Focused Neuroregulation in the Treatment and Prevention of Mental and Physical Illness

Abstract

Despite the enormous strides that have been made in neuroscience, the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders remains unclear. Consequently, various forms of psychotherapy, pharmacotherapy, and neuromodulatory therapy continue to be applied without a clear understanding of what pathological process is being treated. However, an emerging hypothesis contends that psychiatric symptoms are the consequence of pathological hyperactivity in symptom-related circuits in the brain. According to the Multi-Circuit Neuronal Hyperexcitability (MCNH) Hypothesis of Psychiatric Disorders, persistent firing in anxiety circuits causes persistent feelings of anxiety; persistent firing in depressive circuits causes persistent feelings of depression; persistent firing in cognitive circuits causes ruminative and obsessive thoughts; etc… This pathological circuit-specific hyperactivity is believed to be caused by an inherent failure of the neurological system to self-regulate when perturbed by a psychological, emotional, or biological stressor. Based on this hypothesis, it would not be unreasonable to think that psychiatric symptoms, irrespective of which disorder was being treated, would respond favorably to any natural or medicinal intervention that reduces the excitability of the neurological system. Although the use of brain-calming drugs in psychiatry is not new, what is new is the idea of focusing their use on correcting a specific physiological abnormality that is believed to underlie the symptoms. This technique, which could be called “Focused Neuroregulation,” would differ from standard pharmacotherapy in that if one anticonvulsant failed to alleviate or only partially alleviated symptoms, another anticonvulsant would be substituted or added rather than turning to an off-target class of drugs. This approach is clinically valid because each anticonvulsant is structurally different, and there are multiple mechanisms (and receptors) through which the excitability of the neurological system can be therapeutically regulated. Also, anticonvulsants, unlike other classes of psychotropic drugs, tend to bring the system back into balance; hence the term “mood stabilizers.” Yet another benefit of Focused Neuroregulation is that it could help prevent or slow the progression of the many chronic health conditions that have been linked to an inherent hyperexcitability of the neurological system. In recognition of these potential benefits, and in an effort to avoid the many problems that are associated with the symptom-based treatment of psychiatric and related functional symptoms, the aim of this article is to incentivize the study of a more targeted approach to the treatment of mental illness and the prevention of chronic disease.