Dr. Candace Pert, the neuroscientist who discovered the opiate receptor and is known for her research with endorphins and peptides has the resources and experience to help us to understand the mind body connection and how our thoughts and emotions are affecting our physical state.
The basis for her forward thinking is the structure and plasticity of receptors, which are present on every cell of our body including our brain, nervous system, immune system, etc. Receptors are sequences of amino acids that form a type of “lock,” with different informational substances called neuropeptides as the “key.” However, unlike a lock and key, receptors and neuropeptides are chains of amino acids that are always moving and vibrating at certain frequencies and connect to cause physiological changes. Right now there are about 200 known neuropeptides including endorphins associated with bliss, hormones, for example cortisol which is associated with stress, or various other molecules controlling metabolic processes. Drugs also connect to these same receptors, imitating a natural neuropeptide and causing physiological changes. Receptors are clumped into complexes that form the walls of ionic channels in our cells that open and close creating an electrical current which courses through our brain and body. This influences the firing set point of neural impulses in your brain, affecting activation of signals. The same neuropeptides that are found in our brain are also found throughout the body.
If there is a blocking of the flow of these neuropeptides because of an emotional or physical trauma, they can form a pain body, or a buildup. Could this explain the idea that Fibromyalgia, a condition that is partly characterized by aching muscles, is linked to a history of surpressing emotions?
In one story that Candace Pert mentions in a speech at a conference in New York on the CD How to Feel Go(o)d, a woman who had a large tumor was pacing back and forth and suddenly went into a rage, releasing pent-up anger that she had accumulated because of a lifelong feud with her brother. At the end of her emotional rant, the entire tumor had dissolved and disappeared! One important function of our neuropeptides is chemotaxis, which is the directing of stem cells. Tumors are the result of stem cells gone awry, for example in ways as simple as going left when they should have gone right. Perhaps this lady had a blocked flow of neuropeptides, preventing the correct direction of her stem cells and resulting in her massive tumor. This could explain the physiological changes that come about through hands-on practices such as massage therapy or chiropractic, which could assist the free-flow of our neuropeptides throughout our bodymind. Also, exercises that release built up emotions through physical movements, breathing practices, or emitting certain sounds or words could allow our bodies to maintain a healthy flow of neuropeptides.
An interesting phenomenon that Dr. Pert brings up is that the frequencies of our receptors, as well as the frequency of human brain waves fall in the lower range of audible sound, audible sound being 20-20,000 Hz and brain waves being 0.5-100 Hz. Does this mean that when we are hearing music we are not only hearing it with our ears but with every cell of our body? This could explain the powerful effect of words, affirmations, guided imagery, and also how words can have an effect while the listener is asleep or unconscious.
Another very important connection to all of this is the fact that our brain is always rebuilding itself. Dr. Pert mentions the work of Dr. Eva Mezey who showed that stem cells from bone marrow migrate into the brain and form new neurons throughout our whole lives. In this way, we are always building new neural connections, giving our patterns of thought plasticity. These stem cells are also directed by neuropeptides through chemotaxis. In this way, our emotions influence our neural pathways. Not only are we always rebuilding our brains, but we are filtering incoming information through our bodymind network at our receptors. Dr. Eric R. Kandel received the Nobel prize in 2000 for showing that memory is stored at the level of the receptor. So all of our incoming perceptions are individualized and influenced by all of our memories.
There is an interesting connection of the scientific standpoint of Candace Pert with ancient Chinese teachings of Chi. One way they correlate is that not only do stem cells originate from bone marrow, but ancient teachings said that Chi, our life force energy, originates in the bone. Also, the areas where opiate receptors, our receptors for endorphins, are concentrated correlate with the twelve meridians, or Chi centers that have been described for two thousand years in Chinese medicine. These same areas have concentrated levels of endorphins, one of our “molecules of emotion.” One very important example of a dense receptor center as well as a meridian is located in the frontal cortex of our brain, which is responsible for planning and decision making. This could explain how feelings of bliss, and therefore release of endorphins into the frontal cortex, can have an effect on our mental processes.
It is widely known that we have state-dependent learning. Throughout my education, I have often heard students saying that if you study while under the influence of caffeine or certain drugs, it is best to take the test under the same conditions. Dr. Donald Overton provided scientific research backing up these dissociated states. This occurs because molecules in drugs attach to your receptors, modifying your neural pathways. Because our natural neuropeptides attach to these same receptors, this can be taken a step farther to say that our emotional state can also influence our neural pathways. It has been shown in many experiments that in the state of fear it is very difficult to learn. Dr. Candace Pert’s understanding of this phenomenon led her to form a “multiple personality theory,” where in different emotional states we have altered states of consciousness with different memories, behaviors, and physiological processes. Unlike the classic case of multiple personality disorder, we are usually able to observe and remember all of our different emotional states and therefore make them somewhat consistent with our beliefs and ethics. Practices such as meditation or practicing “The Power of Now” by Eckart Tolle allow us to sit back and listen to our thoughts and mental processes yet stay above them and become the ultimate observer of our different emotional or personality states. In this way, we can avoid a rollercoaster of feelings and behaviors.
Dr. Candace Pert has written two books and also has two CD’s for sale. Molecules of Emotion, her first book, is an autobiography that goes into the science behind her current theories and ideas. It is somewhat scientific in its explanations of receptors and neuropeptides, but Dr. Pert takes the time to explain concepts for a non-science educated audience. Reading this first book definitely opened my eyes to seeing the possibility for a scientific basis for many alternative and integrative practices. Personally, this book inspired me to passionately pursue a career based on the science behind the mind body connection, and I would definitely recommend it. Recently Dr. Pert published the book Everything You Need to Know to Feel Go(o)d. This book is easier to understand and is more radical in thinking, with an attempt to show a possibility of science behind spirituality. Dr. Candace Pert draws together dependable research as well as her own knowledge about receptors and peptides to hypothesize how mind body and spirit are all interwoven. She also has a CD out with the same title, Everything You Need to Know to Feel Go(o)d , which is a lecture that she gave in New York explaining these same ideas. I found this CD very interesting and perfect for learning about the science behind our emotions while on the road. Finally, Candace Pert has created her own CD with guided imagery, healing music, and affirmations all based on her personal theories of the bodymind connection called Psychosomatic Wellness: Healing Your Bodymind. This CD is very forward thinking and thought out. Every musical note and different color themes mentioned throughout the CD are calculated to harmonize with the frequencies of our brain waves and receptor frequencies. The physiological effects of these details are unknown, and her guided imagery section leads you up into the clouds looking up at the night sky, calling for a very open minded listener. Overall, Candace Pert has an amazing way of integrating the hard science western medical thinking with new paradigm thinking, Eastern philosophy, and alternative medicine.
