Posted by Dinah on October 19, 2003, at 20:15:46
In reply to Re: Stress and HPA axis, posted by Cairo on October 12, 2003, at 13:25:39
I'm sorry to take so long in getting back to you. I wanted to look something up from my past research and I really haven't been feeling well.
I found out, quite by accident, that many of my symptoms had to do with acetylcholine. IBS, migraines, and vasomotor rhinorrhea in addition to the various and sundry mental health symptoms. It was in looking up my runny nose that comes in rather unusual circumstances that I discovered the links.
So I figured the answer to all my problems would be an anticholinergic drug and got myself a prescription for Nortryptiline. It worked pretty well for the IBS and I think if I recall it also worked for the migraines (which Effexor did as well), but I soon could feel that it was affecting my norepinephrine levels and that always has horrible effects for me. I apparently have all the norepinephrine my body can stand. So I had to drop it.
But it is interesting how all those things can be traced back to the cholinergic system.
http://www.jcaai.org/Param/Rhinitis/Complete/non_allergic_rhinitis.htm
Vasomotor rhinitis is unrelated to allergy, infection, structural lesions, systemic disease, or drug abuse. (see summary statement #16) Although the term vasomotor implies increased neural efferent traffic to the blood vessels supplying the nasal mucosa, this has never been proven. Subjects with vasomotor rhinitis fall into two general groups: "runners" who have "wet" rhinorrhea, and "dry" subjects with predominant symptoms of nasal congestion and blockage to airflow, and minimal rhinorrhea. These reactions can be provoked by nonspecific irritant stimuli such as cold dry air, perfumes, paint fumes, and cigarette smoke. Subjects with predominantly rhinorrhea (sometimes referred to as cholinergic rhinitis) appear to have enhanced cholinergic glandular secretory activity, since atropine effectively reduces their secretions. (3) Subjects with predominantly nasal congestion and blockage may have nociceptive neurons that have heightened sensitivity to innocuous stimuli.
Emotional factors such as stress and sexual arousal are known to have an effect on the nose, probably due to autonomic stimulation. (4)
poster:Dinah
thread:268318
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031015/msgs/270937.html