I stumbled across a couple of articles a few days ago that completely grabbed my attention with a deep knowing of significance. These articles have enthralled my attention and have given me some new insights into my own mental health journey and what my passion and purpose is to this day. The articles are about microglial cells in the brain and their connection to various mental and physical health and ailments.
What are glial cells? They are part of the neuronal family yet they function differently than the neurons that communicate through electrical currents jumping from one neuron to the next and so on. Glial cells can either function primarily as the physical support for neurons, including the ability for neurons to grow myelin, or they provide nutrients to neurons and regulate the extracellular fluid of the brain, especially surrounding neurons and their synapses. Microglial cells are a specific glial cell found in the brain, and have a similar role as the fascial system of the body.
Let’s detour for a moment for a brief reminder of what Fascia is and why this connection to microglial cells is blowing my mind right now.
In a nutshell, fascia refers to the connective tissue that surrounds every layer of every organ, cell, and structure in your body. The Fascial System surrounds, interweaves, and interpenetrates everything in the body and allows all body systems to be integrated. It is composed of elastin (which allows the body to move in every dynamic plane possible), collagen (which provides the strength and structure of the human form), and a gel-like substance referred to as ground-substance (which is the fluid that fills all the space in the extracellular matrix; i.e. the space outside the cell). The human body is innately intelligent, because the fascia is a wise fibre-optic system that works like an organ in and of itself. It has become more clear in recent years that traumatic memories, implicit memories, habits, and our general history is stored within the body, within the fascia. The fascia is the biological page that our life’s narrative is written on. This is why it is nearly impossible to think your way into a new state of being when your body is holding on to the stories of the past. You can think one way, but if your body feels a different way, feeling will trump thinking, otherwise we shut down feeling and lose access to the power and innate wisdom of the body.
When we address the body, rather than simply the thinking or language ability of the mind, we can heal and transform at a much more successful and efficient rate.
The Nervous System is embedded in the Fascia, and highjacks the entire body anytime it receives a signal of “danger” (which is far more often than necessary nowadays). The Nervous System reacts to posture, movement, thoughts, and chemicals of our inner-pharmacy. It’s job is survival, so it is extremely sensitive and animalistic in nature. When we live in chronic activation (hyperarousal) or deactivation (hypoarousal) we lose touch with our innately intuitive, sensitive and wise fascia. And, as the saying goes, “use it or lose it.” When we do not properly care and tend to the fascia, the physical body, our body begins to harden, break down, and become separated and disconnected versus integrated and whole.
Now, back to microglial cells. Just as the fascia of the body can be the conduit of whole body communication, wisdom, freedom of movement, and immense joy and pleasure of living, the microglial cells of the brain operate in a similar fashion.
In the first article I mentioned above, it is stated that previously scientists thought glial cells only had the function of support for neurons, yet it has become clear that glial cells are active participants in a number of neurologic processes, including pain and various symptoms associated with various mental health afflictions.
This is a big deal for many reasons, one being the massive amount of microglial cells in our system.
“Outnumbering neurons in all areas of the brain, glial cells account for over half the volume and more than 70% of the total CNS cell population.”
The new understanding of microglial cells has expanded the view of what these amazing cells are actually doing for us on a daily bases.
“Mirroring their wide distribution centrally and peripherally, glial cells have multiple functions in a wide variety of physiological processes, including CNS development, pathogen recognition, phagocytosis, antigen presentation, cytotoxicity, extracellular matrix remodeling, repair, stem cell regulation, regulation of tumor cell proliferation, lipid transport, neuronal communication, and modulation of inflammation.”
Another fascinating aspect of the microglial cell is that it expresses cannabinoid receptors, which plays a role in the body’s natural ability to relieve pain, produce anti-inflammatory chemicals, provide antioxidants, and engage in neuronal protection and self preservation in the face of stressors. Microglial cells basically support our body’s ability to heal itself!
However, just as a friendly puppy can become a rabid terror if treated poorly with neglect and abuse, our very own Glial Cells are capable of turning against us, producing chemicals that block homeostasis and actually increase the chronification of pain. When we neglect our own basic needs, our body, our glial cells, literally become agents of destruction.
The second article I mentioned speaks to this potently and refers to microglia as game-changers for mental health.
“Under the right circumstances, microglia keep the brain healthy; they twirl around neurons like tiny dancers stretching out their long, elegant limbs, soothing and bathing neurons in anti-inflammatory factors that help protect the brain’s all-important neural circuitry.
But microglia, it turns out, also have a dark side. When they sense incoming threats — the same triggers that can overwhelm our body’s immune system: chronic stressors (including adverse childhood experiences), environmental toxins, trauma, infections— microglia can morph from angels into frenzied assassins. They can begin to spit forth inflammatory toxins and engulf and destroy the very neural synapses they once protected — those fundamental to our mind state, mental processing, mood, behavior, and memories. Indeed, the root causes of depression and anxiety, stem not so much from chemical imbalances but from microglia gone rogue — when microglia spit out inflammation that alters levels of dopamine and serotonin.
Because these microglia-led inflammatory changes appear differently in the brain from one person to another, we give it a hundred different names: OCD, ADHD, anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, memory loss.
This science also solves a decades-old mystery: the link between trauma and loss of brain synapses has long confounded the medical community. We’ve known for some time that adverse childhood experiences can alter important synaptic wiring in the brain — we can see this in brain scans of children and teens who’ve experience chronic unpredictable stress, whether that stress is due to parents fighting, emotional neglect, chronic humiliation, poverty, or community violence. Connections between important areas of the brain can become compromised, wanted and necessary brain circuits and synapses can be lost. Gray matter volume decreases. We also know that children facing ACEs have a higher rate of mental health disorders, mood disorders, and Alzheimer’s as the years tick by.”
While scientists are in the process of discovering and designing drugs that could potentially target glial cells, which is a complex undertaking, the best course of action for all of us is to take our mental and physical health more seriously. I know I want this army of glial cells to be fighting for my highest good and that means my practice of meditation, movement, intermittent fasting and diverse diet, sleep, constructive rest, vitamins and nutrients, connection with myself, others and nature, and anything else I can do to know and love myself more intimately is absolutely a top priority.
For many years now there has been research and a general understanding that our gut health is highly correlated to the amount of serotonin in the body, and therefore, a predictor of potential mental health issues. A fascinating statement in this article mentions:
“…that one way to influence both the gut and microglia is through intermittent fasting and fasting-mimicking diets, which help increase the resistance of neurons to overpruning. With fasting, we may have some ability to influence microglia to turn from the dark side to the light again.”
And then my favorite nerve in the body is mentioned; the Vagus Nerve.
“Scientists are also working to try to reboot microglia by hacking the largest nerve in the body, the vagus nerve, which travels down from the brain stem and throughout our torso, sending its roots into our heart, lungs, and digestive system. The vagus nerve acts as a superconductor, sending bidirectional signals between body and brain. When the body is under emotional or physical stress it zips “fight flight freeze” warning messages up the vagus nerve to the brain, which puts microglia under duress too, leading, over time, to changes in everyday mood and behavior. Work to calm the vagus nerve — like Stephen Porges’s Safe and Sound Protocol — are now more crucial than ever. Meanwhile, human clinical trials are examining whether stimulating the vagus nerve can ameliorate symptoms in chronic pain, memory loss, depression, and autoimmune disease.”
So there you have it. These tiny inconspicuous cells are actually at the foundation of some major life altering experiences and very well may be the key to optimal mental and physical health. I find this knowledge so inspiring as it gives me a clear visual and purpose behind the often tedious tasks of sustaining my basic needs. I know sleep is important, I know eating well and listening to my body is important, I know, I know, I know…..and now when I take action for my overall health and longevity, despite any inconveniences, I will visualize these tiny and amazing microglial cells in my brain getting what they need so they can be the powerful conductors of strong health and well-being.