Another amplifier of mold illness includes stress. Stress, in many forms, may work in concert with mold toxicity. Our patients tell life stories of emotional and physical abuse or traumatic events. The physical stress of a head trauma is one such example. We know that head trauma may trigger leaky brain or a chronic inflammatory state in the brain. This may allow mycotoxins or other toxins to reach deeper into the brain, triggering more damage than it could have done alone. Emotionally stressful events, between the surge in cortisol and the firing up of the fight or flight system, can also augment mold’s effects. Adding the direct chemical effects of mold toxins on the limbic system’s fight or flight response together with the emotional stressor sets the stage for chronic neurologic and emotional symptoms.