How many people have an autoimmune disorder?

[K.B.Fante]

So I just finished reading Brain on Fire by Susannah Cahalan. It's about a woman who, out of the blue, starts having acute seizures, psychosis, paranoia and eventually catatonia which lands her in the hospital near death before she's diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disorder that essentially caused her body to attack her brain. It's a great, quick read -- in case anyone's interested -- that details lots of similar symptoms to HPPD. But I found it interesting how, in the end, all her psychosis and madness boiled down to an autoimmune disorder and being that I also have an autoimmune disorder I wondered if perhaps there was a connection to HPPD.

 

Does anybody else out there have an autoimmune disorder? Perhaps there's some sort of chemical imalance in the brains of those with autoimmune deficiencies that makes us more susceptible to HPPD? I know it's probably nothing more than a shot in the dark but I thought I'd ask just for the hell of it.

[Joeygeorgie88]

Fante - I've read it myself and was amazed at the similarities! I can actually relate to so many of her initial symptoms. So yes, I expect there is a strong connection. What's your autoimmune disease? I've developed dysautonomia as a result of hppd, namely in the form of POTS.

[Guest]

I don't, and I've been to the ER and doc and had so many tests ran I would know if I had one.

My friend seems to think that it's damage/injury at the cellular level in the limbic system - either the thalamus or hypothalamus. That's why it's taking so long to heal, and why anything stressful or you're sensitive to will set you back. It's just inflaming the inflammation you already have.

[K.B.Fante]

16 hours ago, TheMythos said:

I don't, and I've been to the ER and doc and had so many tests ran I would know if I had one.

My friend seems to think that it's damage/injury at the cellular level in the limbic system - either the thalamus or hypothalamus. That's why it's taking so long to heal, and why anything stressful or you're sensitive to will set you back. It's just inflaming the inflammation you already have.

I tend to agree. The limbic system, from what very limited knowledge I have of the brain, makes sense. That said, I don't think we should rule out the cause being our brains attacking themselves in response to the drugs which then caused neurodegeneration. I know for example that after I initially got HPPD I had severe brain fog which Dr. Kharrazian has said is a sign of a cellular cleaning process. I've always thought this could be an indication my brain just kept on attacked itself even long after the acid left my system. 

17 hours ago, Joeygeorgie88 said:

Fante - I've read it myself and was amazed at the similarities! I can actually relate to so many of her initial symptoms. So yes, I expect there is a strong connection. What's your autoimmune disease? I've developed dysautonomia as a result of hppd, namely in the form of POTS.

I have psoriasis and possibly an autoimmune thyroid condition as well. My whole family has autoimmunity too. 

[Guest]

Yeah but neurodegeneration is the disease getting progressively worse like with Huntington's disease. HPPD isn't neurodegenerative or people wouldn't be able to recover.

[Joeygeorgie88]

It certainly might be neurodegenerative bud. God knows it feels that way for me! Many with hppd get worse over time. In many ways her book mirrors my own symptoms, in ways nothing else I've read does. I am certainly not ruling out progressive brain damage, in my case at least. Everyone with hppd is slightly different, it seems.

[Guest]

Neurodegeneration can be observed with mRI. I and many others have had mRIs after getting hppd and there was no structural damage whatsoever. The only thing I had were slight abnormalities that could cause migraines.

 

[Guest]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/014312837X/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=INXYS718IPVOA&colid=12ITCZ498U1PW

Everyone on this forum should read this.

[K.B.Fante]

"The Brain that Changes Itself" is also a great read. Very encouraging for HPPDers. 

Neurodegeneration may have been the wrong word. All I meant was cellular death but there are a variety of different terms for it depending on how it occurs. 

[Guest]

It could be a gene expression mutation. Some glutamate receptor may be misshapen or malformed. It could be receptor uncoupling. We just have no idea.

30 minutes of aerobic exercise a day increases BDNF and neurogenesis, as well as producing other growth hormones and making the brain more plastic. If there's any prescription for overcoming hppd, its that and a good diet.

[Guest]

This was a very interesting article.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3662348/

And may be one of the reasons I havent fully recovered.

[Joeygeorgie88]

Bud - I maintain it could very well be brain damage/neurodegeneration! An MRI hasnt got a chance of observing things at the cellular level - so it's effectively meaningless for HPPDers. Bear in mind that most neurological conditions will not show up on an MRI even though cell death is involved.

[Guest]

It's all speculation.

If you want to claim you have brain damage, be my guest.

An mRI would certainly show neurodegeneration. Neurodegeneration is a progressive destruction of brain tissue. 

HPPD is not a neurodegenerative disorder.

Edited September 24, 2017 by Guest

[Joeygeorgie88]

As Fante says, maybe it was the wrong term to use (although neurodegeneration is NOT always visible on MRI - ALS/MND patients for example have normal MRIs) - but structural damage at the cellular level would be impossible to see on an MRI. Many experts such as dr Abraham have hypothesised that HPPD is based around excitotoxic destruction of neurons.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, Joeygeorgie88 said:

As Fante says, maybe it was the wrong term to use (although neurodegeneration is NOT always visible on MRI - ALS/MND patients for example have normal MRIs) - but structural damage at the cellular level would be impossible to see on an MRI. Many experts such as dr Abraham have hypothesised that HPPD is based around excitotoxic destruction of neurons.

Do you have a source for the Dr. Abraham thing?

Dr. Abraham's latest theory and tests were centered around a dysfunction in the COMT enzyme and its production of catecholamines.

[Guest]

"Neurotoxicity is generally imperceptible unless it is so severe as to impair processes like learning, memory, motor movement et cetera.

Most people who suspect neurotoxicity don't show gross pathological changes on e.g. MRI. 

Generally neurotoxicity is either from acute toxic metabolites (chemicals that kill your brain cells directly, like an antibiotic -MPTP is the famous one, cyanide, acetaldehyde, phosgene, and other reactive chemicals fit here too) or from thermal stress (amphetamine-type damage is usually of this type, MDMA induced overheating is a big cause).

Most drugs, despite the public perception, don't actually damage brain or liver cells at theraputic concentrations. Monoamine and sugar depletion can cause "hangovers" on their own. And by the time you're actually brain damaged you generally are too far gone to care.

Most of the reports of true, physical brain damage often present after a massive overdose, or gradually increase in severity with chronic use (e.g. chronic methamphetamine use inducing parkinsons-like symptoms over a period of years).

On the contrary, some people can suffer things like concussions, strokes, tumors, aneurysms and retain most of their cognitive functioning even though there is gross structural damage.

If you don't use amphetamines frequently you shouldn't concern yourself too much about brain damage. Playing sports is probably more risky for causing brain damage due to concussions."