Neuro Note 2 "Can the Damaged Brain Repair Itself"

“Neuro Note 2”

I’m doing this neuro note over the Ted Talk “Can the Damaged Brain Repair Itself’. I chose this topic because I am very passionate about the brain, and am fascinated by the way it works. I was born 3 months premature, and had many cognitive issues growing up, and often found myself at the bottom of the class until college. My story is much longer and detailed than this, but I wanted you to understand where my passion for neurological study comes from.

This Ted Talk was interesting and gives a lot of people hope about stem cell research, and the positive direction that stem cell research is going. Dr. Chandran discussed the topic, and brought up several important facts that leads us to believe that the damaged brain can repair itself, it just needs some “help”. Dr. Chandran first mentioned that 35 million individuals are living with brain injuries, and that as a nation it has cost our healthcare system 700 billion dollars. He then went on to explain how neurons work in the brain, and that the main issue with a specific brain injury, like multiple sclerosis, is that the axons of the cells become unmyelinated, which in simple terms means, slows them down or completely hinders their function. Dr. Chandran then began to explain the importance of stem cells, and how they would compare damaged cells to newly made stem cells. Their research concluded that the damaged  cells were 2.5 times more likely to die. Dr. Chandran then posed the question, “how do we get these cells to stop dying”? After doing further research, Dr. Chandran and his team decided to take stem cells from bone marrow (which is obviously regenitive), and place the bone marrown stem cells into the brain. The results were fascinating. Using the optic nerve for measurement (because the optic nerve is very measurable/important in brain damage), Dr. Chandran and his team discovered that the myelination was beginning to work again, Dr. Chandran believes that the stem cells that were placed in the brain woke the damaged cells and allowed them to do their job again. Obviously, there is still much research to be done, but this gives us insight on how to put a healing touch on these awful brain injuries.

Reflecting on this topic, I certainly learned some valuable information. This Ted Talk was aired in 2013, so a lot has changed since then, and I can only imagine how far the research has come. As a future OT I, obviously can’t tell every patient dealing with brain injuries that they are going to be 100 percent healed, but I can show them what research has to say, and explain to them that every day we are a step closer to healing the brain. Going through neurological aspects and neurobiology as a student made this Ted Talk very understandable and relatable. I look forward to continuing my studies in neurology.

 Reference 

Chandran, S. (n.d.). Can the damaged brain repair itself? Retrieved from 

    https://www.ted.com/talks/siddharthan_chandran_can_the_damaged_brain_repair_itself 

Reference

Chandran, S. (n.d.). Can the damaged brain repair itself? Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/siddharthan_chandran_can_the_damaged_brain_repair_itself

Blog Post Challenge #7 "Mystic Isle"

Most therapist will agree that not all patients enjoy doing their workouts/rehab sessions, and that sometimes it can be a struggle to get clients through just half of their training session. Well, what if I told you a new program has been made that not only motivates patients to work on performance activities, but also pushes clients to work a little harder without them even knowing it. Thanks to a program created by the University of Southern California game based rehab lab, we have just that. The game is called Mystic Isle, and is performed on a system similar to the Wii. In this game, the client is on a special island, and must complete special task while traveling all over the island, with the goal being to complete every task on the island. I should also mention that the special task are all movements related to occupational performance. A couple of the clients were asked to share about their experiences with Mystic Isle. Both clients mentioned how they struggled with certain movements in therapy and that it was becoming annoyingly frustrating, but after playing the game they were beginning to improve on these movements because of the fun and motivating aspect of the game. I believe another area that caused improvement was the competitive aspect that comes along with playing a video game, everyone always want to beat their high score. As far as the fun factor, I think it’s great for patients to be able to escape to Mystic Isle for a while (sometimes gyms can get boring). It is also important to mention that this game provides assessment, and can be played at home. The fact that it can be played at home is neat because it allows OTs to assess patients without having to be there in person.

With me being the nerd that I am, I love video games and mystic lands. Combining those with occupational therapy is so awesome to me. I don’t think these game based rehab labs will ever replace one on one treatment, but it’s great to see them being incorporated and making a difference in the lives of others. Maybe one day UTHSC can have a game based rehab lab!

https://news.usc.edu/79932/video-game-developed-at-usc-lets-patients-play-their-way-through-rehab/

-This is a link to the website and a video with more information! 

Case Study 1 SCI TD (Macy)

Tyler Densford is a very interesting individual. While doing a drill at a Memphis national guard base, Tyler sustained a spinal cord after falling 40 feet from a helicopter during a drill. The injury left Tyler paralyzed from the waist down. I would like to comment on how much Tyler's story has influenced me today. I'm sure it took some time for him to gain his enjoyment in life back, but it appears now that he is living life to the fullest, and is continuing to chase his dreams at the University of Memphis.  Macy mentioned that Tyler was very thankful that his OT did not treat him differently and really set the foundation for him to get use to a new lifestyle while also providing phenomenal care. I admire his relentless attitude to stay in shape and still enjoy life regardless of the situation. Macy did mention that Tyler does get annoyed by the lack of universal design and that sometimes transportation can be somewhat difficult. Tyler is also very interested in doing further research on spinal cord injuries, and looks forward to making the most of his life. I admire Tyler for his courage and determination!

Neuro Note 1

“Me Before You”

I decided to do my first neuro-note on the movie and novel, ‘Me Before You”, I had seen this movie last November and was very intrigued with the story and the relationship between the caregiver and client. I will say the movie didn’t have the happiest ending in the world, but still taught valuable lessons that can be related to the field of occupational therapy and the psychological affects that certain tragedies can have on clients and their family members.

The main character of this story (Will Traynor) seems to have the perfect life. He is athletic, smart, funny, and a successful business man living in the UK. Will is between the ages of 25-30 and lives every day to the fullest, rather it be work or recreation. It should be also noted that he is engaged to the women of his dreams, and they are both looking forward to a wonderful future together. One day Will is struck by a motorcycle while getting into a taxi, and the results leave him a quadriplegic. As you might imagine he goes into a deep depression and is constantly feeling sorry for himself. Because of his lack of interest to participate in life, Will, begins to lose close friends and his fiancé. Sadly after 2 years of therapy and countless doctor visits, Will, decides he wants to end his life with assisted suicide, in Will’s mind, if he can’t live life to the fullest then he doesn’t want to live at all. As one can imagine his family is horrified by the news, but ultimately understand that it’s his decision, however they come to an agreement that he must wait at least 6 months before he can go through with it. Eventually his mom hires a second caregiver, for when the Physical Therapist is not assisting Will. Her name is Louisa Clark and is known for being a very bubbly and energetic human being, unknown to Louisa at the time, but Will’s mother is hoping that Louisa can get to Will and influence him in a positive manner so that he will not want to end his life. Although difficult at first Louisa does begin to get through to Will’s heart (in more ways than one), and as a result we begin to see Will beginning to appreciate life again. Sadly, Will does go on to end his life by means of assistive suicide, but does leave Louisa a good amount for her to pursue her dreams. He was forever grateful for the impact she had on his life when nobody else could.

Reflecting on this movie/novel I’m filled with many emotions. Obviously as a future OT, I would never want another human being to end their life, no matter how depressed they might have been. At the same time, it opens my eyes to the kind of emotions clients go through that I could never begin to feel or understand. We love to preach to people to make the best of what life has to offer, even after tragedy, but do we really understand what that client is going through, what the family is going through?  As a future OT this experience makes me want to continue to be a positive influencer, but at the same time it makes me want to real on the inside and real with the client. I’m never going to force a smile on someone, I’ll always be a friend first, and meet the client where they are. It’s not in our job description to be someone’s friend, but sometimes a client just needs to know that they are loved and understood before any rehabilitation progress is to be made, and I could even argue that it’s the most important part of the rehabilitation process. I also found it interesting that Will was also discouraged because his house was not handicap accessible, which goes back to the importance of universal design and the huge impact it can have on a client’s psyche.  

References

 Moyes, J. (2012). Me before you. New York: Pamela Dorman Books.

Me Before You (2016). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2674426/ (trailer also available here)