Interesting..
There’s more to immunity than exposure to contagious viruses like COVID.
The branch of science investigating the nexus of mind, body, and the external world is called “psychoneuroimmunology” or “PNI.”
PNI Researchers have found that there are neurotransmitter receptors throughout most of your immune system.
This means your psychological state –– which is represented in your nervous system and expressed to the rest of your body by neurotransmitters –– directly impacts your immunity.
That’s right: your mind is critical to your ability to fight off infection.
The surprising part is that it boils down to a simple binary distinction: supporting or suppressing.
In biological terms, this is known as the parasympathetic and sympathetic nervous system.
The sympathetic nervous system gives rise to the “fight, flight, or freeze” response. This is the stress system. It is like an emergency switch that turns off anything not related to immediate survival.
This is great for brief threats, but if it gets stuck in the on position…
...it can lead to a catastrophic suppression of the immune system.
The parasympathetic nervous system is known as “rest and digest.” It’s the nurturing system that gives rise to the feeling of well being.
This clearly has implications for each of us as we face the possibility of a 2nd or 3rd wave of coronavirus.
And this is where psychedelics –– particularly microdosing –– come in.
Used in the right way, psychedelics can actually shift your nervous system activation from sympathetic to parasympathetic.
From immune-suppressing to immune-supporting.