top of page

Brain Health

Doctor Analyzing X-Rays
The Brain on Lyme and Mold

One of the trickiest parts of Lyme disease and Mold Illness is how it affects the brain. Lyme, and Biotoxin Illness/CIRS as a result of exposure to water damaged buildings, can become multi-symptom/multi-system illnesses the longer they remain undiagnosed. Therefore, it is important to know how the brain is affected and what can be done about it. Lyme and Mold Coach has been certified in Dr. Daniel Amen's Brain Health Coaching through Light University. On this page you will find some of the wisdom and knowledge Dr. Amen has imparted through this course, as well as have access to helpful links. If you want specific coaching regarding brain health please see our pricing here and contact us here.

According to https://www.amenclinics.com/conditions/toxic-mold-exposure/ "traditional psychiatry remains the only medical field that rarely looks at the organ it treats, so no one will look at your brain to see if there are signs of toxicity. And most likely no one will even consider that your symptoms might be due to exposure to mold or other toxins." In other words, it is vital to look at the brain when treating for Lyme disease, as well as for Mold Illness/Biotoxin Illness/CIRS, if one hopes to tackle the psychiatric and neuro-biological symptoms that are part of the picture. When undetected or not addressed, treatments don't work and further toxic exposures can make matters worse. Often times failure to respond to psychiatric medication is considered "treatment resistant" and can snowball into unnecessary treatments and misjudgment. You owe it to yourself to be aware of these issues and to have options when other treatments have failed, and to know that there is still hope.

Those with Lyme disease have often been misdiagnosed with various neurological and psychiatric conditions in addition to the physical conditions that are associated with Lyme. These conditions include:

​

  • ADD

  • Anxiety

  • Bipolar Disorder

  • Depression

  • Early Alzheimer's

  • Parkinson's

  • Sleep Disorders

​

Neuropsychological issues include:

​

  • Impaired attention, focus, concentration, judgment and impulse control

  • Impaired memory and speech functions

  • Disorganization and getting lost

  • Poor problem-solving and decision-making abilities

  • Slower mental processing speed

  • Symptoms similar to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease

​

And according to the Amen Clinics, "70% of those afflicted with Lyme disease report changes in their thinking, including memory loss and reduced mental sharpness." - https://www.amenclinics.com/blog/lyme-disease-great-masquerader/

​

Mold Illness/Biotoxin Illness/CIRS can cause neuro-psychological issues and has been referred to as "Inhalational Alzheimer's" by Dr. Dale Bredesen. - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4789584/

 

Dr. Richie Shoemaker, pioneer in the diagnosis and treatment of Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome - WDB, and his colleagues have shown unquestionably, based upon research, that biotoxins such as mycotoxins are associated with a significant range of symptoms, including cognitive decline. See the article by Dr Shoemaker, statistician Dennis House, and James Ryan, PhD "Structural brain abnormalities in patients with inflammatory illness acquired following exposure to water-damaged buildings: A volumetric MRI study using NeuroQuant®", which has been accepted for publication in the peer reviewed journal, Neurotoxicology and Teratology

- https://www.survivingmold.com/docs/NTT_NQ_PDF_06_17_2014.PDF 

​

​

​

​

​

​

Avoiding Cognitive Decline and Addressing Other Neuro-Psychological Issues

Because we need our brain for everything we do we must give it as much attention as we do the rest of our bodies. If truth be told, we need to give our whole being more care than most of us do in the realms of Bio/Psycho/Social/Spiritual. Brain related problems affect 200 million Americans at some point in their lives; Alzheimer's, dementia, depression, anxiety, and even obesity are all strongly linked to the lack of brain health.*

​

  • Alzheimer's is expected to triple in the next 30 years and there is no cure in the foreseeable future.*

  • Depression is a risk factor for Alzheimer's, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity.*

  • Depression doubles a woman's risk and quadruples a man's risk of Alzheimer's.*

  • Two thirds of the national population are overweight and 37.5% are obese.*

  • 140 studies report that as weight goes up, the size and function of the brain goes down.*

  • People who are overweight compared to a healthy weight, had 4% less brain volume and their brains looked eight years older than healthy people. People who were obese had 8% less brain volume and their brains looked 16% older than other people.*

​

The best ways to address or prevent trouble in these areas is to know your brain type, as there are many sub-types of ADD, depression, anxiety, addictions and obesity. Let Lyme and Mold Coach help you determine where you are at through brain assessment and targeted intervention suggestions through our Brain Health Coaching!

​

*Daniel Amen, MD, Light University Brain Health Coaching, 2017

​

bottom of page