e.g….I can remember Oliver Sachs reassuring a patient that she had such and such syndrome and not to worry…every one was happy…Patient felt they had their condition recognised…doctor felt clever for recognizing it…..BUT ….it was just a a label.Nobody really knew anything at all ..so silly……
Category: Health
e.g….I can remember Oliver Sachs reassuring a patient that she had such and such syndrome and not to worry…every one was happy…Patient felt they had their condition recognised…doctor felt clever for recognizing it…..BUT ….it was just a a label.Nobody really knew anything at all ..so silly……
I think that Parkinsons Disease ( PD) is caused by opposing forces acting on the Substantia Nigra.
The SN has to work harder to overcome a persistant inhibitory signal from eslewhere that causes it be to overstimulated to create a usable amount of dopamine.This overstimulation causes its demise .The inhibitory signal has to be global as the SN is affected on both sides.
I think its the habenula….already known as a dopamine inhibitor .
Maybe its over activated by an unpleasant childhood and remains elevated.
Gradually that wears down the SN and we lose dopamine producing cells .
I predict that PD is more prevalent in the Middle classes…as well.Thats enough predictions ( places where I can fall flat on my face ) for today.
LittleBangtheory …..
I think the sensory neurons that respond favourably to being stroked collide/coincide with the low level activation of pain receptors ( noniceptors ?) during the same stroke …..the pain receptors are activated at a far lower level ( because you are only being stroked and not scratched or harmed) but they also return a signal at a slower pace than the other receptors ( because they are unmyelinated …no fatty insulation causes a slower progression of the signal).
At a certain frequency of stroking , at a certain concentration of pain/pleasure neuro-density…you will the two signals resonate and amplify each other.Causing heightened pleasure and pain = ticklish painful laughter screaming.
Something visual…a clip from a movie..very gooood.
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=f70_1263474762
But here’s something cerebral….and explanatory.
A neuroscientist has a stroke and she explains/describes how she felt….awesome.( TED.com = lots of interesting stuff here ).
http://www.ted.com/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/03/fashion/03SKIN.html?ref=todayspaper
Removing 50% of migraines by reducing the skin /muscle layer around the brow and occipital area.
This came to light through the experiences of people having plastic surgery.The evidence that many ( not all),
are just that skin deep..i.e they have no complex pathology…is fascinating.
It reminds me of Arthur Janov’s theories and his simple description of the cause and origin of many migraines…. its just the painful imprint of the forceps squeezing on the front and back of the head of a newborn during birth process.
The accompanying bright lights of the delivery room cause great pain to the newborns eyes and thats why the eyes become sensitive to light stimuli as well during a migraine.
I wonder if anyone has ever seen or studied whether any patterns of lights resembling theatre lighting are seen in migraine patients?
( 3 lights within a circular halo…could a baby pick up such a detail ..if it’s eyes could capture it….I’m sure the memory will stay especially considering the immense amount of pain involved).

Spiritualized Cancer , Liberal Parkinsons , Conservative Alzheimers disease
Alzheimers come about from an aggressive body state…that essentially erodes itself with its high level of ‘readiness’ to attack .
The body is in a state of fear (so my stab in the dark guess that conservatives might suffer from it marginally more than anyone else ).
Parkinson’s is a disease where there is a balance of forces against each within the brain….each leaning heavily against each other…..like a tug of war….in balance…wearing out the brain.Reminds me of the liberal brain.Balanced.As they tug against each other ..they wear out the ‘doing’ juices ( dopamine).
Cancer is for people who are defenceless and open ..too open ..to all.Their defences are muted and they incur a cost for that.People with cancer will have an open spirituality.( Eva Cassidy..look at her voice….see is so defenceless and unguarded ..that voice was/is heavenly …she had no defences /layers…sheer spirit )
OK..now ..I know alot of this is mostly non-sense…but I know there is a nugget of truth in here somewhere amongst this caricuture.I know rightwingers get Parkinsons and cancer etc etc is a bit over the top…….but I think there will be a measurable yardstick with which the temperaments of different people are directly related to the diseases they get and the political eco-system of their thoughts.
Remember right and left wing party affiliations are not usually dependent on whether someone is a left winger or right winger.This is not about political parties…but political individuals.
In the US ..we have a purifying process where individuals are becoming more closely aligned to parties that represent the inner political poles of mind …but that is not a given in most societies….e.g You can be a conservative through culture/birth yet be a liberal inside quite easily in the UK or a rightwinger in the socialist party ..eg Blair and Labour.
Heres an article that presents the case for Alzeheimers being related to immune defence.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/09/health/09alzh.html?em
I know the disease I’m mostly likely to get is Parkinsons but not Cancer.I’m fairly certain of that.Maybe another 20 years and we shall see.