diff --git a/src/mod/languages/mod_python3/mod_python3.c b/src/mod/languages/mod_python3/mod_python3.c
index 6fd8f08f76..d0c7c20df5 100644
--- a/src/mod/languages/mod_python3/mod_python3.c
+++ b/src/mod/languages/mod_python3/mod_python3.c
@@ -574,7 +574,9 @@ SWITCH_MODULE_LOAD_FUNCTION(mod_python3_load)
 
 		// swap out threadstate since the call threads will create
 		// their own and swap in their threadstate
-		PyThreadState_Swap(NULL);
+		// and release the global interpreter lock
+		PyEval_SaveThread();
+
 	}
 
 	switch_mutex_init(&THREAD_POOL_LOCK, SWITCH_MUTEX_NESTED, pool);
@@ -619,6 +621,7 @@ SWITCH_MODULE_SHUTDOWN_FUNCTION(mod_python3_shutdown)
 		pt = nextpt;
 	}
 	PyThreadState_Swap(mainThreadState);
+	PyEval_ReleaseThread(mainThreadState);
 	switch_yield(1000000);
 
 	switch_log_printf(SWITCH_CHANNEL_LOG, SWITCH_LOG_WARNING, "Had to kill %d threads\n", thread_cnt);
@@ -644,9 +647,13 @@ SWITCH_MODULE_SHUTDOWN_FUNCTION(mod_python3_shutdown)
 	mainInterpreterState = mainThreadState->interp;
 	myThreadState = PyThreadState_New(mainInterpreterState);
 	PyThreadState_Swap(myThreadState);
+	PyEval_ReleaseThread(myThreadState);
 
 	Py_Finalize();
 
+	// Release the global interpreter lock
+	PyEval_SaveThread();
+
 	return SWITCH_STATUS_UNLOAD;
 
 }