“The Brain That Changes Itself” Continued

By Anais Starr - Perfectly Well! on November 25, 2012 • ( 1 )

I’m still reading The Brain That Changes Itself by Norman Doidge. Like a lot of us, I am usually in the process of reading several books at any time.

Chapters in the book:

1. A Woman Perpetually Falling – Rescued by the Man Who Discovered the Plasticity of Our Senses
2. Building Herself a Better Brain – A Woman Labeled “Retarded” Discovers How to Heal Herself
3. Redesigning the Brain – A Scientist Changes Brains to Sharpen Perception and Memory, Increase Speed of Thought, and Heal Learning Problems
4. Acquiring Tastes and Loves – What Neuroplasticity Teaches Us About Sexual Attraction and Love
5. Midnight Resurrections – Stroke Victims Learn to Move and Speak Again
6. Brain Lock Unlocked – Using Plasticity to Stop Worries, Obsessions, Compulsions, and Bad Habits
7. Pain – The Dark Side of Plasticity
8. Imagination – How Thinking Makes It So
9. Turning Our Ghosts Into Ancestors – Psychoanalysis as a Neuroplastic Therapy
10. Rejuvenation – The Discovery of the Neuronal Stem Cell and Lessons for Preserving Our Brains
11. More than the Sum of Her Parts – A Woman Shows Us How Radically Plastic the Brain Can Be
Appendix 1 – The Culturally Modified Brain
Appendix 2 – Plasticity and the Idea of Progress

The chapters in this book tell such interesting and informative stories about the brain and its ‘neuroplasticity.’

What is neuroplasticity? Neuroplasticity or brain plasticity is a term used by neuroscientists referring to the brain’s ability to change at any age for BETTER as well as for worse. After a certain age we don’t really consider that our brain function can improve but this is a mis-conception and certainly a mis-representation of fact.

Here is a quote on brain plasticity from Dr. Doidge’s webpage:

Brain plasticity is a physical process. Gray matter can actually shrink or thicken; neural connections can be forged and refined or weakened and severed. Changes in the physical brain manifest as changes in our abilities. For example, each time we learn a new dance step, it reflects a change in our physical brains: new “wires” (neural pathways) that give instructions to our bodies on how to perform the step. Each time we forget someone’s name, it also reflects brain change— “wires”that once connected to the memory have been degraded, or even severed. As these examples show, changes in the brain can result in improved skills (a new dance step) or a weakening of skills (a forgotten name).

Read Chapter 3 – Redesigining the Brain A Scientist Changes Brains to Sharpen Perception and Memory, Increase Speed of Thought, and Heal Learning Problems.

I am still reading this book and will continue to report. I hope that I’ve given you enough information that you’ve taken a look yourself, explored Dr. Doidge’s website, maybe tried some of the free brain exercises available there, or have signed up at positscience.com for BrainHQ and are experiencing some re-connection of the “wires” of your own brain.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”