction can lead to heightened anxiety and panic.

• The autonomic nervous system regulates our fight or flight response.

• Emotional stressors and trauma can contribute to panic attacks, but appear to be aligning with other physiologic vulnerabilities

Chapters

00:00 Understanding Panic Attacks

03:07 Physiological Factors Behind Panic Attacks

06:00 Neurotransmitters, Nutrient Levels and Panic Disorder

08:52 The Role of Genetic Variants & Hormones in Panic Attacks

12:07 Inflammation and Panic Attacks

14:53 Mast Cells - The Bridge Between the Immune & Central Nervous Systems

18:06 Biotoxins and Their Impact on Panic

21:00 Limbic System Dysfunction and Panic

24:11 The Autonomic Nervous System’s Role

26:45 Emotional Stressors and Panic Attacks

As always, I welcome any comments and questions. Your interests and what you care about helps guide the information I share. Also, its really nice for me to be in conversation and learning from you.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about my discovery calls, non-patient consultations, or mentoring, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I discuss:

• Mold related illness, with a focus on mold toxicity and mold colonization

• The wide range of brain symptoms (and other symptoms associated with mold toxicity

• How we can become exposed to toxic mold even when we don’t see mold growth

• Why not everyone with the same exposure doesn’t become toxic

• How mold toxicity is diagnosed

• How we can test our environment for mold

• The four core aspects of treatment: removing exposure, using binders to eliminate toxins, addressing fungal colonization if present, and adjusting diet to avoid feeding mold and candida, which often is present in those with mold toxicity

• The importance of addressing mast cell activation, limbic system retraining and vagal nerve interventions for those who are highly sensitive to treatment interventions

• Practical steps such as air purification, humidity control

In the next episode, I will be reviewing research exploring the connection between mold and brain related conditions — and address the question, “Does mold enter the brain, in those who are not obviously immunocompromised?”

Rarely does mold toxicity occur in isolation. It will often contribute to other root causes, such as mast cell activation, electromagnetic hypersensitivity, multiple chemical sensitivity, increased pyrroles, worsening of copper zinc imbalances, decreased methylation, and an increased risk of other microbial activations or autoimmunity.

As always, I welcome any comments and questions, as these help guide the information that I share.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about non-patient consultations, treatment, and monthly mentorship groups, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I explore compulsive caregiving from an attachment perspective. This is a more subtle form of insecure attachment that nonetheless affects one’s ability to thrive and enjoy healthy relationships. Related terms include over-functioning, codependency, and Nice Guy / Good Girl Syndrome.

This is the fourth of a four-part series on how our experiences with caregivers in the first three years of life can impact our emotional regulation, beliefs about ourselves, and adult relationships.

Here I discuss:

• How early attachment experiences shape compulsive caregiving and the “parentified child” dynamic

• How over-functioning, people-pleasing, and codependency share a common root in early life and are an attempt to manage attachment anxiety

• How physiologic differences, especially of those who are highly sensitive (HSP/Highly Sensitive Person), may make them more vulnerable

• The similarities to other addictive and compulsive behaviors

• Where this attachment style would fall if placed on the attachment spectrum

• The beliefs, emotional states, behaviors, and communication styles that can be present when someone struggles with compulsive caregiving.

• The physical and psychological toll of the often-present chronic stress and emotional repression

• Tools and interventions that can help one move towards healing and thriving

• Specific resources that support awareness and recovery, including The Drama of the Gifted Child, Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents, and Codependent No More

As always, I welcome any comments and questions, as these help guide the information that I share.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about non-patient consultations, treatment, and monthly mentorship groups, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Links to related content:

Compulsive Caregiving, Over-functioning, Codependency & Nice Guy/Good Girl Syndrome

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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I am happy to share a recent conversation I had with Dr. William Walsh about his new book, “The Essence of Bipolar Disorder,” where he lays out his discovery into the cause of Bipolar Disorder, a condition with fluctuating high and low mood states that has baffled researchers and psychiatrists.

Dr. Walsh, the president of the non-profit Walsh Research Institute, is an internationally recognized expert in the field of nutritional medicine.

Dr. Walsh’s work in nutrient-based psychiatry began while collaborating with the renowned Carl C. Pfeiffer, MD, PhD (a pioneer in the field of nutritional psychiatry) to develop individualized nutrient protocols, originally focusing on violent and criminal behavior before expanding to ADHD, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, autism and schizophrenia. Dr. Walsh went on to study more than 30,000 patients with mental disorders, acquiring an unparalleled database of more than 3 million chemical assays during his clinical and research work. From this database, Dr. Walsh discovered the biotypes of depression, ADHD and Schizophrenia.

Dr. Walsh has conducted chemical analysis of more than 25 serial killers. He has assisted medical examiners, Scotland Yard, and the FBI. He has designed nutritional programs for Olympic and professional athletes.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Bipolar Disorder, how it differs from other psychiatric conditions and why it has been so challenging for psychiatric researchers to understand.

• The strong inheritance of Bipolar Disorder (despite a single gene never having been identified).

• Dr. Walsh’s journey uncovering the cause of Bipolar Disorder, which started with studying the related neuroscience research, followed by a review of the emerging genetic research, specifically, the GWAS (Gene-Wide Association Study), which identified many genes related to bipolar disorder, to a focus on the ion channel genes, DNA repair genes and finally Bipolar Disorder as a “channelopathy.”

• The alignment of genetic vulnerabilities involving ion channel genes and DNA repair genes and oxidative assault.

• How the weakness of DNA damage genes can contribute to other health issues, accelerate aging, and lower life expectancy.

• How weak ion channel genes can also contribute to high oxidative stress.

• Bipolar Disorder as a “channelopathy”, and the explanation for switching from euthymia (normal mood) to mania to depression and back to euthymia (from a neurotransmission standpoint)

• How this information impacts treatment and prevention.

Related Content:

Wash Research Institute

Lunch with Dr. William Walsh - His Story, Discoveries & the Future of Nutrient-Based Psychiatry

Breakthrough Theory of Bipolar Disorder

As always, I welcome any comments and questions, as these help guide the information that I share.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about non-patient consultations, treatment, and monthly mentorship groups, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I discuss the anxious (ambivalent–preoccupied) attachment style — a pattern marked by intensity, dependence, and a longing for reassurance.

I address how this attachment pattern develops, how it can appear in adulthood, and what kinds of therapeutic and holistic supports can help someone move toward a more secure attachment style. Specifically, I discuss:

• How inconsistency in early caregiving (and even threats or experiences of abandonment) can lead to an anxious attachment style and problems with emotional regulation.

• The key differences between anxious and avoidant attachment patterns

• What the infant-toddler attachment research revealed about early caregiving and attachment dynamics

• How anxious attachment can manifest as overwhelm, and fear of abandonment in adult relationships

• Links between attachment and biochemical factors such as inflammation, methylation, high copper, high pyrroles, mast cell activation, and even biotoxin illness such as mold toxicity.

• Psychotherapy approaches that promote regulation and security — including learning about healthy boundaries

• The importance of structure, daily routines, and developing a reliable “inner parent”

• Mind–body strategies such as guided meditation, goal-focused journaling, and creative learning

• How addressing both emotional and biochemical roots can support long-term healing and resilience

With awareness, compassion, education and support, we can rewire our nervous system toward greater calm, clarity, and self-trust.

As always, I welcome your thoughts and questions.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about non-patient consultations, treatment, and monthly mentorship groups, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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What do the TV and film characters Don Draper (Mad Men), James Bond, Miranda Priestly (The Devil Wears Prada), and Rick Blaine (Casablanca) have in common? Each is a fairly good illustration of the Avoidant-Dismissive Attachment Style portrayed in film.

In the last episode, I discussed how our experiences with caregivers during our first three years of life may continue to impact our ability to regulate emotions and form beliefs about ourselves and others. More deeply, I address how attachment shapes our neurophysiology - specifically our right and left hemisphere differentiation, our limbic system (“lizard brain”) and our autonomic nervous system.

In this episode, I will focus more closely on one end of the attachment spectrum - the avoidant-dismissive attachment style. I’ll discuss:

• How, in the early research, attachment was measured in toddlers and adults

• How avoidant-dismissive attachment appears to develop

• What it looks like in relationships

• Personality Disorders that, if present, align with this type of attachment style

• Similarities with undermethylation and how avoidant-dismissive attachment style may relate to undermethylation

• The role of psychotherapy, group work, and supportive relationships in healing

• Other tools, practices, and choices that can support healing.

• How awareness of these patterns can transform not only personal well-being but also parenting and family dynamics across generations

One theme I return to often is that growth is always possible. While avoidant attachment may develop early in life, it does not define a person forever. With curiosity, growing compassion, and the willingness to practice new ways of relating to ourselves and to others, we can expand our capacity for connection and begin to feel more whole.

In the next episode, I look forward to discussing the other end of the attachment spectrum - the Anxious-Ambivalent (Preoccupied) Attachment Style.

As always, I welcome any comments and questions, as these help guide the information that I share.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about non-patient consultations, treatment, and monthly mentorship groups, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Links to related content:

Methylation & Brain Health

Undermethylation Myths, MTHFR & The Great Folate Debate

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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OCD, or Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, is a debilitating condition that involves intrusive thoughts and time-consuming, repetitive behaviors. It impacts 80 million worldwide, 2-4% of the US population or 1 in 100 people here in the US.

It can be difficult to overstate the suffering caused by OCD, not only for those with this condition but also for their family members. In addition to the distress caused by the obsessional thoughts and compulsions, there can be shame and loss - loss of more meaningful, purposeful, or pleasant thoughts and behaviors. and loss of time connecting with others or engaging in purposeful or enjoyable activities.

Other conditions associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder include:

• Body dysmorphic disorder

• Skin picking

• Trichotillomania (hair pulling)

• Hoarding

• Hypochondria

• Olfactory reference syndrome (an irrational feeling or belief that one emits a foul smell and often attempts to remove the odor).

It´s not unusual for someone with OCD to have other conditions, such as:

• Other forms of anxiety

• Depression

• ADHD

• Autism spectrum disorder

• Eating disorders

• Tourettes

Research suggests that having OCD raises one´s vulnerability to developing dementia. Many other brain conditions, however, also appear to increase this vulnerability similarly.

Treatment Challenges

OCD is particularly challenging to treat. Of those with OCD, 60% do not respond to typical therapies (often medication in combination with psychotherapy involving gradual exposure to that which is being avoided). Typical medications include:

• SSRI´s (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) -e.g., sertraline, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, citalopram, paroxetine

• Tricyclic antidepressant - clomipramine

• SNRI - (Serotonin and Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitor) - venlafaxine

• Atypical antipsychotic medications are sometimes added

Medication is combined with CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), which involves exposure and response prevention, or CBT is used alone.

As you can see, most medication approaches aim to increase serotonin activity. Serotonin, however, is just one of the neurotransmitters involved. What has become increasingly clear from the research is that OCD involves abnormal activity at the NMDA receptor - a glutamate receptor.

NMDA & Glutamate

The NMDA receptor is found throughout the brain. Glutamate, the primary excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, binds to the NMDA receptor. NMDA and glutamate are involved in synaptic plasticity (creating neuronal connections), learning, memory, and motor function.

The synapse is the space between communicating neurons.

Presynaptic neurons release glutamate, which binds to the NMDA receptor on postsynaptic neurons. This results in a cascade of signaling events that lead to “neuronal excitation.” The problem arises when this receptor has too much (or too little) activity. In the case of OCD, there is too much activity.

Implications

• Dysregulation at the NMDA receptor appears to play a role in OCD, depression, PTSD, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and substance use disorders.

• Weak memory extinction can result from high activity at the NMDA receptor. While memory is a good thing, we can have problems with too much memory - or rather, problems putting our memories aside. This can look like thoughts getting stuck, for example:

• Intrusive thoughts in OCD

• Flashbacks in PTSD

• Delusions in psychotic disorders

• Cravings in addiction.

• Neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and ALS, have also been linked to NMDA receptor malfunction.

Methylation & NMDA

Those who are undermethylated, especially those with OCD or addictions, have high activity at the NMDA receptor. To remind you, undermethylation is a biochemical process with many functions, including the breakdown of histamine, support of detoxification, and support of serotonin activity. When someone is undermethylated, they can tend to have allergies (from high histamine), be perfectionistic, competitive, strong-willed, have obsessive-compulsive tendencies, be ritualistic, have dietary inflexibility, and have high accomplishment or have family members with high accomplishment.

Undermethylation can contribute to the low serotonin activity seen in OCD. Simply addressing undermethylation, like merely addressing serotonin, will only bring partial benefit. To address undermethylation, those of us trained by the Walsh Research Institute, use SAMe and/or methionine, B12, B6, magnesium, and antioxidants. We address this before starting methylation treatment for those with high homocysteine.

But how can we also decrease activity at the NMDA receptor?

Blocking NMDA & Normalizing Glutamate Activity

Esketamine or Ketamine, which has been getting much attention in recent years, can impact the brain in various ways; however, its primary mechanism is as an NMDA blocker or antagonist. For some, it can serve as a rapid-acting and highly effective antidepressant. It can also decrease OCD symptoms. Other NMDA-blocking drugs include memantine and dextromethorphan (combined with bupropion). Lamotrigine can decrease glutamate release and has been used as an adjunct medication for OCD.

Nutrients, however, play an important role in the NMDA receptor.

NAC or N-acetyl cysteine is a precursor to glutathione and, thus, an antioxidant. It is also anti-inflammatory and a binder for a particular toxin made by candida and mold. But, it is also a potent NMDA antagonist (decreases activity at NMDA) and has been shown to reduce obsessions and compulsions of OCD. It has also been studied in alcoholism, opiate addiction, cocaine abuse, gambling disorder, shopping disorder, cigarette addiction, and trichotillomania. It has been used by itself and as an adjunct to medication therapy. NAC has become part of the Walsh undermethylation nutrient protocols for those with OCD and/or addiction.

Zincalso plays an important role in regulating functioning at the NMDA receptor. The Walsh Research Institute found that 90% of those with brain symptoms had relatively low zinc. Dosing of zinc is determined after testing plasma zinc levels using a narrow range (the Walsh/Pheiffer range differs from typical lab ranges). Zinc is checked in conjunction with copper. Zinc has been found to improve treatment response in those with OCD treated with SSRIs.

Zinc can be depleted because of very high oxidative stress and/or high pyrroles, which also cause low B6. Because B6 is needed to make serotonin, pyrroles are also important to address if elevated.

Inositol is a nutrient involved in the serotonin and glutamate signaling systems. It, too, is beneficial for OCD symptoms; however, it can require very high doses.

The challenge of research, as you can see, is that these approaches are all looked at in isolation, as opposed to, for example, addressing undermethylation, optimizing zinc, decreasing activity at the NMDA and addressing sources of oxidative stress.

Candida & Mold

Aside from undermethylation, low serotonin activity, and high activity at the NMDA receptor, those with OCD appear to have high oxidative stress, as is the case with most brain-related conditions. One of the more common sources of oxidative stress I see in my practice is candida overgrowth in the GI tract, which often follows antibiotic exposure and /or mold toxicity due to water damage causing seen or unseen toxic mold. Because mold and candida (yeast) thrive on sugar and a high-carb diet, symptoms can fluctuate with sugar or carb intake.

How might candida and mold intersect with the NMDA receptor? Mold and yeast can contribute to high histamine states. Histamine can increase activity at the NMDA receptor.

Estrogen

For women and teen girls that I see with OCD, there is often a fluctuation in their OCD symptoms with their cycle. Typically, their symptoms worsen during the times of the month when estrogen is the highest. This may be because estrogen can increase activity at the NMDA receptor.

PANDAS & PANS

When a child has an abrupt onset of OCD symptoms, PANDAS and PANS should be considered.

• PANDAS = Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections

• PANS = Pediatric Acute-Onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome

PANDAS and PANS are autoimmune conditions, meaning the immune system is acting on the body, in this case, a part of the brain called the basal ganglia, that involves an acute onset of OCD symptoms. Other symptoms can include restricted eating, mood symptoms, regression in academic or social skills, and motor tics.

While triggers are often viral, bacterial (strep in the case of PANDAS), candida,or other microbial source, what is underlying the dysregulated immune response to such microbes, in my experience, is mold toxicity.

Summary

Because OCD can be difficult to treat, my hope in sharing this information is to raise awareness that effective OCD treatments can require a multifaceted approach that includes:

• addressing methylation (and high pyrroles if present) to improve serotonin activity

• decreasing activity at the NMDA receptor

• by optimizing zinc

• using supplements or medication

• addressing sources of inflammation and high histamine

• address sources of oxidative stress - trauma, stress, toxins, inflammation

If you find this information helpful and would like to help me get this out into the world, please consider sharing:

As always, I welcome your comments, questions, and experience.

Until next time,

Courtney

P.S. To learn more about non-patient consultations, treatment, and monthly mentorship groups, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter and podcast episode is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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This past week, I had the pleasure of attending the Advanced Course for Walsh-Trained Practitioners. To date, 1,200 practitioners from 75 countries have been trained using the Walsh approach.

For those unfamiliar, the Walsh Research Institute, founded by Dr. William Walsh, has looked at the nutrient levels of over 30,000 people with brain-related symptoms and found a surprisingly small number of nutrient imbalances (low zinc, high copper, high pyrroles, and methylation imbalances) that repeatedly show up. We address these imbalances in those with depression, anxiety, panic, obsessions, compulsions, inattention, brain fog, hyperactivity, autism, dementia, psychosis, and mood swings with significant and, at times, dramatic results. Bipolar disorder, however, because of its shifting in neurotransmitter states from mania and depression, can be particularly difficult to treat.

More than nine million Americans have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. This severe condition can lead to drug or alcohol use, financial or legal problems, discord in relationships, work and school instability, and/or suicide attempts or suicide. The course typically begins with an acute onset, followed by episodes of mania and depression, which often worsens in severity over time.

In this post, after describing bipolar disorder, I will use Dr. Walsh’s Comprehensive Theory of Bipolar Disorder, recently shared at the Society of Neuroscience, to explain:

• the cause of bipolar disorder

• the reason for the onset, persistence, and increasing severity for many over time

• the reason for the increased risk of other health issues

• the reason for the switch between manic and depressive states

• how this information impacts treatment and prevention

Bipolar Disorder

It is important to note that the type of bipolar disorder I am referring to here is Bipolar I, a condition in which there are discrete episodes of mania often followed by episodes of depression. Such episodes can occur rarely or even multiple times a year.

Manic episodes usually last a week up to several months and include three or more of the following:

• increase in activity, energy, or agitation

• distorted sense of well-being or self-confidence

• needing much less sleep than usual

• usually talkative or talking fast

• racing thoughts or flight of ideas (jumping from one topic to another)

• easily distracted

• poor decision-making- e.g., excessive spending, risky sexual behavior

• may become psychotic (have a break from reality)

Hypomania has less severe symptoms which have less impact on functioning at work, school, social activities, and relationships. Having hypomanic episodes is not sufficient to warrant a diagnosis of Bipolar I.

Depressive episodes, which often last a couple of weeks but can vary,include five or more of the below symptoms that are affecting functioning at work, school, social activities, and relationships:

• depressed mood (sad, lacking feeling, hopeless, irritable, angry, or tearful)

• marked loss of interest or enjoyment of activities

• weight loss or weight gain (without dieting or overeating)

• too much or too little sleep

• behavior slowed down or restless

• fatigue - loss of energy

• feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt

• problems concentrating or making decisions

• suicidal thoughts, plans, or attempts

Bipolar II Disorder is a different condition. This diagnosis is given when someone has at least one major depressive episode and at least one hypomanic episode. Depressive episodes are often longer here. There is never a manic episode. Despite its name, this is not a milder form of Bipolar I. Biochemically, it is considered a different disorder.

Rapid cycling is used to describe bipolar disorder when, in the past year, there have been at least four episodes of switching from mania or hypomania to depression. This can describe either type I or type II (depending on the presence or absence of mania). As with many other diagnoses, the terms came from seemingly related symptoms instead of a root cause or biochemical understanding.

Dr. Walsh’s comprehensive theory, which I’ll describe, focuses on Bipolar I, in which there are manic episodes usually followed by depressive episodes.

For those who struggle with mood swings changing within a day or a week as opposed to discrete mood episodes of mania or depression, pyrrole disorder should be considered.

Genetics or Epigenetics?

Having a first-degree relative (parent or sibling) with bipolar disorder raises the risk of developing bipolar disorder. After thirty years of genetic research, however, a gene for bipolar disorder has not been identified. The genetics are more complicated. It appears there are many genes involved.

2021 Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS)

These studies compared the genomes of about 5,000 individuals with bipolar disorder and about 8,000 (controls/individuals without bipolar disorder). Over time, more and more “bipolar” genetic variants have been identified. By 2021, there were 64; however, there are expected to be hundreds.

Of these 64 genetic variants, 49 are DNA repair genes and antioxidant genes that occur throughout the body (not just the brain). Just as it sounds, DNA repair genes make enzymes that repair DNA. Antioxidant genes make enzymes that support our protective antioxidant systems. Many of these genetic variants are also associated with cancer and other conditions impacted by DNA damage. This would suggest that those with bipolar disorder come into the world with a vulnerability in their ability to repair DNA damage (which translates to cell damage, tissue damage, and, in the case of the brain, neuronal damage. An event, however, is required to shift this vulnerability to illness.

Accelerated DNA Damage

What damages DNA? Free radicals and thus oxidative stress. To remind you, oxidative stress occurs when our body’s inherent antioxidant systems are overwhelmed or depleted by free radicals (due to an insult - a toxic exposure(s), source of inflammation, or trauma). A depletion of our protection leaves our cells and DNA vulnerable to further oxidative stress and damage. If we have variants on protective genes, then we can be even more vulnerable.

Numerous studies have found high levels of superoxide, hydroxyl, and ONNO (peroxynitrite)free radicals in those with bipolar disorder.

This vulnerability to DNA damage also explains why many with bipolar disorder have a higher risk of other health issues, including heart disease, breast cancer, multiple sclerosis, kidney failure, immune disorders, migraines, gastrointestinal illnesses, and others.

But What About the Other 15 Genes?

Genetic Weakness on Ion Channels

The remaining identified genes are more specific to bipolar disorder and relate to ion channel genes. Ion channels exist on the neuronal membranes, allowing potassium, sodium, and calcium to move in and out of the nerve cell. This movement creates an electrical charge that travels down the cell, releasing a neurotransmitter into the space between that neuron and other neurons to communicate with the next cell(s).

Onset

Here again, an epigenetic event (toxic exposure, trauma, significant illness, etc.) leading to oxidative overload impacts the production of the proteins used in these channels, which affects the movement of ions in and out of the cell (more specifically causing flooding of potassium ions (K+) outside the cell) leading to hyperactivity of that nerve. This is why Dr. Walsh’s theory considers bipolar disorder a channelopathy.

Euthymia

Euthymia - when the mood is neither manic nor depressed - interestingly, appears to be the first mood state after the onset of the condition. The flooding of K+ outside the cell leads to hyperactivity of neurons for serotonin. However, that doesn’t appear to cause symptoms since serotonin inhibits or keeps the activity of dopamine, norepinephrine, and glutamate in check.

Mania

The onset of mania starts to occur when the serotonin neuron hyperactivity (from the K+ flooding outside the cells) starts to fizzle out. What follows is a reduction in the inhibition of the neurotransmitters (dopamine, norepinephrine, glutamate, and others) that cause widespread neuronal hyperactivity, which causes manic symptoms.

Eventually, the declining serotonin activity becomes the dominating force and triggers depression, which may persist for some time. Eventually, the serotonin nerves return to hyperactivity (again keeping things at bay), resulting in a stable mood - euthymia.

Progression of Illness

It is well known that preventing manic episodes can prevent the severity of the condition from escalating over time. Dr. Walsh’s theory also addresses why.

Aside from impacting neurotransmission, the problems occurring at the ion channels are also associated with further DNA damage. This means that each episode can potentially add to the DNA damage. Add to this typical DNA damage (for all of us) that comes with aging. A typically untreated original and often persistent insult (such as a toxic exposure), events occurring at the ion channel, and aging can lead to the progression and increasing severity of illness.

Treatment

As with any theory, the inevitable question becomes, how does this impact treatment? Allopathic or mainstream psychiatry uses medication approaches that aim and usually succeed at stabilizing mood. Again, this is important because of the consequences of mania or depression but also because of the potential physiologic damage caused by ongoing episodes.

What isn’t typically addressed in conventional psychiatry are:

• Sources of oxidative stress. Does this person have mold toxicity, Lyme, metal toxicity, candida or other microbial overgrowth, chemical exposures, high EMF exposure, trauma, and/or chronic stress that are continuing to deplete protections and contribute to DNA damage? These are the types of issues that those of us who consider ourselves functional and environmental psychiatrists address.

• Support for the antioxidant system. As with any brain condition, robust antioxidant support is indicated to address free radicals, but in this case, it is also indicated to prevent further DNA damage and to protect the ion channels.

• Nutrient imbalances in varying combinations are typically also involved, such as methylation imbalances (often overmethylation), pyrrole disorder, and copper-zinc imbalances. Each of these can be exacerbated by high oxidative stress, which is a further cause of oxidative stress.

Research into targeted antioxidants will be needed to build upon Dr. Walsh’s research. The free radicals (superoxide, hydroxyl ions, and ONNO) are more easily addressed in the body than in the brain. In the meantime, in addition to more typical antioxidants, NAC (which inhibits activity at the glutamate receptor) and MT (metallothionein) promotion therapy (a combination of glutathione, zinc, B6, and specific amino acids) are expected to be beneficial.

Prevention

Because bipolar disorder appears to be an epigenetic DNA damage illness (caused by major oxidative overload), early antioxidant treatment in those who are vulnerable to bipolar disorder may prevent the onset and development of this disease. It won’t be long before such vulnerabilities can be identified, as early as infancy.

For more on the work of Dr. William Walsh and the Walsh Research Institute Practioner Resource Map (, visit: https://www.walshinstitute.org/

As always, I welcome your comments and questions.

And if you would like to help me get this information out into the world, please consider sharing.

Until next time,

Courtney

P.S. To learn more about non-patient consultations, treatment, and monthly mentorship groups, please visit my website at:

CourtneySnyderMD.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Recently I saw a humorous reel of a man going through his day. As he does, you hear his inner dialogue. He’s trying to prepare a healthy snack, but at every turn, he’s stopped by his voice pointing out exposure to toxins - in the packaging, the water, the skin of the fruit. Eventually, he sits down and opens a bag of chips.

Can we lower our exposure to toxins (and support detoxification) and not live in fear? I think we can. We can all hold this heavy topic lightly and do the best we can, knowing that there’s no perfection here.

“If we are going to live so intimately with these chemicals, eating and drinking them, taking them into the very marrow of our bones - we had better know something about their nature and their power.” - Rachel Carson in “Silent Spring” (1962)

In this episode, I'd like to help you better know something about the nature and power of the chemicals and heavy metals that we’re exposed to. I’ll discuss

• The cumulative effects of our exposures

• Sources of toxins

• Oxidative stress

• How toxins contribute to chronic health conditions, including psychiatric conditions

• Impacts on the developing brain

• How oxidative stress can be measured

To learn more about the root causes of brain symptoms and the consultations that I offer, visit courtneysnydermd.com

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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The way I think about it:

We come into and leave this world accompanied by our souls. While here, one of our tasks is to maintain our connection to that inner wisdom, which guides and nourishes us in a world that otherwise can feel harsh and cold. Our soul doesn’t judge us or try to fix us. It doesn’t need us to be more or do more. Its unconditional love is akin to an adoring dog who only wants us to stop, be present, and see what it sees.

The challenge is the neuronal wiring we develop from cultural inputs that discount this vital relationship with ourselves. We’re trained to project onto others our strengths and even our shadow. We find ourselves disappointed when others can’t carry that weight of our expectations.

If this most vital relationship is neglected, our human connections suffer. Our relationships may feel shallow or intense and dramatic. We’ll resent and blame others unconsciously for losing ourselves. Unaddressed, this comes out in the form of hurting others, or it gets repressed and fuels addiction, a range of symptoms, and chronic health conditions.

Instead of rom-coms about finding the perfect person and living happily ever after, we need more stories about people falling in love with themselves. “I complete me.” The healthiest relationships are between people who honor this need in themselves and each other.

Below is a blessing I print and include in birthday cards to those I love. To me, it speaks to the soul. This week, I share it with myself and with you - in honor of your arrival.

Birthday Blessing

by John O’Donohue (late Irish poet and, I would say, mystic)

If you’d like to hear his lovely voice reading this, listen here at 8:15

“Blessed be the mind that dreamed the dayThe blueprint of your lifeWould begin to glow on earth,Illuminating all the faces and voicesThat would arrive to inviteYour soul to growth.Praised be your father and mother,Who loved you before you were,And trusted to call you hereWith no idea who you would be.Blessed be those who have loved youInto becoming who you were meant to be,Blessed be those who have crossed your lifeWith dark gifts of hurt and lossThat have helped to school your mindIn the art of disappointment.When desolation surrounded you,Blessed be those who looked for youAnd found you, their kind handsUrgent to open a blue windowIn the gray wall formed around you.Blessed be the gifts you never notice,Your health, eyes to behold the world,Thoughts to countenance the unknown,Memory to harvest vanished days,Your heart to feel the world's waves,Your breath to breathe the nourishmentOf distance made intimate by earth.On this echoing-day of your birth,May you open the gift of solitudeIn order to receive your soul;Enter the generosity of silenceTo hear your hidden heart;Know the serenity of stillnessTo be enfolded anewBy the miracle of your being.”

To learn more about the root causes of brain symptoms and the consultations that I offer, visit courtneysnydermd.com

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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There is a wealth of information about sleep. In this podcast, I'll highlight aspects I find especially interesting and significant.

• The Pineal Gland

• The Seat of the Soul

• Flouride

• Melatonin

• Creating Melatonin

• Cortisol

• Brain waves

• Falling Asleep & Waking Up

• REM (rapid eye movement) versus non-REM sleep

• Sleep cycles

In a future episode, I will delve into tools and techniques for optimizing sleep.

To learn more about the root causes of brain symptoms and the consultations that I offer, visit courtneysnydermd.com

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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After sharing my favorite books for engaging the right brain last year, I thought I’d now share some for stimulating the left brain.

Anyone familiar with functional medicine knows the vast landscape of information—some empowering, some daunting, some helpful, and some even alarming. Yet, feeling inundated or fearful isn’t conducive to healing and well-being.

Just as pairing protein with carbs helps to stabilize blood sugar levels, balancing left-brain reading with right-brain material can be beneficial. Otherwise, we risk becoming overly focused on the minutiae of healing, which can increase stress and diminish the bigger picture of our lives.

The books mentioned are designed for those seeking insights for themselves or loved ones, as well as for clinicians aiming to better serve their patients. Each book has helpful information, practical tools, and well-founded hope.

To learn more about the root causes of brain symptoms and the consultations that I offer, visit courtneysnydermd.com

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In previous podcasts, I’ve discussed many root causes of brain symptoms, none of which exist independently from our hormones. In this podcast, I’ll address the impact our sex hormones - estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone - have on our neurotransmitters. I’ll also discuss how changes in our hormones can impact our personalities and mental health over our lifetime.

While there is a great deal of diversity in our hormonal states, there are obvious similarities for those born female and similarities for those born male. Hormones are an exceedingly complex topic. I will be oversimplifying.

To learn more about the root causes of brain symptoms and the consultations that I offer, visit courtneysnydermd.com

Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Our limbic system (commonly called the lizard brain) plays an important role in our safety. If it’s over-functioning, however, we can feel chronically unsafe.

Previously, I discussed how the autonomic nervous system (ANS) puts us into fight, flight, or shut down when we feel threatened. The ANS operates largely outside our brain; however, it communicates with our limbic system, which is in the brain. In this newsletter:

• What is the limbic system, specifically the amygdala, and how does it keep us safe?

• What symptoms and conditions occur when the amygdala is over-functioning?

• What does the limbic system have to do with high immune reactivity and mast cell activation, multiple chemical sensitivity, and electromagnetic hypersensitivity?

• Are some of us born with an overactive amygdala?

• What environmental inputs can lead to limbic system dysfunction?

• How can we take advantage of neuroplasticity to address this dysfunction, feel safe in our bodies and environments, and become less reactive to food, chemicals, light, loud sounds, EMF, and other environmental inputs?

What Is the Limbic System?

The limbic system is a group of interconnected structures deep inside the brain (and just above the brainstem) that govern our emotions, motivation, sense of smell, and behavior. Evolutionarily, the limbic system is considered the oldest part of the human brain. It has been identified in fish, amphibians, reptiles, and early mammals.

The structures include the thalamus, hypothalamus, basal ganglia, cingulate gyrus, hippocampus, which consolidates short-term memory into long-term memory, and last but most certainly not least, the amygdala.

The Amygdala

• a major processing center for emotions, especially fear, anxiety, and rage.

• helps identify potential threats and trigger appropriate reactions, such as the "fight or flight" response.

• stores emotional memories, especially those related to stress and fear.

• helps with social interactions and interpreting information about others.

• involved in learning by fear, and is necessary for acquiring both active and passive avoidance of conditioned responses.

• assigns value to objects and activities; plays a role in making judgments, including social, moral, and aesthetic judgments.

What is Limbic System Dysfunction?

This is when neuronal pathways have been reinforced from repeated threatening inputs. What is perceived as threatening starts to become generalized.

This can look like:

• high anxiety and even obsessive-compulsive symptoms, such as contamination fears, disordered eating, body dysmorphia

• hyper-vigilance or being excessively alert to anything perceived as a threat

• excessive fear related to:

• one’s symptoms

• one’s body

• food, medications, or supplements

• environmental exposures, such as chemicals, mold toxins, or EMF

Because of the interconnection between the central nervous system and our immune system, once someone has developed limbic system dysfunction, they can become hyper-reactive to a wide range of stimulation, including light, sound, smells, foods, supplements, medications, chemicals, and electromagnetic fields. As you can see, this becomes self-perpetuating. As a person has immune reactions, often in the form of mast cell activation with its wide range of symptoms, they become more vigilant and avoidant to try to prevent symptoms. This adaptive response, however, reinforces what become dysfunctional neuronal pathways in the limbic system.

What Does It Feel Like?

I can speak to this personally, as I had limbic system dysfunction from mold toxicity (from a home that had water damage) and then later in a new Smart house with high radio frequencies and dirty electricity. Even before I knew I had mold toxicity and was being exposed to mold, my thoughts repeatedly landed on themes around safety. I knew something was causing me to have severe fatigue and headaches, but I didn’t know what. “I shouldn’t eat that, I shouldn’t go there, I shouldn’t, I can’t, I better not.” I thought if I could control things, I would be fine.

Everything and everyone felt “too much.” It was hard to be with people. When our body feels threatened, we are not in rest, digest and connect. It’s difficult to be present. That’s a problem because the less we connect with others, the more room in our minds for rumination and reinforcing those fear pathways.

My symptoms of pain, fatigue and anxiety caused by mold toxins and EMF were helped and made worse by the limbic dysfunction that developed. If you’ve ever been “limbic,” you know it’s all-consuming and exhausting, not just for you but for your spouse, partner, children, and close friends.

Can We Be Born with Limbic System Dysfunction - “Wired For Danger?”

RCCX is a gene module (cluster of genes) that appears to be at the foundation of many psychiatric conditions and complex chronic health conditions, such as mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS), and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS)

The RCCX gene module includes a gene for hypermobility (being especially bendable or double jointed), a gene for 21-hydroxylase - involved in stress hormone pathways, and a gene related to our immune response and autoimmunity. Hypermobility is a red flag but not a requirement.

A weakness in 21-hydroxylase can result in higher androgens (testosterone and DHEA) in utero and thus impact the developing brain, specifically the amygdala. Studies have found that those with hypermobility have a larger than normal amygdala, which is fitting with the RCCX theory. This would suggest that many of us come into the world with an amygdala that already has us on high alert. The disadvantage of the resulting global sensitivity is the greater potential for health consequences. However, there can also be advantages, including being highly intuitive, observant, creative, and empathic.

It is not necessarily an advantage, but another seeming result of high androgen exposure in women during development is a finger length ratio more typical of men (the ring finger is longer than the index finger when looking with the palms up). Perhaps the male finger length ratio in women and girls suggests a vulnerability to developing limbic system dysfunction.

Neuroplasticity - Friend or Foe?

Neuroplasticity is the incredible ability of our neurons to form new connections and modify the strength of existing connections. More simply put, it is the ability of our brain to rewire itself. These neuronal connections are driven by our experiences, thoughts and behaviors. As you’ll see, neuroplasticity can work against us and take us into or further into limbic system dysfunction, or it can help us find our way out of limbic system dysfunction.

How Do We Develop Limbic System Dysfunction?

I do suspect that many of those who go on to develop limbic system dysfunction already had a vulnerability from the start; however, environmental inputs - exposures or trauma - can reinforce those neuronal pathways of fear and avoidance.

Such experiences could start as early as the first three years of life. Perhaps one’s attachment experiences left them feeling unsafe and uncertain that the world was safe. There could have been trauma. Over time, toxins could have left the body feeling chronically threatened. We see this with biotoxins, especially from mold and Bartonella, but also with Lyme and other co-infections. We also see this with high EMF exposure and chemical exposures.

Though we call it dysfunction, the dysfunction often leads people to their answers. Had I not been “limbic,” I probably wouldn’t have found my answers, but once I did, I had to teach my brain and body how to feel safe again,… perhaps even safe for the first time.

Limbic System Retraining

Just as pathways of fear and vigilance can get reinforced over time, so can pathways of safety and well-being. Limbic system retraining programs are structured programs with exercises, education, and support to help retrain the limbic system. They are incredibly helpful for most people, even those with an active “threat” like mold toxins in their body. That doesn’t mean that actual external threats don’t need to be addressed. Just as I wouldn’t recommend someone stay in a traumatizing relationship, I also wouldn’t recommend someone stay in an environment in which they are getting significant exposure to mold toxins.

Limbic system retraining programs can be done at home online. Common ingredients include raising awareness of thoughts and triggers, interrupting those thoughts (with or without movements), and a visualization or mood elevation. All of these require practice. The three programs that I have patients look into and which many of us who treat complex illness have the most experience with are:

• Dynamic Neural Retraining System (DNRS)

• Gupta Program

• Primal Trust

Though these vary somewhat (DNRS is the most structured, Gupta brings in meditation, and Primal Trust brings in more vagal nerve interventions and trauma-informed practices), they are all effective. It comes down to fit and which program the person feels the most drawn to and, thus, will be most inclined to do. While an hour a day may be recommended by the programs and maybe most helpful, it does not have to be “all or none.” Even ten minutes a day to start can still be helpful.

For patients who are so sensitive that they can not tolerate any supplements, binders (for toxins), or medications to calm down their immune and/or nervous system, limbic system retraining and vagal nerve interventions for eight weeks usually can allow them to move forward.

Again, because the immune and central nervous systems are so interconnected, as the limbic system calms down, so do mast cells, inflammation, immune reactivity, and the many symptoms that they can cause.

Who Benefits From Limbic System Retraining

Limbic system retraining programs - specifically the Dynamic Neural Retraining System, not surprisingly, were first used for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity Syndrome (EHS), and Fibromyalgia. They are also used for Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS), mold toxicity and other biotoxin illness (Lyme and it’s coinfections), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and more generally for:

• Those who have experienced physical, psychological or emotional stress and trauma and who are now suffering from a chronic health condition

• Those with chronic depression and/or anxiety

• Those with chronic pain

How to Help Children Limbic System Dysfunction

Older children and teens can benefit from doing limbic system training program with a parent. My daughter and I did DNRS together. Our conversations about it were reinforcing and still shape how we each think about how to support our neurophysiology.

For younger children, following the steps may be more difficult. Programs like Brain Tap and Dr. Stephen Porges’ “Safe and Sound” program can be very helpful.

Honoring Our Limbic System

Before I close, I would again point out that our amygdala - beyond keeping us safe - is the source of many of our gifts - our sensitivity, intuition about people, and inner knowing. Those of us who come into the world “wired for danger” are also wired to see things others may not see and feel things others may not feel. We can use such gifts to serve a higher good.

Whether or not you struggle with limbic symptoms, I hope something here helps you appreciate your limbic system so that it can help you find peace and purpose.

Until next time,

Courtney

To learn more about the roots brain-related symptoms and discover surprising paths to healing, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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“Addiction” - a compulsive, chronic, physiological, or psychological need for a habit-forming substance, behavior, or activity having harmful physical, psychological, or social effects and typically causing well-defined symptoms (such as anxiety, irritability, tremors, or nausea) upon withdrawal or abstinence.”

Like other health conditions, addiction is multifactorial. It is the result of an alignment of root causes. In this newsletter, I’ll discuss:

• Substance addiction and behavioral addictions

• Why addiction is not simply about dopamine and why there are multiple addictive personalities

• How & why we differ in our physiologic response to substances

• Our culture’s shaming and punishment of addiction while fueling addiction

• The role of attachment disruption, trauma, emotional dysregulation, and social isolation

Substance Addiction

When it comes to addiction, you might expect me to talk a lot about dopamine. Not all substance addictions are the same, however. Opioids act very differently on the body than alcohol, which acts differently than cocaine. Some substances are more addictive than others, and even more so in certain people. For most people, marijuana is less addictive, while alcohol, cocaine, and opioids are more addictive.

Addictive Substances:

• Alcohol

• Caffeine

• Cannabis

• Hallucinogens

• Sedatives and Hypnotics/Anxiolytics

• Inhalants

• Opioids

• Stimulants

• Tobacco

Seemingly, 10-20 % of people who try substances will have problems with addiction. Our genetic makeup and the expression of our genes will impact how we react to substances, just as they will affect how we metabolize specific medications or environmental toxins. We could, for example, have a weak enzyme that slows our metabolism of alcohol and results in our becoming more intoxicated more quickly.

We may have high neurotransmitter activity that we’re trying to calm down with substances, or we may have low neurotransmitter activity and are taking substances or even carrying out certain behaviors that increase our neurotransmitter activity.

Behavioral Addiction

While we can become severely addicted to substances, we can also become addicted to behaviors or the feelings brought on by the behavior or anticipation of the behavior.

Examples of Behavioral Addiction:

• Food addiction

• Sex addiction

• Love and relationship addiction

• Codependence is considered a relationship addiction in that relationships are often one-sided, emotionally destructive, or even abusive.

• Exercise addiction

• Body dysmorphic disorder

• Health addiction

• Shopping addiction

• Gambling addiction

• Work addiction

• Video game addiction

• Internet addiction

• Smartphone addiction

• Social media addiction

• Porn addiction

• News addiction

• Information addiction

• Self-harm addiction

• Extremism is also felt to overlap with addiction

We can become addicted to anything that spikes the reward chemicals in our brains. If we’re not sure if we’re addicted, we can ask ourselves, “Is the compulsive behavior having negative consequences?”

The severity of our addictions falls on a spectrum. I may not have a gambling addiction where I am putting myself at financial risk; however, I could be addicted to sugar, which I know negatively impacts my health, gives me brain fog and fatigue, and causes me to check out of my relationships, including my relationship with myself.

Culture: Shame & Punishment

The last thing that we need if we are addicted to a substance or behavior is shame and punishment. Our culture still tends to see addiction as a moral failing or even a sin that can be removed with punishment. This thinking leads to simplistic consequences such as rejection by family and friends and even imprisonment. The same happens with other forms of mental illness, but in this case, there is even less understanding, less compassion, more anger, and more disdain.

Culture: Fueling Addiction

Meanwhile, most of us are becoming more addicted - addicted to our cell phones, social media, divisive stimulating news and information. We have more information coming at us than we can process. Our brains are flooded with catecholamines as we stay in highly stimulated states. One of those catecholamines is dopamine, which will drive motivation and have us in pursuit of “more.” While there may be a type of pleasure in that pursuit, it’s not a joyful or even content type of pleasure.

When we are in pursuit, we are not present in our lives. Many of us can barely process our moments, days, and lives in these modern times. For many, what was a life of memorable moments (positive and painful) has become a blur of days quickly passing by. Before we’ve had time to process what has happened, what we’ve experienced, or what we’ve felt, our minds are in pursuit of the next thing we need to know or have.

With addictive technology comes the marketing and its messages - “more food, more sex, more youth and beauty, more health, more money, more success, and even more love - the elusive movie kind. We are forgetting how to be satisfied and tolerate uncomfortable feelings.

Attachment & Trauma

We haven’t all had the same early attachment experiences. Some of us have experienced childhood trauma. We don’t know what safety feels like. Two-thirds of those with opioid addiction have childhood trauma. This doesn’t account for the trauma that can occur before verbal memory, which is usually not reported.

Childhood trauma impacts our autonomic nervous system, our limbic system, and our hormonal stress response. Before we even experience a stressor, our baseline neurotransmitters may already be too high. Our trauma, in combination with our genetic variants, may result in high neurotransmitters that we may try to calm down with our addiction, or our trauma, in combination with our genetic variants, may have us seeking out stimulation so we can feel more alive and connected.

Social Isolation

Part of our understanding of addiction comes from the work of American psychologist Dr. Bruce Alexander, who did the “Rat Park” study. Previous research had already shown that when rats were put in solitary confinement and given a choice between water and heroin or cocaine, the rats repetitively consumed the drug-laced water until they overdosed and died.

Alexander realized that the problem may not be the rats but the environment. Rats are social animals, just as we are. So, he created “rat parks,” where the rats could roam, play, socialize, and have sex. Despite being given the same access to the two types of drug-laced water, these rats preferred the plain water. Even if they did drink the drug-laced water occasionally, they never did obsessively, nor did they overdose. The social environment was protective against addiction. If we want to help those with addiction, we need to think about connection. If we want to help ourselves with an addiction, we need to think about connection.

Emotional Regulation

Our ability to regulate our emotions (increase calm and decrease fear and anger) comes through interactions with other humans - safe humans.

Ideally, we learn to regulate our emotions during our first three years. When we were distressed as infants and toddlers, we communicated that distress through our cries and facial expressions, our caregivers responded, and our physiology returned to a sense of calm and safety. This repeated process - not necessarily perfect, but “good enough” - resulted in our internalizing that early relationship and, with that, an ability to recognize our feelings, trust others, feel worthy, respond to uncomfortable feelings with coping skills, and return to our baseline emotional state. Without this skill we acquire through attachment, we can become overwhelmed by our feelings or detached from our feelings. Our experiences, genetics, and temperament will impact which direction we go.

There is not one “addictive personality” but many addictive personalities. Some of us will be highly sensitive, and others will have a low level of sensitivity. Some of us will become overwhelmed by stress or stimulation and use addictions as a way to try to calm our emotional and high neurotransmitter states. Others will seek sensory stimulation or risk-taking to bump those neurotransmitters and increase the feeling state.

Of course, our biochemical differences impact this as well:

• For those of us who are undermethylated, we may find that we are sensory seeking, have high activity at the NMDA receptor, and find ourselves craving whatever has come to have meaning or has left a mark on our neurophysiology.

• For those of us who are overmethylated, we may have the desire to calm things down, slow our racing thoughts, and lower our high neurotransmitter activity.

• For those of us with high pyrroles (and or CAPs profile), we may feel socially anxious or overstimulated and desire to feel calm and comfortable, but at other times, we may feel brave and invincible.

“Being bold and adventurous and being sad and cautious seem like opposite personality types. However, these two paths to addiction are actually not mutually exclusive. The third way involves having both kinds of traits, where people alternatively fear and desire novelty and behavior swings from being impulsive and rash to being compulsive, fear driven, and stuck in rigid patterns. ……My own story spirals around this paradoxical situation: I was driven enough to excel academically and fundamentally scared of change and of other people—yet I was also reckless enough to sell cocaine and shoot heroin.”

• Maia Szalavitz

We need to think more broadly about addiction, just as we would any other health condition. We need to address the underlying physiological root causes, meet our human need for connection, and learn ways to experience, tolerate, and cope with our very human and necessary feeling states.

In this week’s paid newsletter, I look forward to discussing cases to illustrate how various neurotransmitters can be at play with different substance addictions and how targeted nutrients can be used in the treatment of addictions - both substance and behavioral.

Until next time,

Courtney

If you’d like to dive deeper into the root causes of brain symptoms, consider becoming a paid subscriber.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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It can be easy to forget that medical professionals are vulnerable to stress, burnout, and even physical and mental health issues. Though we expect them to be well, physicians have a relatively high rate of depression. Physician suicide is twice the rate of the general population.

I’ll argue that doctors have biochemical and environmental factors contributing to their strengths and vulnerabilities.

Though I’ll focus on physicians in this newsletter, much of what I’ll discuss applies to other medical professionals and caregivers. In this newsletter, I’ll address:

• The higher rates of depression and suicide in physicians

• How undermethylation is likely a strong contributing factor

• How early family dynamics may be at play

• A medical culture that leaves physicians unsupported and reluctant to seek help

• Solutions

To learn more about the root causes of brain symptoms and the consultations that I offer, visit courtneysnydermd.com

Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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“Exterior building maintenance is crucial for preventing mold from growing inside a building” - Jerry Parker, CEIC, CMR

Twenty-five percent of people appear to be susceptible to mold toxicity - a surprisingly common cause of brain symptoms, including brain fog, fatigue, depression, anxiety, mood swings, OCD, panic, and psychosis.

Many chronic physician health conditions can result as well. In my experience, mold toxicity is the most common cause of mast cell activation.

Mold toxicity should also be considered when there are new-onset mental health issues in college students exposed to mold in their dorms or apartments.

Jerry Parker is a Certified Indoor Environmental Consultant (CIEC) and Certified Microbial Remediator (CMR). Jerry has been helpful to me personally and professionally and has taught me a great deal about the environmental aspects of mold. Jerry owns Environmental Solutions Group, LLC, which has served residential and commercial clients for the last twenty years. He is about to launch an educational and consulting platform, 4 Indoor Air Quality LLC.

In this newsletter and podcast, Jerry and I discuss:

• why mold prevention isn’t just about keeping water out; it’s also about moving water away from the foundation

• ways to ensure rainwater is moving away from our home and its foundation

• landscaping and vegetation

• gutters and downspouts

• roof and siding integrity

• chimneys

• cantilever fireplaces and bay windows

• doors and window sealing

• siding and deck attachment

• the importance of regular self-assessments

At a later date, Jerry and I will discuss mold prevention with a focus on the interior of our homes.

Let us know if you have any questions or comments on mold prevention (exterior or interior).

Have a good week,

Courtney

To contact Jerry Parker CIEC, CMR: email - info.4IAQ.com 4IAQ.com

Related Content:

• Mold Toxicity: Depression, Anxiety, Brain Fog & Fatigue (free)

• Mold Toxicity & the Brain (free)

• Mold & Candida in the Brain (paid)

• Environmental Mold Myths (paid)

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Skin conditions are common in those with brain-related conditions. Most of what you’ll find about this relationship is the suggestion that one is causing the other. It is believed, for example, that the stress of having a skin condition can cause depression and anxiety, which makes sense…..or that the stress of the mental health condition is causing an increase in stress hormones or inflammation that then leads to skin symptoms. This also makes good sense.

In this podcast, I’ll argue that skin and brain symptoms have shared common roots - one in particular. By brain symptoms, I’m referring to depression, anxiety, panic, OCD symptoms, brain fog, inattention, hyperactivity, mood swings, psychosis, and cognitive decline.

I’ll address:

• the many ways zinc (important in brain health) impacts the skin

• skin symptoms associated with specific “roots” of brain symptoms, including:

• low zinc and high pyrroles

• high copper

• mast cell activation

• candida and mold

• methylation imbalances

• Electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS)

• Bartonella

• how traits such as flushing, early graying, or a pale complexion can suggest vulnerabilities to the brain symptoms (Obviously, not everyone with these traits has brain symptoms, but for those who do, these traits can point to likely underlying contributing factors)

• how certain acne treatments can worsen mental health conditions

• the importance of understanding shared root causes

If you’d like to add to the discussion, I always appreciate your questions and comments.

Have a great week,

Courtney

For information about non-patient consultations and treatment, visit: CourtneySnyderMD.com

Related Content:

What Physical Symptoms Tell Us About Brain Symptoms (paid)

Zinc & The Brain (free)

Labs For Evaluating Brain Symptoms (paid)

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Eric Windheim, BA, BBEC, EMRS, RFSO is a Certified Electromagnetic Radiation Specialist and Certified Building Biology Environmental Consultant. He is the founder of Windheim Solutions, which provides inspection, testing, and remediation of problematic EMFs.

In this episode, we discuss smart meters, which are digital devices that measure electricity usage in real-time, and wirelessly send that information to the utility company. Smart meters are sometimes used for gas and water.

Though there are four harmful types of electromagnetic fields—radiofrequency (wireless), electric fields, magnetic fields, and dirty electricity—smart meters use radio frequencies.

Brain symptoms associated with EMF exposure include insomnia, memory problems, irritability, depression, personality changes, inattention, fatigue, confusion, headache, ringing in the ears, dizziness, numbness, and tingling.

Problematic EMF can impact the brain in many ways. It causes oxidative stress and neurotoxicity. It disrupts our immune system, innate electricity, hormones, microbiome, limbic and autonomic nervous systems, and the blood-brain barrier. EMF can also contribute to elevated blood sugar.

The good news is that there are many ways we can lower our exposure.

In this newsletter:

• Eric shares:

• How he became an electromagnetic radiation specialist.

• The story of smart meters

• His role in a national victory with Sacramento Municipal Utility District, the first municipal electric utility to allow customers to regain the use of analog meters.

• We discuss the following questions:

• How do you “opt-out” and return to an analog meter?

• What can you do if you have to have a smart meter?

• What can you do if you’re getting radio frequency exposure from your neighbor’s smart meters or other wireless devices?

• What meter can measure radio frequencies in and around your home?

• How can you find an electromagnetic radiation specialist?

If you’d like to join the conversations, consider sharing your experience or questions.

Have a good week,

Courtney

Mentioned Resources

• Windheim EMF Solutions

• WIndheim EMF Solutions Youtube Channel

• Building Biology Institute

• EMF & the Brain

• Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity - A Lesser Known Root Cause

• How We Can Start to Assess & Lower Our EMF Exposure

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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This podcast episode is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

I recently had the pleasure of being on the Nourished By Nature: Mind Body Wellness Podcast with Annika Taylor a holistic health practioner.

After sharing with Annika how I became a holistic psychiatrist and how I define holistic psychiatry, we discuss:

• The Walsh Research Institute’s data on nutrient levels of 30,000 people with brain related symptoms, and what were found to be the most common imbalances (One or more of these imbalances is present in about 90-95% of the patient's that are seeing me for brain related symptoms).

• How I test for the copper-zinc imbalances, pyrrole disorder, and methylation imbalances.

• The Walsh biotypes of depression.

• High copper and it’s relationship to ADHD, anxiety, depression and post-partum. depression, anxiety and psychosis.

• Pyrrole disorder - symptoms, traits and treatment.

• How methylation impacts brain health.

• Under and over-methylation symptoms and traits.

• Treatment of under-methylation.

• How this understanding can remove the stigma associated with mental health conditions, and provide healing and hope.

If you’d like to add to the discussion, I always appreciate your questions and comments.

Have a great week,

Courtney

Related Resources:

Annika Taylor - nourishedbynature.com

Walsh Research Institute

For links to specific topics address see links in description above.

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for yourself or others, including but not limited to patients you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Because Alzheimer’s starts before the onset of symptoms and because having almost any psychiatric condition appears to raise our vulnerability, many of the tools mentioned here relate to other brain symptoms and conditions as well.

“What we call Alzheimer's disease is actually a protective response to a wide variety of insults to the brain: inflammation, insulin resistance, toxins, infections, and inadequate levels of nutrients, hormones, and growth factors.” - Dale Bredesen, MD (The End of Alzheimer’s Program: The First Protocol to Enhance Cognition and Reverse Decline at Any Age)

In this newsletter, I’ll discuss:

• Medications used in mainstream medicine

• Lifestyle and functional medicine approaches to preventing and treating Alzheimer’s

• Feeding the brain - The ketogenic diet and intermittent fasting

• Exercising the body and brain

• Sleep and sleep apnea

• Hormonal deficiencies and dysregulation

• Oral health

• Toxicity, depletion of antioxidants and oxidative stress

• Brain inflammation

If you have any questions or comments (or topic suggestions),…

If you know someone who may benefit,…

Have a great week,

Courtney

Resources mentioned:

• Precision Medicine Approach to Alzheimer’s Disease: Successful Pilot Project

• Reversing Alzheimer’s: The New Toolkit to Improve Cognition and Protect Brain Health by Dr. Heather Sandison

• The End of Alzheimer’s by Dale Bredesen, MD

• Walsh Research Institute

Previous newsletters/podcast episodes mentioned:

• Alzheimer’s: Factors We Have Control Over

• Regulating Blood Sugar For the Brain

• Intermittent Fasting & the Brain

• Exercise & the Brain

• Oxidative Stress & the Brain

• Lowering Brain Inflammation

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Alzheimer’s is a neurodegenerative disease. It involves the death of brain cells and the eventual loos of brain tissue. The brain changes begin twenty years prior to the onset of symptoms. This is important, because we do have control over what appear to be most of the contributing factors. In this newsletter and podcast episode, I’ll address:

• The incidence of Alzheimer’s

• What happens in the brain

• The course of the illness

• Biomarkers used for diagnosis, even prior to the onset of symptoms

• Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer’s

• Risks

• The role of the APOe4 gene

• The role of Insulin resistance in the brain

• The role of oxidative stress

• The role of inflammation

• Evidence of a fungal presence

• How these factors may be working together

In the next episode, I’ll discuss mainstream treatment, as well as functional/integrative/holistic approaches to target blood sugar regulation, oxidative stress, inflammation and even the presence of mold and candida.

Feel free to add to the discussion with your questions or comments.

If you know someone who may benefit from this information, please consider sharing.

Have a good week,

Courtney

Mentioned Resources:

• Alzheimer’s Association Facts & Figures

• Meet the Switching Mice: They Flip Their Glia APOE4 to APOE2

• Mold & Candida in the Brain (free)

Other Related Newsletters:

• High Copper, Metallothionein, Cancer & Mental Health (paid)

• Lowering Brain Inflammation (free)

• Regulating Blood Sugar For the Brain (paid)

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this newsletter and podcast episode, I share the simple yet powerful tool of intermittent fasting. Here, I discuss:

• The types of intermittent fasting with a focus on “time restricted eating,” in which fasting is extended to 12-16hours a day (from the more typical 8-10 hours).

• Why it makes good sense from an evolutionary standpoint.

• What it has to teach us about our metabolism and our brain’s use of energy.

• The health conditions it is has been shown to be beneficial for.

• The many mechanism by which is impacts the brain.

• My experience with intermittent fasting.

• When fasting can become problematic.

If you have experience with intermittent fasting (or questions), please consider adding to the discussion.

Have a great week,

Courtney

P.S. For paid subscribers watch out for a midweek post on other ways we can work with our body’s metabolism and rhythms to improve blood glucose regulation, which is particularly important when it comes to brain health.

Additional Resources:

• The Effects of Intermittent Fasting on Brain and Cognitive Function

• Intermittent Fasting as a Potential Therapeutic Instrument for Major Depression Disorder: A Systematic Review of Clinical and Preclinical Studies

Related Content

• Exercise & the Brain - 10 Ways Exercise Improves Our Mood, Lowers Anxiety & Protects Our Brain.

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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My purpose in this video is remind us to protect our mental health, our physical health and our relationships this election season.

We have a natural impulse to pay attention to danger. News networks and social media take advantage and profit of this instinct.

Here in the US we are facing five months of what can be highly stressful. Some will have an increase in anxiety, depression, anger and addictive behaviors including news addiction and internet addiction.

If we care about lowering toxic exposures, lowering our stress response and thus inflammation, then these next five months offer a great opportunity. If we care about setting healthy boundaries between ourselves and the negative or self serving energy of others, these next five months are a great time to strengthen our boundaries.

In this video I discuss:

• What is happening in our body and brain when we engage with fear inducing content.

• Media literacy to remind us what we easily forget when we’re under the influence of media that aims to get and keep our attention.

• How the echo chamber of news and social media is rewiring our brains, and reinforcing left brain tendencies.

• What we can do to lower our exposure and it’s impacts, and..

• How we can call in the right hemisphere while doing our part to better the world we’re actually living in.

If you’d like to add to the discussion, please….

Have a good week,

Courtney

To learn more about this and other factors contributing to brain symptoms or to receive these newsletters in your mailbox each week, visit www.CourtneySnyderMD.com

Related Content:

Left and Right Brain: Knowing When to Call in the Other Half

Undermethylation & Strengthening the Right Brain in a Left Brain World

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this video and podcast episode, I discuss pyrrole disorder - one of the most common nutrient imbalances in brain-related conditions affecting adults and children. Elevated Hydroxyhemopyrrolin-2-one (HPL) in the urine, often referred to as “pyrroles,” has been associated with depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, ADHD, learning disorders, substance use disorders, and violent behavior. Here, I address:

• How pyrrole disorder relates to other “root causes.”

• What we know, what we don’t know, and why this topic is controversial.

• Causes.

• Zinc and B6 depletion and how these impact brain health.

• Brain and physical symptoms and traits.

• Treatment.

• How low-stress tolerance can impact one’s ability to pursue meaningful education, work, and relationships.

As always, I welcome your questions and comments.

Have a good week,

Courtney

To learn more about this and other factors contributing to brain symptoms or to receive these newsletters in your mailbox each week, visit www.CourtneySnyderMD.com

Related Resources

• Pyrrole Disorder Symptoms List

• Zinc & the Brain

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/zinc-and-the-brain

• RCCX Theory, Hypermobility, Mental Health & Complex Chronic Illness

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/hypermobility-rccx-theory-mental

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this video newsletter, I discuss why zinc is so important for the brain. I’ll address:

• Psychiatric conditions linked to low zinc.

• Three ways that zinc impacts neurotransmitter functioning.

• Zinc’s role as an antioxidant and its relationship to metallothioneins.

• The importance of zinc for immune regulation.

• The many ways zinc impacts the digestive tract.

• How we measure zinc (along with copper) and the limitations of typical lab ranges.

• Why optimizing zinc requires testing and monitoring.

Until next time,

Courtney Snyder

Additional resources for those who’d like to take a deeper dive:

• Meet the NMDA Receptor (paid)

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/meet-the-nmda-receptor

• High Copper, Metallothionein, Mental Health & Cancer (paid)

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/high-copper-metallothioneins-mental

• Mast Cell Activation & Inflammation in Brain Conditions: How to Calm Things Down (free)

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/blog/mast-cell-activation-inflammation-in-brain-disorders-how-to-calm-things-down

• Walsh Research Institute

https://www.walshinstitute.org/

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In the last episode, I discussed narcissistic personality disorder - traits, seeming causes, prognosis, and course.

In this episode, I’ll discuss:

• the more nuanced understanding of narcissism in our culture

• the experience of those hurt in narcissistic relationships, and

• tools for self-preservation and healing

This topic is particularly important for those of us who are highly sensitive and more permeable to the energies of others. But anyone can be vulnerable to another's masterful self-serving behaviors. This could be in workplace settings, communities, friendships, and romantic relationships.

Unless we think like narcissists (which most of us don’t), it is difficult to imagine such self-serving motivations. That lack of imagination, however, can get us into trouble.

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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-In this newsletter, I'll discuss:

--The Impact of Narcissistic Personality Disorder

--Terminology & Diagnostic Criteria

--Seeming Contributing Factors

--Brain Differences

--Prognosis & Course

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Candida is the most common fungi in the microbiome. Several factors, including antibiotic exposure, can lead to its overgrowth and colonization in the gastrointestinal tract. Brain fog, fatigue, anxiety, depression, mood swings, insomnia, carbohydrate cravings, and gastrointestinal symptoms (especially constipation) are common symptoms. Children with candida overgrowth are often diagnosed with ADD.

In this episode, I will discuss 10 factors that can make it difficult to move beyond candida overgrowth, including:

• Low zinc

• Mold toxicity and metal toxicity

• High blood sugar

• Lack of movement and exercise

• High stress & catecholamines

• High cortisol

• High estrogen

• Poor gut motility

• Low digestive enzymes, stomach acid and bile acids

• Low beneficial bacteria

For the referenced previous podcast episode on candida:

Candida, Carb Craving & Brain Symptoms

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/candida-carb-craving-and-brain-related-fde

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Hypermobility - having one or more joints that bend further than normal -is a surprisingly common trait in those with brain symptoms. Using RCCX theory, I’ll attempt to explain why this may be. RCCX is a gene module (cluster of genes) that appears to be at the foundation of many psychiatric conditions and complex chronic health conditions, such as mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS), and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS).

Hypermobility - a red flag for an RCCX vulnerability - does not have to be present for someone to be impacted by brain symptoms.

For a more detailed explanation of Dr. Meglathery’s work, as well as a list of associated conditions, visit RCCX Theory at: http://www.rccxandillness.com/

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Exercise has been found to be as effective as SSRIs and as effective as psychotherapy for depression.*

In this episode, I’ll discuss:

• The mood-enhancing chemicals we receive from our body and brain when we move and exercise.

• The ways exercise improves our cognition and protects our brain as we age.

• The types of movement and exercise.

• Exercise Intolerance

• How we can mentally move beyond all-or-none thinking, avoid overdoing it and learn to meet our body where it's at.

• "The Effects and Mechanisms of Exercise on the Treatment of Depression” https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2021.705559/full

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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According to the National Institutes of Mental Health, 75% of people rank fear of public speaking as their number one fear.

In this episode, I discuss:

• The impacts of this common fear

• Surprising tools that can help decrease anxiety before and during a speaking event

• Ways to avoid and manage freeze if it happens

• Medication and nutrient-based interventions that can be helpful if needed

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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What is Functional Medicine?

“An integrative, biology-based approach that promotes healing and wellness by focusing on the bio-chemically unique aspects of each patient, and then using individually tailored interventions to restore balance. This approach focuses on understanding the fundamental physiological processes, the environmental inputs and the genetic predispositions that influence health and disease. The interventions aim to address the root causes.”

In the case of Functional Medicine Psychiatry, such interventions are aimed at promoting healing and wellness for those with brain symptoms such as depression, anxiety, mood swings, fatigue, brain fog, hyperactivity, cognitive impairment, social communication deficits and/or psychosis.

In this episode I’ll discuss:

• The advantages and disadvantages of mainstream medicine

• Characteristics of many who seek out functional medicine

• Benefits of functional medicine

• Risks of functional medicine

• How these risks can be mitigated by functional medicine physicians and those seeking this type of treatment

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Psychiatric symptoms normally are not caused by a specific gene. Instead, certain genes, or rather genetic variants, raise our vulnerability to developing depression, anxiety, mood swings, brain fog, hyperactivity, angry outbursts and psychosis

In this newsletter, I hope to demystify the various ways this can happen.

I’ll discuss:

• The relationship between genes and the proteins they code for

• The role of methylation and oxidative stress in gene expression

• The types of proteins that are especially important in brain health

• Examples of variants that can impact neurotransmitter functioning and thus symptoms

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I’ll address:

• Common obstacles to starting a meditation practice

• The uniting thread of all forms of meditation

• The types of meditation and how to pick one for you

• The gifts of meditation including and beyond the mental and physical health benefits

• How to begin

“We don’t sit in meditation to become good mediators. We sit in meditation so that we’ll be more awake in our lives.” Pema Chödrön

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, visit:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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I look forward to the day when lowering exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) will be right up there with other basic health recommendations, such as getting adequate sleep and exercise, managing stress and limiting or avoiding sugar. In the meantime, I’ll try, in this episode, to convince you of why lowering exposure is a good idea.

I’ll discuss:

• Symptoms associated with EMF exposure.

• How EMF appears to impact the brain.

• Factors that increase our vulnerability to the effects of EMF.

• Ways to lower that vulnerability.

When I use “EMF,” I’m referring to the more concerning types - radio-frequencies, magnetic and electric fields and dirty electricity. For simplicity, I’ll be talking about these collectively, though much of the emerging research is on radio-frequencies (cell phones, WiFi, SMART or wireless technology).

This newsletter can found at:

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/emf-and-the-brain

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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As with toxins, EMF (a “toxicant”) can impact the brain in a number of ways. It contributes to inflammation, oxidative stress, disruption of the micro-biome, and interferes with our innate electricity. Anything we do to decrease it will benefit our health.

EMF exists on a spectrum, which includes UV light, the visible spectrum, and infrared among other types. Most of the interventions discussed will relate to radio frequencies (RF), which are rabidly increasing around us.

Completely eliminating exposure to EMF is not possible. In this episode, I’ll walk through a checklist to help you assess and already start to lower your own exposure. This is not an all or none endeavor. Some will find a couple of ways that have the biggest impact for them and others will want or need to go deeper into the list. You might find it helpful to print this off the checklist and mark the situations that apply to your circumstances and even rank your priorities.

This newsletter can found at:

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/how-we-can-assess-and-lower-our-emf

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com or

on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I won’t focus on any specific health choices. We all know what they generally are for us at this time in our life or in our healing process. Instead, I’ll be introducing mental shifts that can help us get off the roller coaster and step onto a path of sustainable self-care. Self pampering can be a part of self-care, but the type of self-care I’m referring to is much bigger than that.

Three people who’ve influenced my thinking on this topic and who are referenced in this episode are:

• Jason Seib - Self care and mindfulness coach, author of Body Beliefs and creator of the (dis)Comfort Zone Workshop

• James Clear- Author of Atomic Habits, An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

• Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener - Positive psychologist, author and speaker

In this episodes I discuss the following mental shifts and give examples:

• Shifting Our Why - Extrinsic vs Intrinsic Motivation

• Shifting Our Identify

• Shifting Our Values

• Shifting Our Relationship to Our Feelings

• “Widening Our Comfort Zone” - (To borrow the phrase from Jason Seib)

• Removing Obstacles

• Increasing Obstacles

• Shifting From Goal to Process

• Shifting From Radical to Incremental Changes

• Accountability

To receive the weekly Holistic Psychiatry Newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com or

on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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The last newsletter, I addressed how our hormonal stress response can trigger mast cells and microglial cells, thereby interfering with neuronal communication in the brain and causing symptoms. Such symptoms can include brain fog, fatigue, depression, anxiety, mood swings and, for some, hallucinations.

We live in a world that is increasingly inflammatory - more toxins, more insults to our microbiome, and more insults to our sense of self from marketing and media. Add to this the reality that many things that lower our stress response and thus inflammation, are being diminished - less human connection, less silence, solitude, stillness and time in the natural world. But, we have choices. Supporting our brain and well-being is really about getting back to the basics of our humanity and getting back to the things most of us long to do anyway.

We can approach the below list with an openness to ideas (of which one or two may resonate) ...or we can approach it like a to-do list - one that reinforces the notion that we need to fix ourselves to be worthy. My hope is the former. We’re already worthy and deserving of feeling healthy.

This list will generally move in the direction of what I think most of us can benefit from (1-3), additional considerations that may be helpful for those with brain symptoms (4-7) and, lastly, I’ve included tools for those who are dealing with very high immune reactivity and/or mast cell activation syndrome (8-10). This list will not be complete. Perhaps you’ll share what is helpful for you.

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com or

on Substack at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer: This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I’ll break down the key players in brain inflammation, how these players work together, and how they can ultimately disrupt neuronal communication. I’ll discuss:

• The beneficial role of inflammation.

• The bridge between the brain and immune system - mast cells & microglial cells.

• The bridge between the immune system and our hormonal stress response - Corticotropin Releasing Hormone (CRH).

• How head injury, toxicity, problematic microbes, and emotional and psychological stress contribute to brain inflammation.

With this groundwork laid, in an upcoming newsletter, I’ll discuss the many ways we can lower inflammation in the brain.

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week,

subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com or

on Substack:

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Whether it’s an older child with frequent tantrums, or an adult who easily loses their temper, I think of angry outbursts as a symptom with underlying root causes. While there may be triggers, someone’s inability to regulate their emotions, in my experience, suggests a biochemical and/or inflammatory driver. In this episode, I’ll discuss:

• An important difference between angry outbursts and other symptoms.

• The impact on the neuro-physiology of others.

• Reasons this behavior may be enabled by others.

• Associated diagnoses.

• The four most common underlying physiologic factors that I see in my practice that appear to drive angry outburst.

• What the presence or absence of remorse after a tantrum can tell us about underlying physiologic drivers.

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week,

subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com or

on Substack:

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Though we are wired for connection, we’re also separate human beings. How we navigate these two realities can make all the difference in the quality of our relationships and our lives. Our relationships can be with the family we grew up in, our friendships, romantic relationships, partnerships, marriage and the families we create.

In this newsletter, using Murray Bowen, MD’s Family Systems Theory, I’ll discuss:

• The tension that exists in couples and families because of the need to be together, but also to be separate.

• What being out of balance can look like in a “system.”

• What this can look like for us individually.

• How we can move towards more balance in our relationships.

We don’t need to be in a relationship to be impacted by these forces. We all carry within us expectations of togetherness and separateness from the families we grew up in. Our parents carried their own norms based on their families of origin. Through our repeated experiences, our neuronal pathways are reinforced. They can impact how comforting or threatening togetherness feels and how comforting or threatening separateness feels.

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week,

subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack:

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Schizophrenia affects 1 in 300 people or 24 million people worldwide (2.6 million in the U.S.) It remains the most treatment resistant psychiatric condition.

In this newsletter, using the story of John Nash (Beautiful Mind) as a reference point, I’ll discuss:

• Theories attempting to explain schizophrenia.

• How the belief that all people with schizophrenia have the same biochemical disorder has resulted in lack of effective treatment and problematic side effects for many.

• Research from the Walsh Research Institute, which has identified three distinct biotypes for schizophrenia (undermethylation, overmethylation and pyrroluria), each with different predominant symptoms and biochemical needs.

• How those of us trained by the Walsh Research Institute assess and treat schizophrenia.

• The real story of John Nash’s life not shared in the movie.

To receive the weekly newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox, subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack:

https://CourtneySnyderMD.substack.com

Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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If you don’t identify with one of the labels in the title, you likely know someone who does. As with all labels, however, they don’t completely define us. Those of us who have these patterns are not the same, nor struggle to the same extent. Still, this psychological construct has been repeatedly recognized in the mental health field. Perhaps because it is so common, you won’t find it included as a condition or personality disorder in the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders). Nonetheless, this way of being in the world can be painful and stressful. At the very least, these tendencies can keep us from enjoying the full potential of our lives.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Overlapping definitions from attachment theory, family systems theory and 12-step programs

• Common early experiences

• Cultural messages

• Suspected genetic variants

• Difficulties with boundaries

• Communication style

• Common behaviors

• Common emotions

• Education and resources

• Parenting our inner child

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week,

subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com or

on Substack:

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Medical Disclaimer:

This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Misalignment of the upper part of the spine is an often overlooked problem for those with brain symptoms, chronic complex illness and/or mysterious health issues. In these modern times with cell phones and laptops, we look down A LOT. This raises our likelihood of having problems that originate in our neck. A previous neck injury and/or a tendency to be flexible can make us even more vulnerable. Flexibility is especially common in those with brain related or psychiatric conditions.

In this episode, I’ll discuss:

• The very important role of theatlas, our first vertebrae, and why is can easily become misaligned.

• The many neck structures, including the vagus, which can be impacted when we misalignment.

• The importance of ligaments holding the atlas in place and how hypermobility can contribute laxity of this joint.

• The activities beyond injury that contribute to the atlas becoming misaligned.

• Forward Head Posture, which results from having our head down too much and for too long, such as when we use a cell phone, laptop, poorly positioned computer or even read a book or write for extended periods.

• The role emotions can play in shifting the atlas out of place.

• The many symptoms associated with misalignment or upper cervical instability.

• A simple was to evaluate if vagus might be impacted and the types of imaging that is used to diagnose this problem.

• Types of treatment and specialists.

• The role of posture in keeping our head on straight.

Links mentioned:

The Healing Power of the Vagus Nerve in Brain Disorders (Part 1 of 2)

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/the-healing-power-of-the-vagus-nerve-33d

The Healing Power of the Vagus Nerve in Brain Disorders (Part 2 of 2)

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/accessing-the-power-of-the-vagus-bde

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at:

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Medical Disclaimer: This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical and psychiatric issues that you may be having.

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In anticipation of the new year, I’m previewing some of the topics I look forward to sharing in the coming months.

• Topics that I briefly comment on in this episode:

• How Having Our Head On Straight Impacts Our Mental Health

• The Relationship Between Hypermobility (Flexibility, Being Double Jointed, Etc) and Brain Health

• The Many Root Cause Intersections Of Mast Cell Activation

• Common Root Causes for Specific Brain Disorders

• Recognizing and Managing High Dopamine States Such as Hyper-focus and Addictive Tendencies

• Managing Our Energy and Our Focus Throughout the Day

• Codependency - An Invisible Chronic Stress That Can Prevent Healing & Thriving

• Neuroplasticity of Spiritual Growth

• Getting Okay With Uncertainty

• Learning to Listen to Ourselves

I’m also sharing a poem I wrote for my daughter when she was four, called “Follow the Energy”. For those interested in checking out a couple of samples of the midweek paid newsletter, I’ve un-paywalled a couple of my favorites.

A Different Kind of Goal Setting for the New Year

Essentialism in Health & Healing

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at:

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Medical Disclaimer: This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical and psychiatric issues that you may be having.

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In this episode, I discuss winter solstice, themes of darkness and light, winter, the Dark Night of the Soul, radical gratitude, and the rhythms of the natural world and of our lives.

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at:

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or on Substack

Medical Disclaimer: This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical and psychiatric issues that you may be having.

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Though both brain hemispheres are continuously working together in complex ways, there are attributes which are more strongly associated with each side. In this episode, I describe the traits and perspectives most commonly associated with the left and right hemispheres. I’ll focus on the differences in attention, relationship to the body, others and objects, emotions, problem solving and relationship to the future. I also briefly comment on the seeming relationship between methylation and hemispheric differentiation.

Much of what I am expounding upon, comes from a great book about the right and left hemispheres, titled - “The Master and His Emissary - The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World” by Iain McGilchrist, MD, a Scottish Psychiatrist.

For illustrations, the newsletter associate with this episode can be found at

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/p/left-and-right-brain-knowing-when

To receive the newsletter (text and audio) in your mailbox each week, subscribe at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack:

Medical Disclaimer: This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical and psychiatric issues that you may be having.

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"Part of any healing journey is to be at peace in our body. Our ability to feel embodied is a job for our brain’s right hemisphere. Our left hemisphere sees our body as a thing or rather a sum of things. Left unchecked (and fueled by cultural standards), our left brain has us judging, seeking perfection, disturbed by aging and/or relentlessly fixing our bodies."

In this episode, I discuss why we are so detached or at odds with our body and attempt to answer - "How can we grow those neuronal connections of the right brain, so we can return home to our bodies?"

I list 10 ways we can start to find peace in our bodies.

If you would like to learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms or to receive this newsletters with text and audio in your mailbox each week, subscribe at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack:

Medical Disclaimer: This newsletter is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical and psychiatric issues that you may be having.

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In the last episode, I addressed the causes, symptoms and conditions associated with high copper. In this episode I address:

• Testing and why if copper overload is so prevalent, is it not being identified in conventional or allopathic medicine and how those of us trained by the Walsh Research Institute evaluate for copper overload.

• 10 treatment considerations including lowering exposure, optimizing zinc, augmenting nutrients, addressing occurring nutrient imbalances, addressing oxidative stress, addressing added estrogen, and further supporting metallothioneins (which regulate copper and zinc).

• Comments by Dr. William Walsh, PhD on the future of nutrient based psychiatry

• Clinical Resources: https://www.walshinstitute.org/resources.html

If you would like to learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms or to receive this newsletters with text and audio in your mailbox each week, subscribe at: https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack:

https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com/

Medical Disclaimer: This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this podcast episode, I review how high copper affects dopamine and norepinephrine, how copper can become elevated and the conditions or situations in which I suspect copper is causing or contributing to brain symptoms.

High copper should be considered in anyone with worsening of brain symptoms after starting birth control pills or a cooper IUD.

In the next podcast I will discuss testing and treatment.

If you would like to learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms or to receive this newsletters with text and audio in your mailbox each week, subscribe at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack:

Facebook - ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/courtneysnydermd/

Instagram - ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/holistic_ps...

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this podcast episode, I share my favorite 10 Right Brain books - books that have been particularly helpful in my own healing process. By right brain, I mean books that help us see the bigger picture of our lives, relationships and the world and that help us find peace and meaning in the present moment.

To learn more about traits associated with the right and left brain:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/blog/undermethylation-strengthening-the-right-brain-in-a-left-brain-world

To learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms or to receive my newsletters with text and audio in your mailbox each week, subscribe on my website

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at

Facebook - ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/courtneysnydermd/

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Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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Mold toxicity is a surprisingly common and important player when it comes to brain related symptoms. You won’t find it mentioned in the research into psychiatric conditions, but those of us who treat mold toxicity will tell you it is a very common root cause of ADHD, anxiety, panic, OCD, depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and dementia

It’s not the only cause, but it tends to cause and interact with other causes. It is often the root of the roots.

In this podcast episode, I discuss 10 ways that mold toxins leads to brain symptoms.

For background information about mold toxicity:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/blog/mold-toxicity-depression-anxiety-fatigue-brain-fog-inattention

To learn about evidence mold and candida in the brain (of those with neurodegeneration - Alzheimer’s) -

https://open.substack.com/pub/courtneysnydermd/p/mold-and-candida-in-the-brain?r=2rxjs4&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

To learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms or to receive my newsletters with text and audio in your mailbox each week, subscribe on my website

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at

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Instagram - ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/holistic_ps...

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this podcast episode, I address the chronic and significant stress that comes with being unable to effectively say, “No.” Over-committing can impact our health, relationships and our ability to find deeper meaning and purpose in our lives. Unless we know when and how to say, “No,” we can easily deplete our time, energy and attention. Also addressed here - why this is harder for some of us than others and how we can say “No” in a way that is respectful to ourselves, the other and the relationship.

To learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms or to receive my newsletters with text and audio in your mailbox, subscribe at - https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack - https://courtneysnydermd.substack.com

at: Facebook - ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/courtneysnydermd/⁠⁠

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YouTube -⁠⁠ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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To lay some groundwork for the podcast episode:

Though conventionally trained as an adult and child psychiatrist, I no longer prescribe psychiatric medication. The focus of my work (now holistic and functional) and my continuing education for the past 10 years has been to identify and address underlying root causes of brain symptoms. I’m not opposed to psychiatric medication.

In this episode, I discuss:

• Misconceptions about psychiatric medication.

• The criticism and judgments about the use of medication without offering realistic and available solutions.

• Dualistic thinking about meds as being all good or all bad.

• How biochemical diversity results is diversity of benefits, responses and even side effects of medications.

• How we can all learn to see the bigger picture and not be susceptible to the judgments of others.

To learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms or to receive my newsletters with text and audio in your mailbox, subscribe at -

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

or on Substack at:

Facebook - ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/courtneysnydermd/⁠⁠

Instagram - ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/holistic_psychiatry/?hl=enI⁠⁠

YouTube -⁠⁠ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxigMedical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I discuss:

• What I mean by creativity and art.

• The many lessons we can learn from the creative process

• Why I believe this shift in mindset is essential to healing essential and thriving

To learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms - https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Facebook - ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/courtneysnydermd/⁠⁠

Instagram - ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/holistic_psychiatry/?hl=enI⁠⁠

YouTube -⁠⁠ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxigMedical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I answer:

• What is MTHFR and more specifically undermethylation (UM)?

• What is the incidence of (UM) in various brain disorders, including depression?

• How is it diagnosed?

• How common are MTHFR variants?

• Does having an MTHFR variant mean you have UM?

• Is folate good for everyone? Who is it not good for?

• Where do we get folate?

• What are the concerns about high folate throughout an entire pregnancy?

• Has there been an increase in UM?

For further information on Undermethylation see previous podcast episode and in blogpost at CourtneySnyderMD.com. Also related to this topic is the blogpost:

Undermethylation & Strengthening the Right Brain in a Left Brain World

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

To subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— ⁠⁠https://www.courtneysnydermd.com⁠⁠

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world.

Facebook - ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/courtneysnydermd/⁠⁠

Instagram - ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/holistic_psychiatry/?hl=enI⁠⁠

YouTube -⁠⁠ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

Get full access to Holistic Psychiatry at courtneysnydermd.substack.com/subscribe

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In this episode, I have a conversation with Lynn (name changed), about her quest to find answers. Lynn has been given various diagnoses and has obtained her own genetic variant reports. She is unsure how her potential root causes fit together and how to move forward from a functional and holistic perspective. Lynn is not a patient and thus I am not treating her. She generously reached out to volunteer to participate in this podcast for educational purposes.

Topics mentioned in this podcast include Undermethylation, COMT & MAOA variants, Mast Cell Activation, Mold Toxicity, Trauma and the Vagus Nerve. These topics are discussed in greater detail in previous episodes and in blogposts at CourtneySnyderMD.com

In an upcoming episode, I will be sharing a conversation with Dr. Patrick Bray, a physical therapist in Louisville, KY, who specializes in treatment of the head and neck. We will discuss the impact of structural issues of the head and neck on brain related symptoms.

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

__________________________

To subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— ⁠https://www.courtneysnydermd.com⁠

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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YouTube -⁠ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/courtney604/message

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In this episode, I have a conversation with my colleague and friend, Mary Anne Tierney, RN, MPH, an Electromagnetic Radiation Specialist, about the many benefits of taking one day a week, part of a day, or even an hour, to unplug from technology. We discuss our experience and practical ideas to work in this practice, including how to engage children and teens.

This conversation, inspired by the Global Day of Unplugging, which begins this evening at sunset)

Mary Anne is the Executive Director of SafeTech NC, a non-profit sharing why and how to use technology safely. She is certified as an Electromagnetic Radiation Specialist with the Building Biology Institute and provides EMF coaching, assessments and mitigation through her Western NC-based company, Blue Ridge EMF Solutions. She has specialized in health behavior change for the past 30 years at the individual, community, and policy levels.

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Mentioned in this podcast:

Mary Anne, RN, MPH and her company Blue Ridge EMF Solutions - https://www.blueridgeemfsolutions.com/

24/6 The Power of Unplugging One Day A Week by Tiffany Schlain

The Global Day of Unplugging (March3-4, 2023) - Ideas and organized events at the Unplugged Collaborative

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Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

__________________________

To subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/courtney604/message

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In this episode, I share my conversation with Dirk Nielandt of Belgium. Dirk's story is a story of empowerment, resilience and possibility - a story that anyone with a chronic health condition - autoimmune, psychiatric, cardiovascular, or cancer - can benefit from. With warmth and wisdom, Dirk shares valuable insights, tools and lifestyle changes, which appear to have halted an otherwise progressive neurological condition (primary progressive multiple sclerosis). And, he shares the unexpected gifts and meaning that he continues to discover on his journey.

Resources reference:

"The Wahls Protocol," by Terry Wahls, MD

Gabor Mate, MD, who has written numerous books

"Radical Remission" "Radical Hope," by Kelly A. Turner, PhD

__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

__________________________

To subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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Too much neurotransmitter activity can cause nervousness, irritability, insomnia and in some cases mania and psychosis. This can also contribute to pain symptoms, headaches, and increased blood pressure and heart rate. One root cause is an inability to effectively break down neurotransmitters. Two genes involved in this process are the COMT and MAO genes. COMT is also involved in the metabolism of estrogen. If they are "slow," we can struggle with symptoms of high neurotransmitter activity, low stress tolerance and in the case of COMT, high estrogen symptoms.

In this podcast, I'll discuss the many factors that impact the expression of these variants, how these can be identified and how this information can impact treatment.

In the previous episode, I discussed Overmethylation - an understanding that comes out of the work of Dr. William Walsh, PhD and the Walsh Research Institute.

Resources mentioned in this podcast:

"Your Genius Body: A guide for Optimizing Your Genes & Changing Your Life," By Dr. Andrew Rostenberg, DC

"Dirty Genes: A Breakthrough Program to Treat the Root Cause of Illness and Optimize Your Health" by Dr. Ben Lynch, ND

Methylation and Brain Health (With a Focus on Undermethylation) - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/t5ekklAMrub

__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

__________________________

To subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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Neurotransmitters are the chemicals in the brain that allow brain cells to communicate with one another. Too much neurotransmission can cause nervousness, irritability, insomnia and in some cases mania and psychosis. After briefly discussing a simplified version of how neurotransmitters work, I'll comment on serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine and what symptoms they are associated with. I'll focus on overmethylation - one example of how this excessive firing of nerve cells can happen.

In the next episode, I'll discuss genetic variants involving COMT and MAOA and other situations in which neurotransmitter activity can be increased. For each, I'll talk about symptoms, how these can be differentiated, testing and treatment.

Episodes mentioned:

Nutrient Based Psychiatry - Dr. William Walsh - His Story & Discoveries - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/mb5LggAMrub

Methylation and Brain Health (With a Focus on Undermethylation) - https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/t5ekklAMrub

To subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this episode, I'll talk about how we can still our mind and body in the middle of an acute stress response. Lowering stress is a powerful way to reduce inflammation. I'll discuss tools to lower our stress response and what we can learn from athletes and performers.

Topics included in this episode:

03:00 What is a trigger? Identifying emotional triggers and understanding the stress response.

08:46 How to interrupt the stress response.

09:31 Managing stress that is anticipated (public speaking, performance, competition, etc)

13:16 Tools to calm the body and nervous system when we are unexpectedly triggered

23:44 Daily practices that can help lower the threshold for going into a physiologic stress response.

Subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this episode, I discuss the many body and brain symptoms that can occur as a result of mast cell activation, and what can be done to address these symptoms.

Included in this episode:

01:33 Quote by Darwin, who seems to have had Mast Cell Activation Syndrome.

04:56 Triggers and symptoms of mast cell activation can vary from person to person and episode to episode.

11:52 Symptoms can be psychological and physiological.

14:15 The day to day experience of living with mast cell activation.

19:31 The importance of understanding why someone is having mast cell activation.

23:05 Treatment tools.

To read more on this topic - Mast Cell Activation & Inflammation in Brain Disorders - How to Calm Things Down - https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/blog/mast-cell-activation-inflammation-in-brain-disorders-how-to-calm-things-down

Subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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Inflammation is a contributing factor in most brain-related symptoms. In this episode I'll talk about how inflammation occurs, what causes this and what symptoms can look like in both the body and the brain. I'll discuss Charles Darwin, who appeared to have both physical ailments and brain-related symptoms.

Included in this episode:

01:15 Definitions

05:15 Case example: Charles Darwin

14:47 Inflammation at the cellular level

19:04 The impacts of mast cells

22:32 The role of the hormonal stress response

Subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this episode, I discuss what can be one of our greatest challenges or one of our superpowers - our ability to recognize and express our feelings. I’ll discuss why we have feelings, how they relate to survival and connection, and the reasons we differ in our emotional awareness. I’ll also discuss the consequences of repressed negative emotions and strategies to invite, make use of and release those feelings.

Topics included in this episode:

02:26 Why this topic?

04:47 What are feelings?

13:10 Why we vary in our ability to express/experience our emotions.

18:06 How we know if we are repressing our feelings and what happens when we do so.

27:33 How to make the best use of our feelings.

Subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In the first episode of this three part series on Mold Toxicity, I discussed how mold toxins get into the body and what symptoms they can cause. The second episode focused on diagnosis and treatment of mold toxicity in the body. In this episode, I discuss an essential part of treatment - addressing exposure.

Topics covered in this episode include:

00:52 Testing options for mold in our indoor environments.

06:58 Reasons not to rely on air sampling alone.

08:51 Mold remediation - the removal of a mold source.

11:33 Considerations for contents of the home.

13:53 Common mistakes and misconceptions.

20:08 Addressing mold with a healthy mindset.

Just as there is not complete agreement on testing, there is also not complete agreement on remediation (including contents). Nonetheless, I think this "Cleanup Guide", by Dr. Jill Carnahan, is a good place to start. https://www.jillcarnahan.com/2018/06/12/your-definitive-mold-clean-up-guide/

Subscribe to my newsletter (or learn more about root causes to brain symptoms)— https://www.courtneysnydermd.com

Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world. You can engage at:

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YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

__________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this episode, I discuss testing and treatment for mold toxicity (in the body), which is a common root cause of brain-related symptoms.

Topics covered in this episode:

02:39 - Urine mycotoxin testing.

6:47 - Binders for mold toxicity.

12:19 - Treatment considerations for strong vs sensitive constiution.

15:25 - Anti-fungal treatment for those who need it.

21:16 - Treatment interventions for those who initially are too sensitive for even tiny amounts of binders.

26:07 - Integrating treatment for other root causes of brain-related symptoms that can be aggravated or caused by mold toxicity.

29:19 - Factors that can impair healing.

In the last episode I discussed how we can aquire mold toxicity and colonization and the many brain-related and physical symptom this can cause. In the next episode, l address testing and treatment of the home/environment.

To subscribe and be notified of future episodes

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Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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Mold Toxicity is a very common root cause of brain-related symptoms. It is also a deeper root cause to the other root causes of brain-related symptoms.

In this first of 3 episodes I'll give some historical context as well as address: the three types of mold-related illness, how we become mold toxic, explain mold colonization, discuss who is susceptible, and provide brain and body symptoms.

Mold Toxicity Blog Post

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Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this episode I'll discuss how we can live a purposeful life, and how having a sense of purpose impacts our physiology, health and well-being. I'll also talk about obstacles, the difference between purpose and passion, and why we don't have to wait to align our gifts and abilities with the time and place we find ourselves.

Resources mentioned in this podcast include:

Inviting Our Inner Wisdom https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Inviting-Our-Inner-Wisdom-e1g3dn3

The Great Work Of Your Life by Stephen Cope

The Dharma in Difficult Times by Stephen Cope

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To subscribe and be notified of future episodes

If you'd like to help me get this information out into the world, you can engage at:

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Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this podcast, I’ll discuss ways we can all lower our exposure to mold toxins, EMF (electromagnetic fields) and chemicals in our homes, and why this is especially important for our mental health. I'll also discuss why it is important for us to approach our homes with a healthy rather than fearful perspective. Whatever we do to limit these exposures, we are removing some of the overall toxic load. There is no perfection here.

Resources mentioned in this podcast include:

The Environmental Working Group: www.ewg.org

Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Electromagnetic-Hypersensitivity---A-Lesser-Known-Root-Cause-e1al60r

Methylation and Brain Health https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Methylation--Brain-Health-With-a-Focus-on-Undermethylation-e16kr0b

The intention of this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can subscribe to this podcast, or...

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

_____________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this episode I talk about the stories we tell ourselves and how those stories have the power to shape our lives, as well as our health and well being. I'll also discuss stories that hold us back and where those may come from. Mostly though, I'll talk about how we can rewrite our stories so they and we are fueled with meaning, purpose, and hope.

Resources mentioned in this podcast:

https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Pyrrole-Disorder--Stress-Induced-Personality-Changes-e19gu0b

https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Methylation--Brain-Health-With-a-Focus-on-Undermethylation-e16kr0b

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The intention of this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can subscribe to this podcast, or...

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

_____________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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Apologies & Correction.

If you tried to listen to the last episode, "School Shootings Part 2 of 2 - Interventions on the Pathway to Violence," you likely instead heard an earlier episode on Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity. The correct episode is there now.  

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This is the second of two episodes on school shootings. In this podcast I discuss the pathway to violence starting with childhood trauma, mental health issues, crisis, leakage (telling others) and how each of these becomes a potential point of intervention, along with the media not sharing names and photos of the perpetrator, and, of course, stricter gun laws. I'll mention specific resources and approaches some schools are using, not only to recognize and intervene when a child or teen is at risk, but to also strengthen relationships and trust within the school community. As stated so well by the Off-Ramp Project: "The road to violence is long - let's build more exits."

In the last episode, I discussed the impact of school shootings and data from the The Violence Project, including data (and concerns) about active shooter drills.

Resources mentioned in this podcast:

The Off-Ramp Project: https://off-ramp.org

The Violence Project: https://www.theviolenceproject.org

2013 William Walsh, PhD Proposal - ***keep in mind that this does not include data from the last 9 years and the incidence of "overmethylation appears to be decreasing https://www.walshinstitute.org/uploads/1/7/9/9/17997321/proposal_for_prevention_of_school_shootings_wri_013013.pdf

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The intention of this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing, liking or commenting, if you'd like to help me get this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can subscribe to this podcast, or...

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

_____________________________

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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My intention in these two episodes on school shootings is to bring information not being discussed in the media. In this first episode, I'll focus on:

The impacts on the victims, survivors, first responders, family and friends, but also for school children around the country participating in active shooter drills. I'll also comment on the impact for all of us watching the news coverage of these events.

Included in this episode will be data on school shootings and an introduction to school shooters' fairly consistent path to violence (to be discussed in more detail in the second of these two episodes along with potential points of intervetion).

The Violence Project:

https://www.theviolenceproject.org/

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My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

Medical Disclaimer:

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In this episode (part 2 of 2) I discuss five more food families (FODMAPS, sulfur, copper, folate, and glutamate) that can contribute to brain symptoms in some individuals. The first two relate to food sensitivity and the next three relate to the functioning of neurotransmitters in the brain.

I'll provide examples of foods, physical and brain related symptoms, and explain how certain food families can (for some) contribute to brain fog, fatigue, anxiety, depression, and/or insomnia.

Lastly, I'll discuss deeper root causes and how addressing these may help not only improve symptoms, but also allow many to move beyond avoidance and toward enjoying a greater variety of foods.

In the last episode, I discussed histamine, oxalates, salicylates, and lectins.

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My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

Resources mentioned in this podcast include:

Copper Overload Podcast: https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Copper-Overload---A-Common-Biochemical-Imbalance-in-Brain-Disorders-e1a1hgd

Methylation and Brain Health Podcast: https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Methylation--Brain-Health-With-a-Focus-on-Undermethylation-e16kr0b

Food Lists:

FODMAP

https://www.monashfodmap.com/about-fodmap-and-ibs/high-and-low-fodmap-foods/

Sulfur

https://drruscio.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/LowSulfurDiet-1.pdf

Glutamate

https://unblindmymind.org/pantry/----------------------------------------------

Medical Disclaimer

This podcast is for educational purposes and not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment for either yourself or others, including but not limited to patients that you are treating (if you are a practitioner). Consult your own physician for any medical issues that you may be having.

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In the next two episodes, I'll be discussing sensitivities or intolerances to particular food families. I'm not talking about food allergies or IGG food sensitivities, rather, I'm talking about when our body is reacting to something that naturally occurs in various foods; something the foods share like histamines, oxalates, salicylates, lectins, sulfur, or FODMAPS. Many react to more than one food family as they may share common root causes. For each, I'll talk about the general component the body is reacting to and why.

My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

Resources mentioned in this podcast include:

The Environmental Working Group: Clean Fifteen at https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/clean-fifteen.php

Zinc!Zinc!Zinc! https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Zinc-Zinc-Zinc-e1fpvlg

Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance List https://www.histaminintoleranz.ch/downloads/SIGHI-Leaflet_HistamineEliminationDiet.pdf

Low Oxalate Info http://www.lowoxalate.info

Low Salicylate Foods https://low-sal-life.com/food-product-lists

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Our day is a microcosm of our life. How we begin impacts the quality of our day, and overtime, the quality of our life. In this episode, I’ll talk about:

• Why we might consider starting or building upon our morning routine.
• How the habits of our morning routine, by way of neuroplasticity, create change.
• Obstacles to starting or sticking with a morning routine and how to overcome these.
• Examples of how we can bring our body, spirit, and mind into each day.

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My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope.   Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode, I discuss ADHD or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, a diagnosis given to approximately 11% of children in the U.S. The prevalence of ADHD appears to be increasing. I'll talk about:

• High Copper & Low Zinc - found in 68% of 5600 children and adults diagnosed with ADHD (by the Walsh Research Institute) and how this can contribute to inattention and hyperactivity
• Other potential root causes of inattention and hyperactivity
• How these root causes can be evaluated and addressed from a holistic/integrative/functional medicine approach.

To find a practioner trained by the Walsh Research Institute, visit:

https://www.walshinstitute.org/clinical-resources.html

Links to episodes mentioned in this podcast include:

https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Copper-Overload---A-Common-Biochemical-Imbalance-in-Brain-Disorders-e1a1hgd

https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Zinc-Zinc-Zinc-e1fpvlg

https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Candida--Carb-Craving--Brain-Related-Symptoms-e173i85

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My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this podcast I discuss the paradox: that to have healthy relationships, there needs to be space and a recognition that we are separate beings with different desires, feelings, perspectives, and different life paths. This space can also be called a boundary. I also talk about:

• How we can know if the boundaries in a relationship are healthy or not.
• How we can manage the fear that can arise when we start establishing boundaries.
• How we can set a boundary that is respectful to ourselves and to the other person.

__________________________

My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope.   Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode I discuss why teens who are high achievers are considered to be in the same risk category for depression and anxiety as those teens who are experiencing poverty, trauma, and discrimination.

I'll discuss:

• The role of parents, coaches, and schools
• Inherent personality traits of many high achieving teens that can relate to undermethylation - a biochemical imbalance, that impacts neurotransmitter activity and can raise vulnerability to depression, anxiety and addiction.
• What we can do as parents, educators and clinicians to help these and all teens thrive.

Mentioned in this podcast:

Podcast on Methylation https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Methylation--Brain-Health-With-a-Focus-on-Undermethylation-e16kr0b

Podcast on Dr. William Walsh https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Nutrient-Based-Psychiatry---Dr--William-Walsh---His-Story--Discoveries-e18e2o8

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My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode, I discuss our inner wisdom. You might also think of it as your inner teacher, inner knowing, or even as the soul. If we ignore our inner wisdom, our physiology will undoubtedly be impacted. I also discuss:

• How to know if we are connected to our inner wisdom.
• Reasons we may not be connected.
• How our inner wisdom may speak to us.
• Ways we can create space to hear ourselves.
• How our listening to our children helps them learn to listen to themselves.

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My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope.   Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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"More than 90% of people diagnosed with depression, behavioral disorders, ADHD, autism, and schizophrenia exhibit depleted plasma zinc levels, ranging from low-normal to severe deficiency." - Dr. William Walsh, PhD

Zinc is incredibly important when it comes to our health, especially our mental health. Zinc also has a key role in our immune and gastrointestinal systems and appears to play a role in the prevention of infection and complications from COVID including chronic neuropsychiatric symptoms.

In this episode, I’ll talk about why lower zinc levels are associated with psychiatric conditions and the many ways low zinc impacts brain functioning. I also discuss how we measure zinc, and why the typical lab ranges aren’t necessarily the optimal ranges. Lastly, I’ll talk about treatment of zinc deficiency and the importance of monitoring copper levels, which can be impacted by zinc supplementation.

My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode, I discuss:

• What factors make us susceptible to clinging to certain outcomes in our lives.
• How this grasping and worry can impact our health and well-being.
• Six examples to help us recognize when we do this.
• How we can use these opportunities to transform our days (and thus our lives) to becoming less stressful and more meaningful.

Links to my other podcast episodes on Pyrrole Disorder and Undermethylation: https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Pyrrole-Disorder--Stress-Induced-Personality-Changes-e19gu0b

https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Methylation--Brain-Health-With-a-Focus-on-Undermethylation-e16kr0b

My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope.   Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode I'll discuss toxicity and oxidative stress. I'll describe what I mean by toxins, how they get in, where they go, and what they can do. I'll also talk about:

• The impacts of environmental toxins on the developing brain and their role in depression, ADHD, autism, anxiety, and neurodegenerative disorders.
• Why some of us are more vulnerable to toxicity and thus oxidative stress and health conditions including psychiatric conditions.
• Basic strategies to lower our exposure.

Links to resources mentioned in this podcast: Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep web site: https://www.ewg.org/skindeep/, my podcast episode on pyrrole disorder: https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Pyrrole-Disorder--Stress-Induced-Personality-Changes-e19gu0b, my podcast episode on mold toxicity https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/College-Student-Mental-Health-Issues-Consider-Mold-Toxicity-ehoa3f.

My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode, I'll be addressing the topic of open-heartedness. I'm inviting those listening to join me in setting an intention of open-heartedness and perhaps making this Valentine's Day or, really any day, more meaningful.

My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope.   Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode I'll discuss what Marilyn Monroe and her life have to teach us. It is well known that she struggled with her mental health. Her story raises a number of opportunities to discuss factors that can contribute to brain related symptoms including:

• attachment disruption
• trauma
• mast cell activation which is a from of inflammation
• nutrient imbalances which can be genetically acquired
• substance use
• environmental toxicity

I'll also highlight her strengths beyond her beauty and the persona that she created.

Mentioned in this podcast:

Podcast on Methylation https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Methylation--Brain-Health-With-a-Focus-on-Undermethylation-e16kr0b

Podcast on Pyrrole Disorder https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Pyrrole-Disorder--Stress-Induced-Personality-Changes-e19gu0b

Podcast on Copper Overload https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Copper-Overload---A-Common-Biochemical-Imbalance-in-Brain-Disorders-e1a1hgd

My goal with this podcast is to help people find answers and to challenge each of us to look at ourselves, our families, our culture and even humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope. Please consider rating or reviewing (or like or commenting, when possible), to help me get some of this information out into the world.

To be notified of new episodes, you can:

Follow or subscribe to this podcast.

Subscribe to my newsletter at CourtneySnyderMD.com …..or

Connect with me on Facebook, Instagram and Youtube, where I share additional information and am always happy to take comments and questions.

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In this episode I'll discuss:

• Symptoms of attachment disruption in children.
• How we can strengthen the foundation in all of our relationships (with our children, adult children, spouses, partners, and friends).
• How ultimately we can provide that loving responsive caregiver for ourselves.

To learn more about the root causes of brain related conditions and subscribe to my newsletter visit CourtneySnyderMD.com

Visit and subscribe to my YouTube channel, Courtney Snyder, MD - Holistic Psychiatrist, at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8JF5homBrN3D38OEZlzxig

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In this episode I'll discuss: 

• The attachment spectrum.
• How attachment is measured.
• The four types of attachment styles.
• Information to help you recognize where you may fall on the attachment spectrum.

I'll also provide tools that can help move all of us toward more secure attachment.

To learn more about the vagus nerve (mentioned in this podcast) listen to my podcasts: The Healing Power of the Vagus Nerve and Accessing the Power of the Vagus Nerve. https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/The-Healing-Power-of-the-Vagus-Nerve-in-Brain-Disorders-Part-1-of-2-eltj81

https://anchor.fm/courtney604/episodes/Accessing-the-Power-of-the-Vagus-Nerve-Part-2-of-2-emecql

To learn more about the root causes of brain related conditions, visit CourtneySnyderMD.com

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In this episode I'll discuss:

• The factors that impact this formative time in our and our children's lives.
• The potential role of attachment in genetic expression and how it appears to impact the differentiation of the right and left hemispheres of the  brain.

There doesn't have to be overt abuse or severe neglect. As parents, we can project our own unresolved conflicts onto our children.

To learn more about the root causes of brain related conditions, visit CourtneySnyderMD.com

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In this episode I'll discuss:

How we are shaped by our first three years of life and our earliest attachment experiences. How and why nature wired us for attachment. How our environment impacts this time.

Becoming conscious or curious about this early time in our lives can bring clarity to why we think, feel, and act they way we do.

To learn more about the root causes of brain related conditions, visit CourtneySnyderMD.com

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In this podcast, I'll discuss: 

• What is EHS?
• How do electromagnetic fields (EMF) impact the brain?
• What symptoms (brain and physical) can EMF cause?
• How are children impacted?
• How is EHS diagnosed and treated?
• How can those with or without EHS lower exposure to EMF?

Resources mentioned in this podcast: 

Environmental Health Trust Printable Fact Sheets - includes information about how to set up a sleep sanctuary and office setting.

Antenna Search - to see nearest cell phone towers.

To learn more about the root causes of brain related conditions, visit CourtneySnyderMD.com

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In this podcast, I discuss Copper Overload (or Toxicity) - a nutrient imbalance that impacts specific neurotransmitters (dopamine and norepinephrine) and contributes to many brain related symptoms.   This imbalance is impacting many with:

• ADD or ADHD
• High anxiety or panic
• Depression (90% of women with postpartum depression have high copper levels)
• Bipolar Disorder
• Angry outbursts, temper and rage
• Autism
• Dementia

Many women and teens on birth control (or who have copper IUD's) and who have problems regulating copper are unknowingly being impacted.

To learn more visit: CourtneySnyderMD.com

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In this episode I discuss Pyrrole Disorder - a common biochemical imbalance in brain disorders caused by an excessive production of HPL (a hydroxyhemopyrrolin).   A hallmark of Pyrrole Disorder is poor stress intolerance.  Other common symptoms can be social avoidance and/or temper outbursts.  In this episode I'll answer:

• What are pyrrols?
• How does an overproduction contribute brain symptoms?
• What are the symptoms and traits (brain related and physical that can be seen) in adults and children?
• How can we become "pyrroluric"?
• How can I test my pyrrole level?
• How is Pyrrole Disorder treated?

From the Walsh Research Institute of over 30,000 patients with brain disorders:

ADHD - 18 %  (18% of individuals diagnosed with ADHD had elevated pyrroles)

Behavioral Disorders - 28 %

Autism - 35%

Depression - 24%

Bipolar Disorder - 35%

Schizophrenia  - 30%

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - 12%

Alzheimer's Disease - 14%

Healthy Controls (no psychiatric symptoms) - 8%

To learn more, visit:  CourtneySnyderMD.com

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In this podcast, I introduce the work of Dr. William Walsh and the Walsh Research Institute which studied nutrient levels in blood, urine and hair samples of 30,000 individuals with psychiatric conditions such as depression, anxiety, ADHD, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, autism and dementia. Through this research, they found "only six or seven nutrients (either by way of deficiency or overload) have a dramatic impact on mental health," and that by correcting these imbalances using nutrient protocols, that most individuals symptoms improved.  Here I share a conversation I had with Dr. Walsh five years ago in which I heard his story, and learned about how he made his discoveries. I look forward to expanding on nutrient imbalances in future podcasts on pyrrole disorder, copper overload and overmethylation. My previous podcast on undermethylation comes out of the work of Dr. Walsh. 

To learn more about the many of the topic mentioned, 

visit my website at www.courtneysnydermd.com 

or the Walsh Research Institute website at www.walshinstitute.org

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In this episode, I discuss the unfortunate though common reality for many with chronic complex illness (chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, lyme disease, mold toxicity, heavy metal toxicity, autoimmune conditions and mast cell activation or high immune reactivity).  Not being heard by one's doctor, is also not uncommon for those with brain related symptoms and for parents, usually mothers, who are struggling to be heard as they seek help for their child with unusual symptoms. 

In this podcast, I'll discuss how modern medicine has been historically infused with bias, hierarchy and a focus on treating symptoms rather than the root causes and I'll discuss steps that we can each take to maintain our truth and find effective help for ourselves and/or our children.

Recently I discussed this topic in more depth on my live call at:

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/live-teaching.html

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In this episode, I discuss what candida overgrowth actually is, what symptoms, from physical to brain related (brain fog, fatigue, depression, anxiety, inattention and more), why it occurs, how it is diagnosed and treated, why some people can have difficulties moving past yeast overgrowth and how this can be addressed. 

To learn more about the root causes of brain related symptoms, visit:

www.CourtneySnyderMD.com

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Of individuals with behavioral or mental disorders, 70% have a serious methylation imbalance. This is relative to 30% of the general population.

In this podcast you'll learn about the role of methylation in brain health.  I'll discuss how one can become undermethylated, symptoms, traits and associated diagnoses.  And, I discuss how undermethylation (from a Walsh Research Institute perspective) is diagnosed and treated.

To learn more visit: CourtneySnyderMD.com

You can find more information about the work of Dr. Walsh and the Walsh Research Institute at WalshInstitute.org and "Nutrient Power - Heal Your Biochemistry and Heal Your Brain." (William J. Walsh, PhD)

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In this episode I'll discuss signs and symptoms of vagal nerve dysfunction, how vagal tone can be measured using heart rate variability and the many ways to access the vagus nerve.   Accessing the vagus nerve is important for everyone, but especially those with psychiatric conditions, autoimmune or other chronic health conditions. 

To learn more, visit www.courtneysnydermd.com

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The proper functioning of the vagus nerve is what allows us to feel calm and relaxed and thus is one of the most important determinants of our physical and emotional wellbeing. In this podcast, I’ll discuss the many roles of the vagus - from peacemaker, overseer of many bodily functions, activist against inflammation, filter of sensory input to influencer of social communication (all the subtleties of communication beyond the words we say).  While learning how to access calm from the body is useful for everyone, understanding the vagus nerve can help connect a lot of physical and brain related symptoms for those with psychiatric conditions and provide endless opportunities for healing.  

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In this episode, I'll be discussing what I would say is the root cause to suicide. When someone dies by suicide, the cultural story focuses on an emotionally stressful event. I'm going to be telling another story one that involves inflammation of the brain, Just as the joints and other parts of the body can be inflamed, so can the brain. It is likely when someone takes their life they've already had a degree of chronic brain inflammation before the emotional trigger takes it to another level. Here, I'll discuss the evolving research into brain inflammation and suicide separately. I'll be discussing how from a functional medicine standpoint I address inflammation and how I address and treat what is causing it in the first place. Though my focus will not be on psychiatric medicationsI do recommend medications when they can save someone's life alleviate significant suffering, or even help someone get to a level of functioning so that they can address the deeper root causes. http://www.CourtneySnyderMD.com

To read more on the research into suicide and brain inflammation.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27377015/

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fncel.2019.00031/full

To read more about brain inflammation, see my blog post "Mast Cell Activation, Brain Disorder, How to Calm Things Down"

https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/blog/mast-cell-activation-inflammation-in-brain-disorders-how-to-calm-things-down

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I start this episode with briefly discussing the startling statistics about student mental health and the stories our culture tells for why students are receiving more psychiatric diagnoses and even dropping out of college. Mainly, I will focus on the rarely considered -  but, I will argue - very common root cause to mental health issues in college students - mold toxicity from dorms. I will explain how physiologically someone can go to college thriving and having great hope for the future to living in a dorm with mold (seen or unseen) and then go on to become diagnosed with depression, anxiety, ADHD or even bipolar disorder...or simply loose motivation and energy for school and drop out.  In addition to discussing other potential symptoms, I will mention how one can acquire testing for mold toxicity without seeing a physician and what treatment for mold toxicity can look like. 

To learn more about mold toxicity - https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/blog/mold-toxicity-depression-anxiety-fatigue-brain-fog-inattention

or about mast cell activation (mentioned in the podcast) - https://www.courtneysnydermd.com/blog/mast-cell-activation-inflammation-in-brain-disorders-how-to-calm-things-down

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In this episode, I explain through my personal story, how and why I moved into this type of psychiatry.  I explain the less know root causes of symptoms that I evaluate and address as a holistic psychiatrist, including nutrient imbalances, inflammation, the health of the microbiome, toxicity including biotoxins such as mold toxins, structural issues involving the head and neck impacting the cranial nerves including the vagus nerve, attachment history, trauma, chronic and persistent stress and how these impacts stress hormones which can trigger brain inflammation.  I also address how a spiritual perspective (ie. learning to roll with uncertainty, finding purpose, finding peace in one's body, and recognizing that we are part of something larger than ourselves) impacts our physiology and brain health.  CourtneySnyderMD.com

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Courtney Snyder, MD is a functional medicine physician and holistic child and adult psychiatrist.  In these podcasts, she will be using a common cultural reference - be it something from the news, the arts, media, or politics, as a starting place before delving into the fascinating and less known roots to our brain related symptoms and mental wellbeing.  Along the way, she'll be discussing new and evolving treatment options that address these root causes. Her hope is to challenge us  to look at ourselves, our families, our lives, our culture and even our humanity through a different lens - a lens that offers more possibility and more hope.