I honestly think this keeps on coming back to norepinephrine/adrenaline.
Look at this:"Norepinephrine acts as an excitatory neurotransmitter and modulates neuron voltage potentials to favor glutamate activity and neurotransmitter firing"-http://becknatmed.com/106.html
Also, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12697037 - "Sexual activity induced transient increases of plasma epinephrine and norepinephrine levels during orgasm with a rapid decline thereafter."
Throw in histamine, and this all tied back to my earlier thread about the adrenaline/norepinephrine surge during an orgasm.
That nor/adrenaline surge + histamine(only in the allergic people, also a known neurostimulant) + the glutamate release done by norepinephrine surges ties in everysingle thing so far.
This explains why glutamate(MSG) is a huge problem for us, but doesnt fix everything.
Reflecting on all this, it seems MSG is not the egg in this situation, it has got to be norepinephrine.
Norepinephrine converts to adrenaline, it stimulates release of glutamate(which has been implicated in muscle pain and stiffness), haibbou had massively elevated serum levels, which again is a common finding in something called hyperadrenergic POTS.
Basically what im trying to say is it seems this whole MSG thing ties back to the norepinephrine theory of this stupid POIS condition. and it seems that the ways to cure this issue revolve around regulating norepinephrine and its products/effects.
One more very very important point: ON many many receptors throughout the body norepinephrine competes with Acetylcholine; with NE being primarily a sympathetic nerve effector(triggers fight or flight responses) and acetylcholine being a parasympathetic nerve effector( calms you down, slows heart rate, allows better use of eye muscles, increases tear production, helps with digestion, etc.) This norepinephrine/acetylcholine competition of sorts, could be why huperzine A and acetyl-L carnitine work so well for Kurtosis. Indeed, it would seem that nicotine and alpha GPC would also help alot with POIS too if this is correct.
What do you guys think? it seems norepinephrine is the enemy here!
I thought about maybe being symptomatic of myasthenia gravis because of too much noradrenaline competing with acetylcholine at receptors, meaning that eye muscle control was compromised and concentration was impaired. There are some theories of ADHD which suggest the symptoms of poor concentration and hyperactivity result from impairment in the acetylcholine (calm thinking), dopamine (focus/concentration) functioning caused by too much noradrenaline (fast reaction & bodily defence). These neurotransmitters are favoured for different activities. We evolved to allow noradrenaline to overtake our bodies in the event of difficult situation to specifically prevent slow and ponderous thought which may get us killed.
There's also a theorised link between exercise, asthma and protein where exercise sends the body into a defensive mode while consuming anti-oxidants like CoQ10 rendering the body more sensitive to free glutamate which is in a lot of protein drinks.
However, in my experience huperzine doesn't work as well as the carnitines complex. I suspect that after years of POIS, our acetylcholinesterase activity may be modified. Possibly because our brains are trying desperately hard to increase acetylcholine levels but they need the raw ingredients. So acetyl-carnnitne and ALARC-arginate would be good at raising levels. Remember I take this with taurine also. I find that a double dose of the carnitine complex works best but it's so horribly expensive and while the results are great, the cost is prohibitive. I sent the companies that developed the stuff an email as I'm interested in getting it in bulk without all the caffeine that they shove into pre-workout drinks.
But noradrenaline production steals from dopamine supplies which get another kicking from prolactin after an O. So there's much about the POIS state that appears to resemble dopamine depletion.
This may be dependent on the sufferer however. So how to increase one and reduce the other. Well, my idea is sort of crude which is to try and build up dopamine levels while managing adrenaline and inhibiting glutamic excitoxicity using taurine AND building up acetylcholine levels. Anecdotally, it also appears that ALCAR and ALCAR-arginate may stimulate the release of tyrosine hydroxylase which may improve the efficiency of dopamine creation.
I said much of this to B_Daniel and he's discussed it with his doctors. They seem to think an catecholamine imbalance idea is plausible. If this was the case, it would not be treated by trying to reduce all catecholamines. We'd already have a dopamine problem and lowering our dopamine levels further wouldn't improve things. Dopamine + Acetylcholine - Noradrenaline = Focus + Thinking + Calm
(very crudely but that's where we all want to be!)The ideal would be some kind of dopamine hydroxylase inhibitor with quite predictable results from varying dosages. I read a paper that suggested st john's wort may be doing this.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15536462Doctor's would probably prescribe beta-blockers. Might work
Note that clonidine has been used as a treatment for ADHD, anxiety disorder and restless leg syndrome. All things that "integrated" medical practitioners suggest could be treated with niacin. It's an interesting aside.
Nordnurse already said this but SJW isn't something that should be risked with any other psychoactive compounds. i.e. anti-depressants. It could potentially lead to serotonin syndrome if taken with SSRI's. You do not want this. Equally, if you're on some anti-depressant you can't just stop taking it immediately so I hope that nobody decides they can just try this stuff without consulting their doctor.
This doesn't really address the
Why? My gut feeling is that noradrenaline favouring may come from a hormonal problem which creates a feedback loop. Hormonal problem causes POIS. POIS produces anxiety which encourages the body to produce more noradrenaline. Other symptoms would resemble hypertension. If this is the case, over time POIS worsens if untreated and the sufferer would feel in "constant POIS" which would be very similar to ADHD symptoms. Not understanding the problem, I reckon most psychiatrists would decide you either had ADHD or an anxiety disorder. In a way, POIS would so closely resemble an anxiety disorder that it may yield to the same treatments.
Let's say POTS=POIS
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postural_orthostatic_tachycardia_syndromeBut a form where the effects are felt after an O, ironic considering the name. Well, Doctors are still not sure what's causing POTS so the Why is a big question.
I've started to read more about Dr Dexter's papers and the impact of testosterone and progesterone on catecholamine levels and vice versa. This is also to try and understand why pregnenolone had such a beneficial effect for me and why Demografx testosterone cure worked.
Of course
All of the above is hypothesis. and
always ask your doctor about interactions before taking any psychoactive drug. Anyway, I better go away and be productive