Does emotional arousal, through noradrenaline, push the cortex closer to a seizure? · Grey Matter

The evidence does not support the simple version of this hypothesis.

Does emotional arousal, through noradrenaline, push the cortex closer to a seizure?

The evidence does not support the simple version of this hypothesis. Arousal releases noradrenaline from the locus coeruleus across the cortex, which raises responsiveness and could plausibly lower thresholds, yet in animal models noradrenaline mostly protects against seizures and damage to the locus coeruleus makes seizures worse. At the same time, people with epilepsy report stress as one of their most common triggers, and diary studies find more seizures after stressful days. The link between arousal and seizures is real at the level of reports and statistics, and the route, through noradrenaline, cortisol, lost sleep or something else, remains open.