Salus June 4, 2025

Jeremy

This brings us back a bit to two concepts. I would like to delve a little more into the intuitive function and the gut. I find that many men tend to say: “That’s what my gut says.” Whereas a woman might say: “That’s my intuition.” People who are in between might say either one. But there are certain ways that we trust our gut. We believe in our gut, and yet we’re oftentimes dissociated from our gut.

Gay, I’d love to hear a little more about the neurobiological communications that happen between our gut and the brain. You’re calling it the second brain. I’d love to hear a little more about what factors make that happen and how the intertwining of this one and that one is happening.

Gay

When I think about us as human, our human anatomy, I often focus on the Vagus nerve and how the Vagus nerve is really the communication conduit to assist the peripheral nervous system or the autonomic nervous system in its regulation. This regulation, in turn, directly affects our heart, of course, our gut, of course, and our neurobiological responses to whatever external stimuli we’re exposed to. And that lays on top of epigenetics and history, and a blunt force trauma, emotional trauma. So, these central organs, the gut and the Vagus nerve, relating to the heart and the brain are so important in terms of how that communication flow happens. Their critical communication and interaction are not unlike what must occur in a healthcare system.

Much like what Jack was saying, some central hubs have to be regarded as the centers of communication. They are required if we are to consider all facets involved in someone’s life. And like you were saying, Jeremy, sometimes it’s hard to get mental health to communicate with medical, and sometimes it’s hard for us in mental health to get medical to communicate with us. There are all of these highway blockages in that communication channel. This is very much like what happens as we age. The same blockages occur in the healthcare system. There are efficiencies. However, sometimes those efficiencies, such as technologies, lead to less and less efficient or less protective patient care. But who’s looking at that?