0
secondary stress—If we have not yet stabilized meta-adaptation and mastery
of kundalini, it is likely that we will be stressed during an awakening in experiencing
the extreme chemistry and expanded levels of perception. Having a spiritual practice
would reduce this secondary stress by making us more familiar and adapted to
anomalies in the autonomic nervous system and state changes. This stress would
further over-excite the body and produce a cascade of free radicals. High levels of
cortisol cause cells to shift from maintenance to energy creation. Even muscle tissue
is broken down for use as fuel during the fight-or-flight chemistry. Also even the
breakdown of cortisol and adrenaline produces free radicals. The stress hormone
cortisol causes free radical damage,inducing temporary nerve damage and long-
term consequences in health, functionality, success and longevity. Stress therefore
is synonymous with oxidative damage and inflammation. Spiritual practice makes
us more of an “active participant” rather than a victim of our own alchemy, thereby
reducing this secondary stress.
Glucose is burned in the powerhouses of the cells, known as mitochondria to
generate 90% of the energy used in the cell and free radicals and ROS are created
as toxic waste in this process. Consider also that since greater energy is generated
and used during an awakening the numbers of mitochondria must correspondingly
increase. The faster oxygen is used to burn glucose, the more free radicals are
produced as toxic waste.
The brain is susceptible to free radical damage due to its high content
of polyunsaturated fats and high numbers of mitochondria. The free radical
damage to proteins in neurons reduces their efficiency. Levels of vitamin C in
the brain are 50 times higher than elsewhere in the body to protect brain tissue
and neurotransmitters from oxidation. Raising antioxidant levels not only allows
damaged proteins to repair, but increases neurotransmitter levels as well. Preventing
morbid down swings or permanent neurological damage from kundalini awakening
is a matter of increasing our ability to cope with these higher levels of free radicals.
To protect the brain from free radical damage during the heightened nerve flow we
need to take hydrophobic (water repelling) antioxidants like pine bark, vitamin C-
Ester and alpha lipoic acid, as the blood brain barrier is impervious to hydrophilic
(water loving) substances. We must aim to get more antioxidant protection into
the cerebrospinal fluid and reduce secondary stress from a negative interpretation
of symptoms.
One way of interpreting the Die-off is that it is a temporary overwhelm of
our ability to cope with the free radical load, specifically in the mitochondria of
the nerves and the tissue in general. As the body is fully engaged in self-digesting
catabolysis there is simply little energy available for normal functioning. And so
this overload often forces complete bed rest until the body’s free radical defenses
can win out and the bodymind can begin to reinstate normal functioning. The
average Die-off therefore takes 3-5 days for this recuperation to occur. The septic
shock and Die-off phase of awakening constitutes a free radical oxidation crisis
that we can attempt to meta-adapt to by increasing antioxidant intake and upping
our stress reduction, relaxation techniques at this time.