Brains are plastic and work together with the body. The body isn’t restricted to sending inputs signals to the brain; it shapes the brain. The brain heals with the help of the body.
Chapter 1 - Physician Hurt, Then Heal Thyself
Gate theory of pain: Pain doesn’t occur automatically due to a one-way input. There are “gates” that can stop or diminish the pain signal to the brain. E.g., when in danger, the brain will block the signal so one can flee.
How neurons work: Three parts—dendrites, the body cell, and axons. Dendrites are tree-like branches that connect to the body cell, which stores DNA. Axons are cables that transmit electric signals to neurons. Axons don’t touch dendrites; there’s a space, called a synapse, between them. When there’s an electric impulse, a chemical reaction occurs, and neurotransmitters are released, such that dendrites capture a signal that inhibits or excites the neuron. If excited, the neuron is more likely to fire.
Neurons that fire together wire together: connections among neurons (synapses) become stronger (“wired”) as they fire together.
Acute pain can lead to chronic pain as brain maps responsible for pain get overstimulated and over-sensitized, firing more easily. The more they fire, the more they wire, creating a vicious feedback loop that deepens the pain and hijacks other brain areas. Chronic pain is a top-down process happening in the brain—it has little to do with actual physical pain.
To break this cycle, one has to regain the hijacked brain maps. Visualization is a potential treatment. When in bouts of pain, one visualizes a different thing, so the brain maps that have been hijacked by chronic pain recede. It takes time and intense daily mental focus to show results.
Chapter 2 - A Man Walks Off His Parkinsonian Symptoms
Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a degenerative disorder caused by a lack of dopamine. It usually starts in a place in the brain called substantia nigra, where most of our dopamine is produced. The exact causes of PD are unknown.
Dopamine serves many functions. One of them is related to motivation in starting a movement. A second one is in the realization of the movement itself. A third is in the rewarding of a given activity. A lack of dopamine hinders movement control and initiation. Simple acts, like walking or holding a glass, become effortful.
John Pepper has PD. He uses a conscious walking technique as a treatment for his symptoms. Conscious walking helps in two ways. First, it develops and strengthens alternative neuronal pathways (i.e., different brain areas are recruited to realize the movement). Consider that in addition to lack of dopamine, people with PD also have to fight learned non-use. Second, walking fast stimulates growth neurotrophic factors1, thus improving plasticity and decelerating neurodegeneration2.
Fast walking has now been shown to reduce the risk of dementia by 60%. It also helps in Alzheimer’s and improves brain function in non-demented patients.
Chapter 3 - The Stages of Neuroplastic Hearing
Dr. Doidge notes three general processes that occur in the brain.
The pervasiveness of learned non-use. It applies to a myriad of neurological conditions.
The noisiness of the brain. When a brain area is damaged, it doesn’t silence completely. It still fires electrical signals arrhythmically. Because of this noise, neurons in healthy brain regions have to shut off—they go dormant.
Neuronal assemblies. Our thoughts, skills, memories are a result of neuronal assemblies. Various neurons are involved in any activity; your memory isn’t stored in any specific neuron. Instead, as the theory goes, your mental capabilities are determined by a cumulative pattern of electrical waves. Patterns are like a musical sheet and neurons members of an orchestra. The neuronal assembly can play the same pattern even if some neurons are impaired.
Dr. Doige proposes a framework with five stages of neuroplastic healing.
Correction of general cellular function. Some brain issues are caused by neurons and glial cells malfunctioning due to toxins, infections, or inflammation (e.g., poor diet). A correction of general cellular function might be needed before any plastic change occurs.
Neurostimulation. Use some form of energy (light, sound, movement, touch) to stimulate brain cells and dormant areas.
Neuromodulation. Modulate neuronal arrhythmia. Reduce noise, so the brain leaves the state of fight-or-flight.
Neurorelaxation. Leaving the state of constant arousal, the patient regains energy to heal itself. Much of this is related to improvements in sleep.
Neurodifferentiation & learning. Now the patient is ready to (re)differentiate its brain areas and learn.
Chapter 4 - Rewiring a Brain with Light
The benefits of light in healing all body parts, including the brain.
The foremost case is that of light as a treatment for jaundice. Jaundice occurs through the accumulation of bilirubin in the blood, a chemical byproduct of the deterioration of red blood cells. It’s common in newborns, and in acute cases, it can lead to permanent brain damage or death.
But the power of light goes beyond treating jaundice. Eastern medicine (Egypt, China, Russia) has known this for centuries.
Light can be understood as waves or particles, called photons. Photons are released as electrons decline from a higher-energy state (far away from protons) to a lower-energy state (closer to protons). One can create a laser using an energy source, such as a battery and a pair of semiconductor materials with a surplus and a deficit of electrons. The laser can be in different spectrums according to the light’s energy. Different energies (colors) are absorbed differently by the body.
Four different particles in the body can absorb light: Rhodopsin (in the retina, for vision), hemoglobin (in red blood cells), myoglobin (in muscles), and cytochrome (in the mitochondria of all cells).
Let’s focus on the latter. Once cytochrome absorbs light, it stimulates the production of ATP, which, in turn, accelerates repair and the production of new cells. Lasers of different wavelengths also help increase oxygen, blood circulation, the growth of new blood vessels and tissues, and lower inflammation.
In some cases, light stimulation—a kickstart—is what a patient needs to ignite their healing process.
Chapter 5 - Moshe Feldenkrais: Physicist, Black Belt, and Healer
A fantastic life story. Feldenkrais was born in Ukraine and moved to Belarus when young. Jews were commonly attacked in the Russian Empire. When Feldenkrais was a teenager, he decided to walk his way from Belarus to Palestine. Along the way, he crossed villages, and Jewish kids followed him. He arrived in Palestine with hundreds of others.
In Palestine, Jews were also attacked by Arabs. Because Jews couldn’t bear arms, Feldenkrais developed a self-defense method that used not strength but a technique to defeat the assailants, usually armed with knives.
Feldenkrais went to Paris for University. He became a physicist, working in the laboratory of the Nobel-winning couple Joliot-Curie, which performed research on radiation and atomic power. During his time in Paris, Feldenkrais met Jigoro Kano, the founder of Judo, who was impressed by Feldenkrais’ technique and took him as a pupil. Feldenkrais became a judo expert.
As Nazis invaded France and approached Paris, Feldenkrais ran away to the UK, eventually helping the Allies decipher Nazi encrypted messages from an isolated location out of the Scottish coast. He decrypted Nazi messages by day and taught his colleagues Judo by night. Later, he would also be of service to the Israeli government.
Feldenkrais had a knee problem. To solve this problem, he became aware of his body movements and how he could manage his pain. Through self-experimentation and learning with other patients, he developed a method that facilitated neurorelaxation and neurodifferentiation through slight body movements and self-awareness.
The basic idea is that brain and body aren’t separate. It’s a two-way relationship. First, Feldenkrais would make the brain aware of the body’s movements through guided stimulation and relaxation; then, he would use differentiation (making tiny sensory distinctions between movements) to build brain maps.
Today, the Feldenkrais method has many certified practitioners. It can help treat various physical ailments and conditions, such as cerebral palsy and PD.
Chapter 6 - A Blind Man Learns to See
David Webber’s eyesight declined as a result of an autoimmune condition. After years of medication, surgeries, and failed treatments, he was declared legally blind. However, Webber recovered his vision using the Feldenkrais method and old Eastern techniques. He solved his problem by relaxing the eye, modulating his brain, and increasing differentiation.
Some of the techniques used were to get the eyes exposed to sunlight daily, visualize and focus on complete blackness when with your eyes closed, and gently place your hand palms over your eyelids for a while. Truly miraculous.
The most astounding thing about this case is that it involves the eye, which we commonly think is simply an input route of external signals to the brain. We believe that most eyesight conditions, like myopia, are entirely genetic.
That isn’t true. For instance, myopia is increasing in modern times, indicating environmental factors partially cause it. Increasing self-awareness, performing specific exercises, and relaxing the body can improve the healing of eye injuries, neuromodulation, and neurodifferentiation, ultimately resulting in improved eyesight!
Chapter 7 - A Device That Resets The Brain
We’re back to the POnS device mentioned in the previous book. It’s a plastic stick with electrical stimulators that the patient puts on the tongue to stimulate neurons. Why the tongue? Because it’s a sensitive organ with many neurons closely connected to the brain stem.
The POnS device stems from Bach-y-Rita’s original research in the ’70s to stimulate areas of the body in an essay to recover, or emulate, vision. The POnS treats neurological conditions because it helps the brain reach homeostasis. It provides electrical pulses that restart neuromodulation in the brain, reducing. After modulation, the brain can relax and start the process of differentiation.
Neurostimulation (POnS) —> Neuromodulation —> Neurorelaxation —> Neurodifferentiation
The PoNS is now being commercialized, approved for certain conditions (like multiple sclerosis), and undergoing clinical trials for other conditions (e.g., PD).
Chapter 8 - A Bridge of Sound
It tells the story of Paul Magaule, a dyslexic who was treated by Alfred Tomatis using sound therapy. People with dyslexia have an issue hearing higher frequency sounds due to malfunctioning of their middle-ear muscles, leading to a noisy brain in a constant sympathetic state. In this state, the brain can’t differentiate and learn.
Tomatis modified Mozart music and recorded speech from the patient’s mother to stimulate the brain. The recordings were adjusted to exclude lower frequencies and focus on higher frequencies. The treatment consisted of two phases. The first was to listen passively; this would provide stimulation, relaxation, and modulation of the brain, so it could leave the fight-or-flight state and reduce noise. The frequencies would be tuned up or down in random patterns, providing volatility to exercise brain muscles and challenge the brain. After some weeks, an active phase would begin. The subject would speak in a microphone, listen to their speech, and continue to listen to the previous recordings while performing certain activities.
Tomatis initially developed its treatment with opera singers that had lost their voices. He found that this was caused by hearing problems, as you can only sing in frequencies you hear—singing is actually hearing3.
Problems with ear muscles can contribute to autism (inability to imagine other minds). Research suggests that autism is caused by genetic factors, immune disorders, and chronic inflammation. With lousy hearing, autists don’t develop differentiated brain maps, impacting their ability to understand speech and communicate with others. Commonly, autistic children cover their ears when hearing certain sounds.
Interesting research: our neurons synchronize to the music we’re hearing. If you’re listening to Mozart, neurons will literally fire to the same rhythm as Mozart. This helps explain why music often can help concentration, relaxation, or increase motivation and energy.
GDNF and BDNF permit brains to form new connections between neurons.
Like walking, learning also stimulates the production of growth factors. The formula for neuroplasticity is Learning + Exercise?
This is also applicable for accents. Each language uses different frequencies. The inability of persons with specific backgrounds to speak certain languages is related to their inability to compute sound in particular frequencies. Conversely, native speakers of languages with a broader range of frequencies can learn foreign languages more easily.