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A New Way of Looking at Disease

Karen’s Story

We are just starting to realize the power that the mind has over the body and that many diseases have their initial foundations in the mind. Unfortunately, Karen learned this the hard way. Now 45 and single, she got married in her early twenties to a man she felt she could not live without. Tom was tall, dark, and handsome—the envy of many of her girlfriends.

However, a few months into the marriage she saw big red flags, which she had somehow missed while dating. Her husband, Tom was jealous, possessive, and verbally abusive. During their short courtship of three months, she had thought it was wonderful that he was so protective and a little jealous, but now that the knot had been tied, she felt as if she had a noose around her neck.

Up until marriage, Karen had always enjoyed good health. She exercised, was a normal weight, and was free of disease. But over that first year she began to have vague symptoms of chest discomfort and stomach problems for which her doctor could find no physical basis. She later began to binge eat and as a result gained 50 pounds. This did not set well with Tom. He became more abusive; he made her feel stupid, unattractive, and just worthless.

She started to take on more responsibilities trying to prove her worth. In addition to cooking, cleaning, and working full time, she began to care for his aged mother who was moved into their home. Karen continued to go to her doctor, now with symptoms that had a real name. Her list of daily medications began to grow. She was depressed and now on antidepressants, antacids for her stomach, blood pressure medications, medicine for joint pain, and sleeping aids.

Karen decided, “I’m out of here” and, after 20 years of marriage, she finally left!

What happened? Karen was healthy prior to her marriage. What caused such a drastic change? Was she genetically predisposed and destined to get sick anyway? Or did her stressful relationship play a role in its development? What about lifestyle (diet, lack of exercise); did it play a part in her disease?

Can I say with 100% certainty that her diseases were caused by the stressors in her life? No, I can’t say for sure that this was her case, but the scientific research shows that prolonged stress is a major factor in the development of many diseases. When we connect the dots, in many cases stress emerges as the salient feature.

Connecting the Dots

In Western society the field of medicine has exploded with technological advances and is making unprecedented strides in treating disease. If you lived back in the 1800s and had tuberculosis, more than likely you would not have survived. Back then, the disease was a death sentence. Not only was it common to die from TB, but also from pneumonia, simple wound infections, and even diarrhea. With the discovery of antibiotics and proper hygiene, such as simple hand washing, deaths from such previously fatal illnesses are now rare in Western society.

However, in recent times there has been a proliferation of other diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. When it comes to making a diagnosis and treating symptoms, we in the United States are second to none; however, we have failed markedly in identifying the root causes of these killer diseases. I believe that it is time for a new approach to an old way of looking at disease—an approach that focuses on the mind.

There are connections and links traversing the magnificent structures of the mind and the body. They are in constant communication, and when one suffers the other sympathizes. This pathway begins in the brain. Is it possible that some of the most common diseases that afflict us have their origins in the mind? Can our thoughts impact the structure and function of our bodies? Can what is happening in the brain affect the heart, lungs, and even the bones? Can our thoughts change the structure of our cells? Can they influence or cause alterations in the DNA?

An exciting new field of science has weighed in on the subject matter, and it says yes. It is the field of study called psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) and it looks at the connections between the brain, chemical messengers, and the immune system. Scripture weighed in on the subject centuries ago, stating: “For as he thinketh in his heart so is he” (Proverbs 23:7). Yes, our mental status affects the function of our body, and the body affects the function of the brain.

Remember that song from way back years ago “Dem Bones”?

Your hipbone connected to your backbone,

Your backbone connected to your shoulder bone,

Your shoulder bone connected to your neck bone,

Dem bones, dem bones, dem bones.

Just like the bones come together, connecting to give us a frame, we see direct links between body organs. The brain, immune system, and endocrine system are in constant communication with all parts of the body. As they talk, they send impulses, releasing and inhibiting chemicals and hormones through specific pathways. And the brain is the conductor; it sets the tone.

Just imagine your brain, which is only three pounds. It is the conductor of every organ in the body—heart, lungs, the reproductive system; all are servants to the brain. It tells the body what, when, where, and how to behave. And the body obeys (even if the brain is sending bad instructions).

It All Starts in the Brain

How does it all work? How does stress affect the mind and the body? Let’s take a look in real time. Let’s say you are at home just relaxing and feeling very comfortable in your easy chair. You are lunching while leisurely flipping through the newspaper and listening to the news. And suddenly—bam! bam! bam!—you hear a forceful knock on the door. Before you can ask who it is, a squad of police kicks the door open, and all eyes and guns are pointed at you!

Well, right about now you are not feeling very comfortable! That leisurely, relaxed feeling that you just had seconds ago is all gone, and you are now sweating bullets. But the police are very polite! They say, “We are so sorry. Oops, it’s the wrong house.”

You are grateful to learn it’s a mistake, but your body has encountered major stress and is still going through some serious changes. Their blunder has kicked off a cascade of events right now in your body.

Let’s take a closer look at what happened:

Messages from the outside world are picked up by our senses; this information is transmitted on nerves cells with lightning speed and registered at the relay center (the thalamus). The thalamus sends the information to the limbic system (the emotional part of the brain) and the frontal lobe (the thinking part of the brain); they witness what just happened! The frontal lobe says: “Just relax, take a deep breath, calm down; thank goodness I wasn’t shot!” But the emotional part of the brain is hysterical! It’s shouting and yelling and screaming, “What do you mean, just calm down?! You saw what just happened! Don’t just stand there, do something now!”

This “do something now” sets into motion a series of connections from the brain to the body, along a pathway called the HPA axis. This axis is composed of the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and adrenal glands (Preston, 2009).

Before we take a look at what messages are being sent and how this relates to the police blunder, as well as to Karen who was emotionally abused, we need to understand the functions of the three parts of this HPA axis. We will then see the connections between our brain, hormones, and immune system.

The hypothalamus is located in the brain and so is the pituitary gland. But the two adrenal glands are quite a distance away—on top of the kidneys. Although they are a distance from the brain, they receive messages within milliseconds.

The hypothalamus has many important roles. It’s the body’s thermostat and controls temperature, thirst, hunger, and sexual drive. It regulates blood pressure, heart rate, digestion of food, sleep cycle, and the immune system—all of which are under the control of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). These functions, as the name implies, are automatic.

Another important role of the hypothalamus is the release of the stress hormone, corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH). CRH production and the function of the ANS are the two major players in the hypothalamus that impact physical and mental health.

The pituitary gland is the size of a pea and is located at the base of the brain right under the hypothalamus. In the past the pituitary was called the master gland; however, we now know that the hypothalamus is its master. It tells the pituitary when, where, and how to do its job.

The pituitary gland is a major endocrine system; it directs the release of chemical messengers in the form of hormones. It is the link between the brain and the body. Its hormones are secreted into the blood stream and head for targeted organs, carrying messages as to how and when the body should respond. Some of the hormones controlled by the pituitary gland include: thyroid hormone, prolactin (which stimulates breast milk production), human growth hormone, and ACTH (adrenal gland stimulation).

Without the proper regulation of hormones, the body will malfunction. Case in point is novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie, better known as the creator of the character Peter Pan. His writings have entertained children for many generations. In the book Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers, Robert Sapolsky, a Stanford neuroscientist, indicates that this beloved author stopped growing and as an adult stood barely five feet tall. J. M. Barrie had a classic case of stress dwarfism. He experienced several psychological stresses as a child: the death of a brother, a mostly absentee father, and a grieving, depressed mother. As a result of her depression, she ignored her son for many years. This stress produced extremely low levels of circulating growth hormones and led to Barrie’s stunted growth (Sapolsky, 2004). I personally know a young teen whose growth has been stunted, for which there is no medical explanation. He has lived in a chaotic, stressful family environment and, like Barrie, he was found to have extremely low levels of growth hormone.

Another important hormone released by the pituitary gland is adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). When ACTH is released into the blood stream, it is picked up by the adrenal glands—the two glands sitting on top of the kidneys. The adrenals also have many functions, two of which involve the stress response, the release of the fight or flight chemicals (epinephrine, norepinephrine), and the production of cortisol, which—in addition to being a response to stress—also involves the release of blood sugar, suppression of the immune system, and the metabolism of fat, protein, and carbohydrates.

The adrenal glands’ role in the production of cortisol and the stress hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine is important. These are the major players when it comes to the difference between those of us who get sick and those who do not (Kemeny, 2010).

The HPA axis—the hypothalamus, pituitary, and adrenal—forms the mind-body connection. These systems function as feedback centers, continuously monitoring and communicating what is going on in the brain and body and how it should respond.

This axis is critical to survival, releasing controlled levels of hormones in the right doses at the right times and maintaining balance in the body by regulating crucial body functions. However this system can be detrimental to our health when it gets out of balance, being over- or under- stimulated.

We all have experienced over-stimulation of this system. Just think back to the last time you were in traffic, and the driver from Hades appeared out of nowhere. He crossed your path, causing you to perform some fancy maneuvers to avoid hitting him and to dodge the car in the next lane. Unless you are in zombie land, your body did what every human body does. Immediately you went into a fight-flight stress response, an automatic nervous system response triggered by the HPA axis.

You more than likely felt as if your heart was going to jump out of your chest; this is because your heart rate and blood pressure increased. Mentally you were more alert because you needed to think critically, weighing your options in this emergency. At the same time your energy stores were being mobilized, giving you a surge of energy due to increased blood sugar levels. You started breathing faster, your pupils dilated, and you felt shaky and nervous. All this happens extremely fast—within milliseconds!

This is the brain and hormonal chemical response, but what about the immune system? How does it fit into the equation and cause disease?

The Immune System

God made provision for the body to defend itself when invaded by unwelcome guests. These uninvited visitors come in many forms: viruses, bacteria, and parasites to name a few. And the immune system, the defender of the body, is waiting at the door, ready to go to battle.

Similar to a military’s SWAT team, the immune system has special weapons and tactics enlisted to fight the body’s battle. The major players are WBC’s, T-cells, B-cells, Natural Killer Cells, monocytes, and the macrophage (Goodman, 2004). These immune cells are located all over the body and lay in wait to pounce on unsuspecting intruders.

Their response to invaders reminds me of an attempted robbery gone awry. Remember those old funny movies with the clumsy robber dressed in black? He’s wearing a mask, and he’s carrying a sack on his back to collect the loot. He stealthily climbs to his destination and is ready for the steal, but along the way he is bitten, clubbed, stabbed, chased, beaten, and then arrested. This is what the immune system does to unwelcomed guests.

This highly sophisticated system has soldiers strategically stationed, and their lookout posts cover the entire body—lymph nodes, liver, spleen, stomach, and lungs. Even our tears, sweat glands, and saliva contain chemicals that neutralize invaders.

Inflammation

But before the immune system can mount a response, it must be turned on. Turning on occurs in response to injuries or damage to the body. We can injure the body in a variety of ways, such as physical injuries (which can occur in the form of extreme temperatures), environmental toxins (like radiation exposure), and nutritional imbalances to name a few. Injuries also come as foreign invaders—parasites, viruses, and bacteria.

Foreign invaders can also come in the form of chemical toxins, splinters, or glass to the body. Just think back to the last time you stubbed your toe, had a sliver of glass under your skin, or perhaps suffered a superficial wound. More than likely you noticed redness and swelling which were due to local inflammation. However, there is also inflammation that we cannot see, and it affects organs throughout the entire body. Organs such as the heart, lungs, brain, connective tissues, and other vital systems encounter inflammation, which causes the same damage, but it is beneath the surface. It is in the presence of injury and inflammation that the immune system mounts a defense and comes to the rescue (Goodman, 2007b).

Right about now you might be saying—brain, hormones, immune system, and this HPA thing, okay, but how does this relate to disease, and why should I be concerned? Remember Karen? When we look back at her life, we see that it was one of constant chaos in which she suffered from psychological stress, and then later physical symptoms, which progressed to disease. When we look at her case from the mind’s point of view, there emerges a picture of how the mind and body link and lead to disease.

Let’s Connect the Dots!

Karen was in a bad relationship! From the time she got up, until she went to bed, she was hearing: “You’re stupid,” “You’re fat,” “Can’t you do anything right?” and “Why did I marry you?” These negative messages activated the HPA axis, which triggered the release of cortisol and the fight or flight response. These two systems are wonderful and imperative in emergencies such as outrunning an attacking dog, fleeing an intruder, dodging bullets, and—as in our earlier example—helping with the response time in near car accidents. But the constant increased activation of cortisol and fight or flight response has profound negative effects on the body.

The stress hormone cortisol is absolutely needed in order for the body to function efficiently. It is when the body is being bombarded with constant surges of cortisol that it becomes counterproductive. In the presence of high cortisol levels, the immune system’s ability to function is suppressed; therefore, it can no longer do its job of protecting the body from invaders. Not only does cortisol depress immune function, but an elevated cortisol level increases inflammation, increases blood sugar levels, decreases the ability of DNA to make repairs, destroys brain cells, causes scars in the lining of the blood vessels, and can confuse the immune system, causing it to turn on itself (Sapolksy, 1985; Wolkowitz, 2010; Kemeny 2010).

The autonomic nervous system—fight-flight—puts the pedal to the metal when it releases the stress hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine. As stated earlier, it increases the blood pressure and heart rate, suppresses the immune system and other organs, mobilizes fat stores (fat deposits in the blood vessels), and causes an increase in blood sugar levels (for extra energy). This response is also needed in an emergency; however, chronic activation of this fight or flight response lays the foundation for disease in the form of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, obesity, among many others.

As indicated, Karen was healthy prior to her relationship, but after being beaten down and degraded for so many years, she believes that her horrific marriage led not only to her heart disease but also to other physical ailments as well as mental depression. Looking at her case from the mind’s point of view, when we connect the dots, we must ask: is there a mind-body connection? The research coming out strongly suggests that there is. We have seen a clear line in which the mind, hormones, and immune system—psychoneuroimmunology—connect and under adverse conditions can lay the foundation for the development of disease.

Like Karen, many find themselves in toxic relationships. The emotional stress is grinding them down, and the effects are seen in a wide range of physical and mental illnesses. Others are experiencing stressors on the job, financial challenges, or just trying to cope with the hassles of everyday life and feeling burned out. It does not matter which form it comes in, the effects on the body and mind are the same. If not handled appropriately, the issues of life can lead to disease.

Take the Challenge

As you read through the various chapters of this book, I encourage you to start connecting the dots. Scripture reminds us in Hosea 4:6: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” As we gain an understanding of how the mind and body interact and as we learn to break bad connections and form new ones, I believe that we can avert many diseases and that healing will take place. Are you up to the challenge? This challenge involves a new way of looking at disease.