Stress & Your Immune System-What You Need to Know if You Have Chronic Illness
“If you ask what is the single most important key to longevity, I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress, and tension. And if you didn’t ask me, I’d still have to say it.” George Burns
Stress is something we all deal with, and most people now understand that stress is a major factor in many illnesses and the most common reason for doctor visits. Most people realize their need to reduce stress, but for those who frequently get sick or suffer with chronic illness, auto-immune disease, or a viral infection such as Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV), it is critical to understand the role stress plays in immune function and viral activation. Viruses are not necessarily harmful themselves and in fact, serve an important function in ridding the body of toxic substances. When we are overly toxic, our bodies manufacture viruses that lead to colds or flus to assist in the detoxification process. When we are overly stressed, viruses that lie dormant in our bodies can become reactivated and lead to acute or chronic illness.
With chronic idiopathic illness (illness of an unknown origin or cause) at an all time high despite modern medicine’s technological advances, it’s probable that Epstein-Barr Virus is an underlying factor in many of today’s chronic illnesses. Yet it’s not well understood and often overlooked by conventional medicine. In fact, many medical professionals only think of EBV as the cause of mononucleosis and aren’t even aware that this virus can cause chronic symptoms long after someone recovers from mono. If you frequently get sick or you’ve been diagnosed with an auto-immune disease, your illness may be due to viral reactivation. While an estimated 95% of the population has this virus, not everyone becomes sick because of it. The condition of our inner terrain, or micro-biome, seems to be the biggest determining factor in whether the virus leads to symptoms or not. Our diet, lifestyle, and toxic exposure all affect our health, but stress can have an even greater negative impact than any other factor. Since immune function is dependent on the condition of our micro-biome, it’s important to understand the role stress plays in compromising gut health and how it can set the stage for viruses to rapidly proliferate, and in the case of EBV, can lead to chronic degenerative disorders. Learning how to recognize and manage stress is key to both regaining and maintaining optimal health.
Stress comes in many forms and can be an even greater contributing factor for viral reactivation than anything else. Dr. Lisa Rankin, author of Mind over Medicine, says that based on her experience with patients, she believes that whether patients get sick or stay healthy, whether they stay sick or heal, may have more to do with everything else going on in the person’s life than with any healthy thing they do. Someone can eat a perfectly clean, organic diet yet be overwhelmed with stress or even just toxic thoughts and end up with a reactivation of EBV. That’s because the release of stress hormones contributes to an acidic, oxygen-deprived environment within the body, creating an ideal condition for the virus to thrive. Dr. Robert Young, author of Sick and Tired, found through his research that cellular disturbance can be caused by physical, emotional, and/or spiritual stress. Considering so many “health nuts” are in poor health, perhaps it is because they are forgetting a big part of the health equation.
When we experience stress, the sympathetic nervous system is activated. The HPA axis (Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Adrenal axis) prepares the body for fight or flight by stimulating the release of cortisol and adrenaline to help us either fight off an attacker or run. When the threat passes, activation of the HPA axis should dissipate and our nervous system should return to a state of parasympathetic dominance. This system works great in an emergency, but was not intended to be activated continuously. The problem today is that most people are under a tremendous amount of chronic stress and instead of the HPA axis being activated periodically when needed, they are living in a state of chronic sympathetic nervous system dominance. When we are in fight or flight mode, immune function is suppressed.
When we are relaxed, the parasympathetic nervous system is in charge. This system is associated with the vagus nerve, which runs from the brainstem to the abdomen and regulates many bodily functions necessary for maintaining homeostasis. When the brain perceives that we are safe, the hypothalamus stops triggering the stress response, vagal tone increases, which shuts off the sympathetic nervous system, and cortisol and adrenaline levels drop. Once the body is back in a state of parasympathetic dominance, the immune system turns back on and the body’s self repair processes can do their job. In a state of parasympathetic dominance, disease is less likely in well people and may even be healed in sick people.
Viral reactivation typically follows stressful or traumatic events. Periods of intense stress, such as loss of a loved one, attending college, or even loneliness, have been shown to increase EBV antibodies in latent cases. Even life changing events that are positive, like buying a home, getting married, or starting a new job can add to a person’s stress load. The number one reactivating factor Dr. Kasia Kines sees in her practice is extreme or compounding negative stress. “Lack of sleep, chronic inflammation, overmedication, poor diet, surgeries, overwork, and overcommitting are all stressors, regardless of your emotional state, but still, emotional stressors can be the most devastating and the biggest reactivators, hands down,” says Kines.
Emotional Stress
Taking care of the physical body while neglecting emotional issues is not a recipe for health because emotions are capable of shifting the body’s chemistry. Emotional toxicity can be just as harmful as toxins in our environment. Research shows that negative beliefs may affect the body by triggering the stress response, shutting down the body’s self-repair mechanisms and setting us up for disease. Research has confirmed that brain cells translate the mind’s beliefs into complementary and unique chemical profiles that control the body’s cells. Thoughts directly influence how the brain controls the body’s physiology. Our thoughts, beliefs, feelings, and traumas influence the autonomic nervous system. Fear, anger, frustration, and resentment trigger the stress response. It doesn’t matter if we’re not in real danger. What matters is that our mind believes we are and in turn, releases cortisol, which suppresses immune function. “To an extent that immunologists and psychologists rarely appreciate, we are architects of our own experience. Your subjective experience carries more power than your objective situation,” says Steve Cole, epigeneticist at UCLA’s School of Medicine. Our physical body reflects the state of our mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Even scientific data suggests that a healthy mind and a connection with a spiritual life may be equally, if not more important to the health of the body.
“What is the impact of the fear (emotional toxicity) that the word ‘virus’ brings to mind and heart?” asks Dr. Young. According to Young, the fear of viruses is a fundamental error of the germ theory, and can be responsible for creating sickness through the power of auto- suggestion. “Ironically, if the germ theory were founded on facts it would be correct to fear viruses, except there would be few, if any, humans living to discuss the issues,” says Young. According to Bruce Lipton, Ph.D., cell biologist and author of The Biology of Belief, learning to harness the mind to promote growth is the secret of life. We can choose to believe in a world full of fear, shutting down our body’s protection response. Or we can choose to see a world full of love and allow our body to respond by growing in health. Belief is a more powerful healing mechanism than most people realize. Take the example of AIDS patients in Africa, who were dying from the disease but when they were tested and found to be negative, they suddenly rebounded and became healthy.
Chronic adversity or trauma in childhood is another form of emotional stress that is known to change the way our genes are expressed. Undergoing chronic stressful conditions can directly impact how genes are expressed. With the Polyvagal Theory, Stephen Porges, Ph.D. expanded our knowledge of how the vagus nerve influences health. He acknowledged that there are two branches of the vagus nerve, one of which is more primitive. If a person experiences chronic, ongoing trauma, the more primitive branch can be stimulated and instead of the fight of flight response being activated, the freeze response takes over. As the body becomes more accustomed to the stress response and the more primitive branch of the vagus nerve is in charge, the person essentially becomes “frozen,” which negatively impacts physical, mental, and emotional health.
It is clear that addressing unresolved emotions and traumas is a necessary factor in healing. It’s important to be mindful of our self-talk. If someone continually tells himself that he’s sick, the body will respond by being sick. While it’s important to know what we’re dealing with, it’s not helpful to allow a label to define us. Identifying with a disease can actually be detrimental, as it may create a self-fulfilling prophecy. In the words of philosopher Ralph Waldo Trine, “Never affirm or repeat about your health what you do not wish to be true.”
Physiological Stress
Stress isn’t just an emotional burden we are aware of. Lack of sunlight; changes in circadian rhythm; hormonal changes such as puberty, menopause, or postpartum; exams; lack of physical space; and loneliness all cause physiological stress on the body. According to Steve Cole, “If you actually measure stress using our best available instruments, it can’t hold a candle to social isolation. Social isolation is the best-established, most robust social or psychological risk factor for disease out there. Nothing can compete.”
A common source of physiological stress is exercise. While important for staying healthy and reducing stress, exercise can be detrimental if it’s too much or too intense, as it creates oxidative stress. Research has shown that lack of exercise increases the risk of infection, while moderate exercise reduces infection risk. Innumerable studies show that by helping to coordinate the pattern of methylation (an important process affecting gene activity) and gene expression, exercise is one of the most powerful ways to enhance immunity and avoid disease. While exercise is important, overdoing it in the gym or running long distances can be a trigger for viral reactivation. A study on over-trained athletes showed that “intense exercise and overtraining create high levels of oxidation (and thus free radical damage).” The increase in infections following extreme exercise such as marathons appears to be related to oxidative stress, release of the stress hormone cortisol, and antioxidant depletion. An animal study showed that moderate exercise reduces the risk of infection by modulating the immune system, reducing excess inflammation, and promoting lymphatic flow, which is critical for immune function. One study found that increased shedding of EBV was associated with intense training in elite athletes.
Relationships are another important and often unappreciated factor in health. “While loneliness, anger, and resentment evoke the poisonous biochemistry of threat reactions, the desire for connection, intimacy, and a sense of belonging with family, lovers, and friends is hardwired in our DNA, and when these desires are fulfilled, our bodies respond with better health.” The impact of relationships, especially a spousal relationship, cannot be underestimated when it comes to health. “Relationships can be medicine or poison,” according to Rankin. An unhappy relationship can be dangerous for our health because it can frequently activate the stress response. An Ohio University study published in the journal Cancer, which examined 100 patients with breast cancer, showed that those in bad marriages fared less well than those in happy marriages. Another study suggests that in a healthy relationship, holding our partner’s hand is enough to lower blood pressure, ease stress responses, improve health, and diminish pain. Feeling loved and supported in a relationship activates the relaxation response that is key to staying healthy. “Love opens your heart, trumps fear, and paves the way for healing in all aspects of your life,” says Rankin.
Minimizing Stress to Positively affect Health
Identifying and reducing the causes of stress is one of the most important things someone can do to heal from chronic illness. Whether it’s spending time in nature, journaling, or spending time with loved ones, calming the stress response will increase the chance for healing. Spending time in the sun provides an added health bonus because exposing our skin to the sun allows us to make vitamin D, which has been shown to improve immune function. In addition, researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center have found that sunlight energizes T cells that play a major role in immune function. The practice of writing in a gratitude journal is a way to induce the relaxation response and has been shown to keep people optimistic or help develop an optimistic attitude, which will increase the chances of healing. Even laughter can have a powerful effect on healing. After being diagnosed with a serious degenerative disorder, Norman Cousins, author of Anatomy of an Illness, checked himself out of the hospital and replaced the anti-inflammatory drugs, painkillers, and tranquilizers with high doses of vitamin C and daily laughter from watching funny shows. He believed the hospital was not conducive to his healing and that he would be able to heal if he was in the right environment, and he did. His story also demonstrates the amazing healing power of the mind.
Practicing mindfulness is a proven way to activate the parasympathetic nervous system. It involves focusing on the breath, thoughts, and bodily sensations while seated, walking, or practicing yoga. Research suggests that mindfulness meditation may relieve chronic inflammation. Walking, washing dishes, mowing the lawn, and cooking can all be forms of meditation if the activity is done with awareness. The health benefits of meditation have been well documented. One groundbreaking study documented that the relaxation response induced by practices like yoga, mediation, deep breathing, and prayer produces immediate changes in the expression of genes involved in immune function, energy metabolism, and insulin secretion. Meditation decreases stress-related cortisol, reduces respiration and heart rate, reduces metabolic rate, increases blood flow in the brain, strengthens the immune system, leads to a state of relaxation, and activates neural changes in the brain. Deep breathing exercises will also calm the stress response. Stress causes people to shallow breath or even hold their breath, which causes respiratory acidosis, and deep breathing is the easiest way to correct it.
It is clear that stress in all forms can be extremely detrimental to our health. Evidence shows that minimizing stress and activating the parasympathetic nervous system has profound benefits for our emotional, spiritual, and physical health. When we are mindful of our stressors and tune in to what our bodies are telling us, we can bring ourselves into balance, which will provide the opportunity to heal from chronic illness and experience vibrant health. In her popular 2011 TEDx talk, “The Truth about Your Health,” Dr. Rankin introduced her Whole Health Cairn, a wellness model she created after being inspired by a stack of balanced stones she saw marking a hiking trail. She calls the foundation stone, the one upon which everything else is built, the “Inner Pilot Light” that she describes as “that inner knowing, the healing wisdom of your body and soul that knows what’s true for you and guides you, in your own unique way, back to better health.” While most wellness models teach that the body is the foundation, we’ve gotten it backward. “The body is the physical manifestation of the sum of your life experiences. When your life is out of alignment with your Inner Pilot Light and the stones of your Whole Health Cairn are out of balance, your nervous system kicks into stress response, and your body suffers,” says Rankin. Fortunately, this is all within our control. By developing a greater awareness of our thoughts, our emotions, and our language, we can learn how to change course when needed and harness our bodies’ own healing capacity.
We have more power over our health than what we’ve been led to believe. Whether you have unexplained chronic symptoms or get colds, flus, or infections frequently, or you know you have EBV (if you’ve ever had mono, you have it) or you’ve been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis, lupus, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, atherosclerosis, or any other auto-immune disease, learning how to manage stress is a major key to regaining your health. Knowing what’s at the root of your diagnosis and learning what triggers viral reactivation and replication can be empowering because it allows you to get to the bottom of the symptoms you have, reverse the disease process and reclaim your health by bringing the body, mind, and spirit back into harmony.
This material has been adapted from my book Epstein-Barr Virus- A Holistic Approach to Healing. To learn more about Epstein-Barr Virus and how to overcome chronic illness with nutritional and lifestyle interventions, the book is available on Amazon.
Candice Andrus, ND is a Board Certified Traditional Naturopath, Nutritional Therapist, and Ordained Spiritual Minister. She is also a Certified Personal Trainer and Yoga Teacher, certified in Ayurveda Therapy, Yin Yoga and Standup Paddle Yoga as well as a facilitator of Raindrop Therapy. Candice has taught yoga to student athletes of all ages and professional athletes from all over the world at IMG Academy in Bradenton, FL since 2011 and has coached clients on nutrition, lifestyle and detoxification both independently and at Sarasota Integrative Health since 2013. Candice works with clients in person in Sarasota, FL and remotely for wellness coaching and specializes in immune health, weight loss, chronic illness, mold illness, and spiritual roots of illness.
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