Brain inflammation, or neuroinflammation, occurs in the brain, nervous system, or spinal cord. It happens when a person’s immune system is triggered by a virus, infection, injury, autoimmune disease, or another cause. Neuroinflammation can directly affect a person’s mental health, leading to mood or behavior changes.

The right treatment for someone’s mental health, behavioral, or mood-related symptoms depends on the root cause of those symptoms. If that cause is connected to the immune system, the individual’s symptoms often don’t respond to psychiatric treatment such as SSRIs. 

Inflammation in the brain can affect how we think, act, feel, and move, often seemingly out of the blue. Cells from the immune system or their chemical products become abnormally active in areas of the brain and alter brain function.

This can cause complex neurological and psychological symptoms, from depression and anxiety to obsessive compulsive and movement disorders.