Resources: Articles
New Trends in Literature: Neuroplasticity and Lesions of the Central Nervous System
Darryl Tracy DscPT
"Man is made by his belief. As he believes, so he is." Bhagavad Gita 500 B.C.
For many years, the concepts surrounding the function of the nervous system and repair of the nervous system was quite rudimentary and basic. Recently, scientists, philosop titioners have been joining forces to question our knowledge base in surrounding the function of the nervous system and neuroplasticity. This development has spawned a rise in mainstream literature on the topic. This appears as personal stories, case studies as written by scientists and popular scientific books on neuroplasticity.
One of the first books released was in 1972 when renowned Russian psychologist A.R. Luria wrote a personal account of suffering a brain injury in his best seller "The Man with a Shattered World". This psycho-biography wrote about an individual working towards recovering his abi rite after a brain injury. Since that time there has been growing interest in popular books on concepts and beliefs of neuroplasticity.
Oliver Sacks is a well known neurologist and writer. He writes about individuals with lesions of the central nervous system (among other injuries and conditions) His famous "The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat" and "An Anthropologist on Mars" tell stories of individuals with such neurological injuries. Exploring these case studies, he writes about how they navigate the world with these injuries. The stories reveal the complexities of the central nervous system and the s writings expose how individual each person's nervous system is and as Sir William Osler once wrote 'Ask not what disease the person has, but rather what person the disease has.'
In 2008, Dr. Norman Doidge released the exciting book "The Brain that Changes Itself" This book quickly became a 2008 New York Times Bestseller. Doidge delved into the topic of neuroplasticity providing the reader with a comprehensive ry of the beliefs surrounding neuroplasticity and recent developments with many intriguing case studies. This book was popular with mainstream readers and since then there has been a flux of literature on similar topics.
For the reader who is a novice to scientific reading, it is imperative one uses a critical eye on the validity of the information being presented. Since the controversies and beliefs on neuroplasticity are still so varied, it is important,we as readers ask:
A)Who is the writer?
B) What are their credentials?
C) Are there references, bibliographies, additional writers-what is their background?
D) Discuss books and their information with health care professionals working in the field of neuroplasticity and neuromedicine/rehabilitation or similar scientists
E) How recent are all the references?
Using the internet as a source to investigate information can be useful but again, one needs to know the background of the website to ensure its content and validity.
This is an exciting time in the quest to learn more about the function of the central nervous system and plasticity. For individuals involved in neurorehabilitation (individuals wit n, family members, caregivers and practitioners) this literature keeps us informed and educated.
"The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion at the cradle of true art and true sciences." Albert Einstein.
A Few more books on neuroplasticity and brain function :
Begley, Sharon "Train your Mind, Change Your Brain"
Daniel J. Levitin "This is Your Brain on Music"
McCreadie, Scott " Balance-In Search for the Lost Sense"
VS Ramachandran & Sandra Blakeslee "Phantoms in the Brain"
Dr. John Ratley "A User's Guide to the Brain"
Sally Springer and Georg Deutsch "Left Brain, Right Brain"