Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with neurology

Why does caffeine give me a paradoxical effect?

the jam — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:00:08 -0800

For the past year, caffeine has had a strange effect on me. I drink soda or coffee -- and within minutes, I feel groggy, fuzzy headed, and almost kind of drunk. I get absolutely no stimulating effects. The more I drink, the more fuzzy-drunk I feel. Caffeine used to make me feel wonderful -- awake, cheerful, on-point. I've never drank an excessive amount (2 coffees a day, max). Can anyone explain what might be going on in my brain chemicals?

It's what's inside that counts.

elektrotechnicus — Fri, 29 May 2009 19:53:29 -0800

I just had an MRI and MRA in response to these issues, and the radiologist's report should be relayed to me in a day or two. I've already had one normal CT scan. I received a copy of all the images from this scan - should I look at them? On the one hand, I have no medical training and if I'm not sure what if anything I could glean from looking. On the other hand, there is a ton of reference material on the web and I feel like I could at least reassure myself that there are no gross structural defects or abnormalities. Then again, if there were anything "obvious" it would have been seen on the CT, right?

If I do decide to look, what should I look for?

how do i address possible memory/cognitive issues with my doctor?

Anonymous — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:49:56 -0800

as a twenty-something, how do i address possible memory/cognitive issues with a doctor without both of us thinking i'm crazy? or am i crazy? I'll try to explain my situation as best I can; pardon me if I make any glaring omissions. Also, please direct any inquiries to thrwawayacct@gmail.com.

Back in January, I was happily chugging along in my coursework, when I suddenly started having the worst headaches of my life, along with trouble sleeping and remembering and concentrating on things. I didn't think much of it at the time, but I asked my GP anyway and he thought I was probably suffering from depression and anxiety and gave me an Rx for Lexapro. I was a bit reluctant to start taking this, however, since I don't have any history of depression, nor did I feel in any way down or depressed or what have you. At any rate, as days turned into weeks and weeks into months, it seemed that my headaches were getting worse, I felt constantly groggy, and that I had much greater difficulty remembering and concentrating, so I asked to be referred to a neurologist. Before my appointment with the neurologist, I had an MRI of my brain done which was "negative." At my appointment, the neurologist conducted his examination in which he asked me to tell him the current date and remember a few objects to recite back to him a few minutes later. I could not recall the exact date (it even takes me a while sometimes to realize what month it is), and I could only recall one out of the three objects he told me. After he finished his examination, I asked him what he thought and he proceeded to tell me that I was probably just suffering from depression-related concentration issues, so he sent me home with a referral to a psychiatrist. I have yet to see the psychiatrist, since apparently he's booked solid for about two months. Given that this isn't resolving itself, I don't really want to wait that long.

Am I wrong to be skeptical of taking an anti-depressant in this circumstance? I honestly have no idea what depression feels like, but I know I don't feel in any way sad. Should I try to find another neurologist and/or psychiatrist who can see me sooner? This whole situation got markedly more weird when I recently visited a close friend I've seen often in the past, and although I knew how to get to the friend's house, my surroundings on the way there seemed oddly very foreign and I felt like I was lost. I wasn't anxious up until that point, but I certainly am now.

For what it's worth, I've never done drugs, I rarely drink, all blood work was within normal limits, I currently live in Minneapolis, MN, and I have no health insurance. If anyone knows any good options for health insurance and/or good neurologists and psychiatrists in the area, please let me know. I don't really have the time or the money or the energy to guess and test doctors much anymore. I'm about at my wit's end with this and want to be able to return to my classes in the fall as someone who can actually think straight again, if that's even possible.

Also for what it's worth, what I'm going through seems somewhat similar to what this person went through, except for the fact that I haven't had a PET scan.

I hate to ask AskMeFi to be my doctor or to help me find one, but I don't really know what to do anymore. Any help would be so very appreciated. Thank you.

Dots in my vision, dots on my arm, and uh, hmm, what's the word?

elektrotechnicus — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 23:05:38 -0800

Since I last posted I've been feeling much better, but now have very new and strange symptoms. I've been seeing flashes in my vision, felt like I was misreading text or having difficulty expressing myself verbally (words came a bit more slowly than usual), and went to the ER when I saw (and a friend confirmed) my pupils were unevenly dilated. I've also had a recurring, painless rash of tiny red dots that is only ever present on my right hand, and comes and goes rather quickly. All symptoms started two or three weeks ago. I can't see a doctor for a week or two, but when I can, what kind should I see and what should I ask about? When I was in the ER they tested my intraocular pressure with a tonometer and that was totally normal. The attendant doctor did not observe and problems with my pupils. An eye exam (non-dialated) didn't turn anything up. A CT scan was done as a precaution and (to my great relief) no abnormalities were found.

The flashes of light started occurring in my peripheral vision, and in those cases it's not really like I'm seeing anything so much as I visually detect movement out of the corner of my eye (turning my head, I see nothing. Since this started I've become hyperaware of my peripheral vision and occasionally experience what I think is a "flash" only to see it was a glint of sunlight off a car's hood or some other normal cause). I also see dots in my central visual field that are usually pinprick sized and stationary, lasting only a few moments, an experience not unlike seeing the cue dots in film. Occasionally these very tiny, bright, dots will meander about for a few moments (maybe a second at most) and then disappear. The largest "dots" subtend a portion of my visual field about as large as my thumb from knuckle to finger nail held at arm's length (these rarely move, but last slight longer than others). These are not afterimages... they seem to occur spontaneously in environments without obvious sources of concentrated light.

As far as the language use symptoms go, I feel like I make many more mistakes than usual reading - typical examples would be combining letters or sounds from two adjacent words and detecting a nonexistent one for a moment, or skipping over words entirely and having to backtrack when a sentence stops making sense grammatically. I find it's taking me longer to read in general. Likewise, I'm usually a pretty easygoing conversationalist and rarely have trouble expressing myself, but lately I've had bouts where words come with difficulty or I have to pay particular attention to form sentences. I ask people to repeat themselves fairly often.

All of these symptoms are episodic, seeming to occur for a few hours at a time, with no obvious pattern save that I generally feel better at night.

No real headaches outside a very dull ache every now and then. A bit fatigued. No fever or anything.

I'm going to see an ophthalmologist in a few weeks, and a neurologist after that, but in the mean time I'd like to figure out some likely causes of these symptoms.

Are there gremlins in there?

dame — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 12:06:46 -0800

I want to get pictures of my brain. What kind of pictures and how? Or is this ridiculous? My left side is kinda messed up. Eye doesn't work so great and I don't actually use it with any frequency. Much worse dexterity (beyond normal side-dominance). Apparently when I was a kid, they wanted to take a look, but insurance didn't cover it. Now I have insurance with a $50 specialist co-pay and no referral needed. I am both curious what's going on and wonder if maybe there isn't something to be found.

What kind of pics do I need? What kind of doctor would do them? A neurologist? Any neurologist? Is this a bad plan?

How do I stop my brain turning to mush?

MrMerlot — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 11:44:12 -0800

I am approaching 40. How do I stop my brain turning to mush?

Look! No hands!

waxboy — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 16:21:15 -0800

Would it be feasible to have a small electrode permanently implanted in my brain? I just read this article over at mofi about a science experiment:

"They first implanted a number of electrodes in the motor cortex of two macaque monkeys. Each electrode picked up signals from a single neuron, and those signals routed through an external circuit to a computer. The neuronal signals controlled a cursor on a screen, and the monkeys were trained to move the cursor using only their brain activity."

I want to be able to plug a handful of individual neurons into a computer and see what I can train myself to do with them. Now, I imagine I'd have to be crazy rich to undergo voluntary brain surgery, and there's probably also medical/psychological complications to worry about. But hey, if I had the cash and the cojones could it be done?

Why am substituting one bird for another when I type?

grumblebee — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 11:47:08 -0800

I'm making a certain type of typo more and more frequently. Should I be worried? I know everyone does this to some extent, but I've greatly increased the amount of word substitutions I make when I type. I read my sentences back later, and I find I've written things like this:

To free or not to be. Hat is the question.

Most of my mistakes are of that sort: substituting rhyming words for the words I mean to type. When I proof my text, I'm always totally surprised to see the substitutions. I have no sense of making them when I'm typing.

Now, this is probably a wasted question, because I think I can answer it myself. Over the last few years, my typing speed has increased tenfold. I can now type almost as fast as I can think. And I've noticed the errors increasing as my typing has gotten faster.

But I also know that people make these sorts of substitutions when they've suffered some sort of brain disorder. (I'm embarrassed by how hypochondriacal this sounds.)

I don't have any other symptoms. I feel fine and healthy. My thinking is clear. My motor skills are the same as always. I'm just spooked by this sudden onset of typing gaffs. When I read my words back, I find at least one or two per paragraph.

I know you're not my doctor, but do you think this is even slightly worth worrying about?

How can we get our eight-year-old son diagnosed and feeling better?

neilkod — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:55:30 -0800

How can we get our eight-year-old son diagnosed and feeling better? (long) Pre-apologies for rambling. Key facts: 1) I'm in perfect health 2) My wife has MS and has been on meds for 4 years and 3) We live in Salt Lake City and face extreme hot and cold temps. We're planning a move from SLC to a more neutral climate.

My eight-year-old son has had a miserable quality of life for the last four years. Through a long diagnostic process including two biopsies, he was diagnosed with Chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis. We've tried MANY treatments for the CRMO pain, none have really worked. Short doses of steroids took the edge off but they're not a long-term solution.

In addition to the lesions on his bones(due to CRMO), he has developed MANY other symptoms, including:
- Constant, constant fatigue
- sensitivity to hot/cold temperatures
- frequent skin lesions
- hip/pelvic pain
- random pain in extremities
- painful urination
- burning sensation in boy parts/bladder
- eye fatigue/pain (vision is manageable but his EP is considered slow)

He's had bone scans that have shown issues in his lower extremities. He shows an elevated SED rate and has high inflammatory markers in blood tests.

One of the first symptoms he showed was dragging his foot when he walks. He also falls down a lot.

Repeated MRI images show multiple white spots(lesions) on his brain. The MRI is repeated every 6 months, the spots have been fairly consistent in size, number, and placement.

He's not exactly sleeping well, and that's also contributing to his poor quality-of-life. He often leaves school early due to pain or unmanageable fatigue. His teachers notice and have been very supportive. He's also developed personality and anxiety issues due to not feeling well and the constant doctors visits and tests. His ability to cope with his symptoms have improved over the last year.

He is under the care of a top-notch Rheumatologist, a respected pediatric neurologist, a team of doctors at the UCSF pediatric neurology institute, and associated other specialists, such as highly specialized optometrists who deal with neurologic issues, as well as a dermatologist.

All of these physicians acknowledge the symptoms and issues, but we can't seem to improve our son's life. Eyedrops here, skin cream there, but there is nothing that explains or ties together all of his symptoms. Its always "take this test or MRI and we'll see in 6 months." The neurologists don't think he pediatric MS but have suggested he try MS meds in the past.

His sensitivities to extreme hot/cold temps, a sometimes-drooping left eye, and the spots on the brain MRI lead us to believe that this issue might have a neurological foundation - the neurologists have tried everything short of interferon medication to treat him. Without a firm diagnosis or explanation, we are not too hot on the idea of giving him interferon due to the side-affects.

Otherwise, my son is bright and motivated-he wants to get out and play, but pays the price in pain and fatigue shortly thereafter. He loves school, loves to read, and simply is frustrated and not understanding with his condition. He has a younger brother in perfect health, he often questions why he shows so many symptoms that his little brother doesn't. Additionally, its been difficult for us to keep our understanding (and sometimes cool) while watching our son be miserable and in pain.

What are we not doing? What could we be doing better? We haven't left too many stones unturned - we've taken him to UCSF to be evaluated; we're contacting other out-of-state facilities as well. He's about to enter the third grade and we don't want him to have a repeat of second grade, where he missed a lot of school due to not feeling well. Are there any types of specialists or conditions that we're not looking into? What do we need to demand more of from our doctors? He's been affected for far too long without any real explanations or effective treatment.

Help! I've fallen and I can't get up!

These Premises Are Alarmed — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:11:30 -0800

The thought or visuals of old people falling sends literal shivers down my spine. What's going on, psycho-bio-neuro-logically? What causes a physical reaction to an unpleasant idea? This seems deeply wired, is it "innate" in the brain?

Is it possible to get an MRI and have it read, without a referral?

Anonymous — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 16:13:20 -0800

Is it possible to get an MRI and have it read, without a referral? Long story short: I was referred to a neurologist. The neurologist pressured me to get a CAT scan and a spinal tap to rule out a certain condition. I do not want to do this; I want an MRI instead. The condition we're talking about can be diagnosed equally effectively using an MRI.

A second neurologist also insists on the CAT scan/spinal tap combination. (They're both affiliated with the same hospital).

I want an MRI to rule out this one, specific condition.

Is it possible for me to get an MRI on my own and have it read, without going through these neurologists?

I live in New Jersey.

Is the clear cut dichotomy true?

jouke — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 05:50:01 -0800

Jill Bolte Taylor uses a very clear cut dichotomy when explaining the respective roles of the left and right hemisphere: one is oriented towards parrallel processing of sense data, the other towards serial, conscious, target-oriented processing. Is this reflective of the modern state of the art neurological schientific knowledge? It's an intuitively attractive explanation. But is it true? It sounds simplistic. I'm telling her theory from memory since I can't watch the video right now

Do I have Fibromyalgia?

Anonymous — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 17:02:45 -0800

Can Fibromyalgia mimic the symptoms of a serious neurological illness? Do any Fibromyalgia sufferers out there have symptoms like mine, or have I been misdiagnosed? I'm a 28 year old male, and I've been ill for about eight months now. I'll briefly recap my symptoms and the medical advice I've been given so far.

Symptoms:

Pain: My primary symptom has been a burning pain that seems to migrate through the skin and the muscles of my arms and legs, and clusters most intensely in my hands and feet. It sometimes peaks around my fingernails and toenails, where it feels like I've hit them with a hammer, or around joints in my fingers, arms, or legs. This pain has made my body extremely sensitive to touch, and a simple press of the hand or brush of the arm can sometimes excite it.
Fatigue: My second symptom is fatigue and insomnia. I just can't seem to get a full night's sleep anymore, and usually wake after 4 or 5 hours (and in some state of discomfort). Even when I do get more sleep than this, I still feel mentally and physically washed out.
Twitches: This is probably the oddest one of all. Throughout the day, but most intensely at night, I'm treated to a sort of internal fireworks of involuntary muscle twitches. These bouts of twitches are completely painless, rapid, and only last a few seconds on average before moving elsewhere or dissipating.
Anxiety: Naturally, all of this, combined with the lack of sleep, has made me very anxious about my health. I've been referred to therapy but have thusfar resisted antidepressants pending a solid diagnosis.

Diagnosis:

My first specialist visit was to a rheumatologist. I tested negative for thyroid problems, had a normal CBC, and had normal B12 levels.
The rheumatologist gave me the standard Fibromyalgia exam, which involves checking for pain across 18 precise "Trigger Point" locations on the body. Though my pain sometimes surfaces in these spots, it's more likely to appear in the extremities. Though I lacked the Trigger Points for an official diagnosis, he argued that the official test for Fibro admitted false negatives, and I was handed the diagnosis of "probable Fibromyalgia" assuming that no other disease is found.
My next trip was to a sleep clinic, which ruled out sleep apnea, and (after wiring me up like Alex DeLarge in Clockwork Orange) concluded that I had insomnia. Brilliant.
After this, I was sent to the Neurologist, who prescribed EMG, Evoked Potentials, and walking tests to check for the diffuse nerve damage characteristic of Multiple Sclerosis. Negative.

So, after 8 months of turning up nothing, I'd nearly resigned myself to the Fibro diagnosis. However, after looking up my symptoms online (which I do not recommend doing), I've stumbled onto the mother of horrid diseases, and, surprise, surprise, it seems to match my symptoms uncomfortably well.

From my research, vCJD (the variant form of Creutzfeld-Jackobs Disease) has an average age of onset of 28. That's my age. It has an initial phase characterized by 8-14 months of painful dysesthesias (or burning sensations), and eventually causes involuntary myoclonic twitches in the muscles. I have those. For the first 14 months or so, before they ever suffer dementia, cognitive problems, and death, sufferers experience anxiety and depression, and are usually referred to a psychologist. My doctors referred me to one. Most people who've contracted it ate British beef in the 80s and early 90s... Okay, got me there. I didn't exactly do that, but I did visit Nova Scotia and eat some ~~awful~~ traditional dishes involving cow stomach and intestine. From what I've read, those cuts of meat are on the riskier side, and this was during the peak of the scare.

Naturally, I'm all worked up over this, but don't know if I should start barking up this tree with my doctors. The disease is extremely rare, especially in the US, and even in England the methods of diagnosis are few and unreliable. There aren't a lot of doctors who even know what it is, or can distinguish it from standard CJD, which has very different initial symptoms. Case in point - when I mentioned my fears to one neurologist, he confused it with standard CJD and said I had nothing to worry about.

So, does anyone out there with a positive Fibromyalgia diagnosis experience similar symptoms - pain under fingernails, burning skin, lack of Trigger points, diffuse twitching, and so on? Can I feel confident in accepting this diagnosis? Should I be concerned about vCJD?

If anyone out there has been dealt a similar hand with Fibromyalgia, it would really set my mind at ease. Thanks all.

sick of the highs and the lows

Juliet Banana — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 15:05:09 -0800

I have Tourette Syndrome, and I can't stop jumping up and down. Help me rewire my defective brain to channel this activity into something less destructive. I have moderate Tourette Syndrome. I have the whole gamut of symptoms, coprolalia, echolalia, twitching, blurting out my thoughts, and touching/tapping/hitting things. My symptoms have calmed down a lot from when I was first diagnosed with severe TS as a teen, as Tourette tends to mellow out in adulthood, partially due to better ability of the sufferer to identify the "oncoming urge" and control it. I can hold down a job. I'm happy. I don't have to explain it to every single person I meet. The people I've lived with get used to it, and I barely think about it most of the time.

However, I can't ignore this one particular tic and pretend it's not hurting me anymore. Between 3-10 times every day, I stand up and wander around my house, and invariably start hopping up and down as if I was on a trampoline. I've knocked over pots of ink and dishes of coins. It's probably not the best stress to put my second-story floorboards under. I've usually just worked a full shift in heels and then walked two miles home and the last thing my legs need is to hop around like a bunny. I'm sick of it, and I want to stop.

I need help finding an alternative activity that won't knock over my possessions and hurt my legs. I have all this excess energy, and I need some way to burn it. I know most of the people reading this don't have TS, so please bear with me while I describe what it feels like to have a tic.

The (very) basic neurological mechanics of Tourette Syndrome is that the brain produces an excess of dopamine and/or has difficulty regulating it. In a normal brain, you think, "I'd like to pick up that apple," and your brain shoots off a paltry little dose of dopamine that has a message attached to it: "Raise arm, close fist, lift apple." If you have TS, it's like having a defective firehose for dopamine receptors. My brain randomly shoots off large doses of dopamine with absolutely no message attached,and my body picks the easiest way to burn it off, something completely random, or an action I've performed many times before, or saying a word from my ever-changing-lexicon of swears and nonsense.

Over the years, I've gotten better at feeling the burst of dopamine before I perform the action, but I don't always. Have you ever absent-mindedly grabbed the handle of a blazing hot pan on your stovetop? Before you had time to think "this is hot" or "that was stupid" or "I need to move my hand," you jerked your hand away, instantaneously, without thought. That is how it is possible for someone with TS to perform an action without being fully aware that they are doing it. Half the time I don't know what word is coming out of my mouth until I hear it.

You've probably also experienced how the burst of dopamine feels. The absolute best way for me to describe it is "shuddering revulsion." Have you ever been walking along the sidewalk, and out of the corner of your eye you realize you are about to plant your Converse directly into the rotting corpse of an unfortunate cat or squirrel? Chances are you staggered backwards, your skin crawling, your heart racing. Chances are your thought process was not very long or complicated, just "get the hell away." That is how the "oncoming urge" feels: restless, twitchy, shivery, every nerve alive and blazing and alert, uncomfortable, breath sped up, heart rate up.

The oncoming urge differs from tic to tic. Sometimes I don't feel it at all and a word just slips out of my mouth. Sometimes I can feel it coming quite distinctly, and I'm able to CHOOSE how I want to use up the energy, usually something non-offensive and easy like tapping my fingers on a tabletop. And sometimes, instead of an all-at-once huge burst of dopamine, there's a slow, steady, restless stream of excess energy.

The jumping up and down is a slow and steady tic. I have ALWAYS had some form of these tics, that are much more physically involved and prolonged than your average tic. When I lived in sunny California, I used to burst out my front door barefoot and run around and around my block until, panting and sweaty, it wore off. Now that I live in a city where shoes and jackets and locking the door is required, I've outgrown the need to go outside. I need immediate gratification in the form of physical activity before the need is satiated and the creepy restless feeling wears off.

It starts with me sitting, normally. I start feeling restless, and I think, it would be nice to get up, and walk around. I've tried just staying put, but I just get more restless and antsy and fidgety and anxious and it's torturous, so I give up. As I'm wandering from room to room, without thinking, I start jumping up and down. Most of the time I don't realize I'm doing it.

There are a few ways I've been able to stop or prevent it. I'm looking for more. If i can identify the oncoming urge, I can channel the energy into something less hurtful (I used to smack my fist really hard onto tabletops until I learned to just tap until the urge went away). If I'm in a job interview or something, I might be able to stop them outright, or do something that normal people do (throat clearing, head shaking). But deciding to not have TS anymore is like deciding you're never going to urinate again. You might make it a few hours, but eventually you're going to think "why am I torturing myself" and give in, or just forget. I can't simply will myself to stop having tics, but I can possibly train myself to have a DIFFERENT slow and steady, involved, prolonged physical tic besides jumping up and down.

Things I have done that have helped:

+Trying to burn the phrase "JUMPING IS BAD" into my brain so that when I'm mindlessly hopping up and down my rational, concious brain can butt into my blank thoughts and say "JUMPING IS BAD, CUT IT OUT, STOP." And I do. The problem is, I don't even realize what I doing when I start jumping, so it takes a while for me to realize I'm doing it, much less that it a bad thing.

+Smoking. Nicotine has been proven to help control tics, and the "going outside" requirement fulfills a need in me. I've actually started running/hopping with a cigarette in my hand before and given up after about 5 seconds; smoking calms me down a lot, and smokers aren't exactly known for their physical prowess. The cons should be obvious; Tourette won't kill me, smoking will.

+Being quite tired. I've gotten the "hey, you should go walk around!" urge while climbing into bed exhausted before, and was able to resist it because the absolute last thing I wanted to do right then was get up and jump around.

+Identifying the oncoming urge, and saying "I'm going to go walk around. That's all I am going to do." As I walk around I try to remain very concious of the fact that I am just walking, that's it, no jumping allowed.

Things that probably won't help:

+Medication. The side effects are not worth the benefits for me. I'd rather hop like the Easter Bunny than vomit everything I eat, or lose control of the muscles in my hands, or pass out a half hour after taking my pills. Tried it and hated it.

+Nicotine patches. They're too expensive OTC, I don't have health insurance, they're generally only used as medication in people with more severe TS than I currently have. I'm worried that the dosages meant for quitting smokers would be too strong for someone who only smokes occassionally.

Things that might help (please add to this list!)

+More exercise. As mentioned, these urges come even when I am very tired, or my legs hurt; I am only able to resist them if absolutely knackered. The problem isn't that I'm naturally a very active, energetic person; the problem is that I have Tourette, and I would continue to have it even if I ran a marathon. However, if these urges came after I had worked out for the day, I might be able to tell my brain "I'm exhausted, fuck off" or "I already did that today at the gym, I'm done for the day." Part of my need is ritual fulfiillment, but I also need something that can be done anytime, anywhere, when the urge strikes me. I already walk everywhere, though; I'm a little worried I just might be piling onto my soreness.

+Posting a big poster in every room that says "JUMPING IS BAD" to help me be more mindful and stop sooner.

+Deciding on another, similar, safer ritual/activity. I need ideas for this; it has to be able to be done indoors in a small space, with no prep.

Help Me Name My Major

dmaterialized — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 11:53:04 -0800

Name-my-major, Hivemind. So I go to an unusual school in that we don't have clear-cut majors, and we basically pick an area of "focus". I'm actually currently (unofficially) studying my own brain, because it's strangely hampered in certain capacities (like the process of reading music, despite being very musical and understanding cognitively exactly what's going on), or performing basic math (despite endless repetition). It's also weirdly bolstered in other regards: I have an unbelievable propensity for forming the visual "distortions" one might associate with hallucinogens. I was also recently diagnosed as having an "inattentive" ADD (as opposed to hyperactivity) but I actually think I've got a different and less generalized issue-- certain cognitive activities simply shut my brain off completely, as if I'm asleep; I'll have very little memory of things that happen during this time (Ritalin does help, but it really doesn't feel like "the right thing"). Visual stimuli, on the other hand, is unbelievably compelling.

But, long story short, this stuff FASCINATES me. That's an understatement-- I really want to understand how this all works, and how it works in other people. I'm interested in the ways in which perception and consciousness interact (why I see things my way and you see things your way, and how they relate). Neuroscience fascinates me (especially the effects of drugs and the ways the brain responds to stimuli), but so do deeper levels of psychology (things like memory distortion, feedback loops, and psychosis).There just needs to be some kind of focal point-- this isn't purely neuroscience, because the psychological dimension is very significant. But what is it?

For an idea of where I'm headed: my favorite books recently are Proust Was a Neuroscientist, Musicophilia, Timothy Leary's "The Psychedelic Experience", and Rita Carson's awesome "Exploring Consciousness". What kind of connection can you make of that? What is this specific field called? Does it even exist? I just need a reference point, somewhere I can branch from. I'm going to be doing a final project in this area next term, but without knowing what kind of research I should be looking at, it's hard to know what to do.

I've been doing this on my own for a while (I tell people I'm studying "consciousness and human perception"), and amassed some kickass links and great books, but I just hope someone out there has a sense of how to focus it a bit more. Any ideas-- on terminology, on projects, on work that would explore this?

Help me explain what I call "cat mouth" to my boyfriend.

letahl — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 10:31:58 -0800

Help me explain what I call "cat mouth" to my boyfriend. When I had cats, if one of them walked in front of me while I was at the computer, and their hair softly brushed against the front of my face, the entire inside of my mouth would go all funny. It is like a cross between pins and needles and cotton mouth, but a very strong sensation. I call this sensation "cat mouth" per its origin.

I can also get it if something else brushes against my cheek or lips just very slightly, especially if it is fuzzy in texture. It is not a pleasant feeling at all, although its not painful.

Does anyone have any idea what causes this, or what it is? Am I the only person that gets this?

Crazy brain stuff going on.

missuswayne — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 08:45:16 -0800

Amateur neurologists, please read! What is going on in my head?? I get basically an "electrical shock" feeling from time to time in my head. Lately it occurs only when I'm driving (scary!). Basically once every couple months I'll turn my head to the right to check traffic and I immediately feel like I've gotten shocked or stuck with a hot poker in the back of my head (specifically the lower right). Not on the skin, INSIDE my head. It lasts only a second, but during that second I see white - it's like I'm unconscious for a moment, although I might just be distracted by the sensation. The pain is quick but excrutiating, and when it passes i feel exhausted or stunned and have a tender, sore area on the back of my head. This part usually passes after a half hour. I don't believe it's ever happened when I've turned my head to the left.

I've read about brain zaps, but it doesn't quite match what's happening to me. I've had these as long as I can remember, at least since I was 15 or so. I'm 36 now. Other relevant info: I have been on Zoloft since 28 for depression and mild anxiety, I have a lifetime history of headaches (not migraines that I know of), I have frequent deja vu, have experienced sleep paralysis a couple times, very vivid dreams almost every night, and regularly get tremors or twitches in my fingers, toes and eyelids. Recently diagnosed with hyperthyroid, although it may be just postpartum thyroiditis. I have recently began to wonder if any of this is connected and worrisome (as in some type of seizure), or just regular electrical activity in the brain. What do you think?

The Lifecycle of the Imaginary

laughinglikemad — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 13:18:05 -0800

Who has imaginary friends, and why? As far as I'm aware, I never had imaginary friends. Awesome dreams, fantastic family, wonderful friends - but no invisible playmates.

Is it a matter of isolation - do they only show up after nobody comes to your birthday party? Is it a cultural thing? I don't recall many tales of Bobo the Fantasyland Dinosaur from my Turkish, Ethiopian, or Romanian friends. Is it a middle- or upper-class phenomenon, that dwindles the closer you get to food stamps? Is there a neurological basis for best friends that live in your head?

To those who had imaginary friends: how were they born? To those who still have them (and I know you're out there): how did they survive?

Distorted / incorrect memories (and conviction to be right)

ClarissaWAM — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 09:38:14 -0800

My mother remembers events incorrectly, but is convinced this was how it happened. Is there a term for this? What can it be a symptom of? Is it common? Is it psychological, neurological, sth-else-ical? They're almost always trivial things, and the way she remembers them is usually the complete opposite of how it actually happened, but she'd argue to her death that she's right. Recent example:

Mum: Remember that car your friend X used to have?
Me: Oh yeah, what was it again..... ah yes, a Foobar.
Mum: No no, that wasn't it.
Me: I'm pretty sure it was.
Mum: No, it definitely was not a Foobar.
[this continues for a little while]

/me gets home, emails friend, friend confirms it was indeed a Foobar.
I forward email to Mum. She replies (about a week after the actual event):
"I don't know what ever made you think I'd said otherwise. I agreed it was a Foobar as soon as you said the name!" [I realise how trivial this sounds, but it's really disconcerting. We argued about it for several minutes!]

Senility / dementia (Alzheimer's? we have no clear diagnosis) runs in her family, but I don't think it ever displayed this way. Her memory in general is not the best but this is the only aspect that's really scary. We have a difficult relationship so it may be a psychological reaction (her memory will usually confirm that she was right and I was wrong) - is this likely?

My mum's 59 (but this has been occurring for a while - my dad mentioned it and he's been dead 5yrs). She drinks and smokes, but not to excess. She's also clearly depressed but hates to admit it.

I've tried to research this, but couldn't find much, it seems to be mostly about repressed trauma etc. I realise you might not be able to help much either but it's worth a shot, the whole thing's really hard to deal with.

Thanks very much for any pointers!

Why do people prefer music from their teenage years?

desjardins — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 06:30:30 -0800

Why do people tend to gravitate more strongly towards music that was popular in their teen years? I was a teenager from 1987-1994, and the music from those years just sounds "right" to me, especially at the tail end of that era (think Offspring, Green Day, Counting Crows, etc.). Music before that time seems dated, and music created after that time, while sometimes likable, never holds my interest the same way.

Mr. desjardins is 4 years older than me, and he tends to like stuff from the early 80s.

When I was growing up, my mother listened to stuff that had to be popular when she was a teenager. I used to make fun of my parents for listening to "oldies," but now I'm the one listening to music from 15-20 years ago. Yet it still sounds current to me.

Is there something in the adolescent brain that imprints music more strongly?

Severe neck muscle tension. Botox?

Clay201 — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 11:19:52 -0800

I have intense, constant muscle tension on the right side of my neck. I think Botox will help, but my neurologists think it won't. Either convince me they're right or convince me I'm wrong. Oh, and is the anticholinergic drug I took three days ago making this problem worse? If so, what do I do about it? Background: I have a laundry list of health problems, most of them apparently stemming from fibromyalgia/chronic fatigue syndrome. For various reasons, I've recently been focusing on the following issue...

On the right side of my neck, there's a muscle (probably the
sterno-cleido-mastoideus or SCM ) that is at all times contracted, tense, taut, concrete-like, clenched, as if there's
an orangutan on crack yanking on it. If you've ever been extremely stressed and felt tension in your shoulders or neck, it's like that, except about forty times worse. It is intensely aggravating, preventing me from relaxing or sleeping soundly, among other activities. It causes tension in the surrounding muscles and, at times, it generates neck pain and severe headaches. I've tried dozens of treatments: nothing has worked. All stimulants and dopamine enhancers make it worse: caffeine, Ritalin, Sinemet, etc. They cause the orangutan to pull twice as hard.

I can relax the left side of my neck, but then my head turns violently to the right, yanked by the misbehaving muscle. During these movements, my mental functioning is not impaired (well, no more so than normal) and no doctor I've seen has thought this was epilepsy. During these movements, an intensely unpleasant, squirmy, restless sensation travels down my spine. Sometimes my legs and arms will start jerking as well.

I've recently seen two different neurologists regarding this problem. I thought they'd diagnose dystonia, (a class of "movement disorders in which sustained muscle contractions cause twisting and repetitive movements or abnormal postures") but neither did, one of them citing the fact that the aforementioned SCM was not hypertrophied (presumably a diagnostic criteria). And unfortunately, they didn't really come up with any other diagnoses either. One seemed to think there was an outside chance it could be a motor tic. However both did point out that my right shoulder is elevated (something I'd never noticed before) and one of them noted that the back-right side of my neck was hard and tense to the touch.

Dystonia is usually treated with injections of Botox, a toxin that partially paralyzes the problem muscle. At least one of the neurologists is willing to try this treatment, but neither of them
think it's going to work. I'll most likely have to wait at least two or three months for the shot and then, of course, there's the risk of side effects. Oh, and if the first try isn't successful I'm right, how did both of these guys come to the wrong conclusion? What did they miss?

And oh yeah, if my problem isn't dystonia what the heck else could it be? Are there other conditions in which muscles remain in a permanent state of contraction? Or is such a state the very
definition of dystonia?

Part of me worries that during my exams I spent too much time describing the involuntary movements (from where I sit, a very small part of the problem) and not enough explaining the intense muscle tension/spasm (from where I sit, an enormous problem). Perhaps they just never heard me tell them about the orangutan in there, tugging away. I'm prone to give fifty word answers when five words would do fine, ask lots of questions, etc. After listening to me babble for twenty or thirty minutes, it's possible the forest got buried in the trees. Or maybe I explained the muscle tension just fine and they simply didn't believe me. Wouldn't be the first time. I'd talk to them about all of this but I have evidence that they already regard me as a bit of a pain in the ass, a patient who diagnosed himself based on shit he read on the internet and doesn't want to hear anything different. (Certainly I can understand why a doctor would find that annoying). I can't afford to piss these guys off any further, otherwise I'll have to start over with yet another neuro. So before I start asking questions that make it sound like I want to pick a fight, I'd appreciate some advice.

Question #2.

One of the docs prescribed an anticholinergic (a drug that reduces levels of acetylcholine) called Artane (Trihexyphenidyl) . He thought it was worth a try. I took one MG about three days ago. For the first few hours, I thought it might be helping the muscle tension just a wee bit . But then the muscle tension got a lot worse and has remained so ever since. I've read up on the drug, but I'm having a difficult time parsing some of the info. What I need to know is... do anticholinergics ever have a rebound effect? That is, can they trigger an upsurge in acetylcholine on their way out the door? And if they do, how would one deal with such a thing? I know, I know... I should tell my doctor. But I'm ninety percent sure they'll just tell me that this couldn't be a side effect of the drug and make a mental note that I'm even crazier than they originally thought.

Alright, that's everything. I'm happy to provide more details and answer questions and if you have any advice, please feel free to dispense. Also, if you think it's warranted, you're welcome to email me privately. My address is in my profile.

Scientific name for ability to see random stream of images?

Malad — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 21:39:39 -0800

I and some others I've spoken to have the ability to see a plethora of random images or movies (and sometimes sounds or other sense-imagery) in our imaginations at will. These manifest when we relax our minds a little and will the images to come -- they might be connected or not, bizarre or not -- a lot like dreams, really. What is the scientific name for this phenomenon and how common is it?

Help me find a great neurologist.

sneakin — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 18:33:15 -0800

Can you please recommend a great neurologist in the New Haven County (Connecticut) area? I need to see a neurologist for a follow-up after an MRI. I really want someone who is whip smart and will pay close attention to me. Having a nice/friendly/warm bedside manner is important, too, but not imperative since I know neurologists aren't known for their cuddliness. Yale affiliation is a plus.

It's my noggin, so, it's pretty important.

I'm bleeding from my hands. So why can't I hear?

eritain — Sat, 12 May 2007 07:08:58 -0800

Hypotension/hypovolemia as a low-pass filter: I got cut, I went into shock, and then everything started sounding funny. I'd guess it was a 40 dB (±10) rolloff, which began near 200 Hz (±50) and left me with nothing above 1kHz. How in the world? Story, discussion of numeric estimates, off-the-cuff physiological speculations, etc... About a week ago I had a gentlemanly disagreement with a pane of glass, which left venous blood running richly from two of my knuckles. (No winner was declared, but you should see the other guy. I totally took him.) At the first-aid station, I dropped into a typical case of shock: pallor, weakness, sweating, and thirst. I knew what it was, so I got my head between my knees and asked a bystander for water to sip. I was still feeling awful when someone got a car to drive me and my now-bandaged hands to the emergency room (where those hands would get six stitches and some iodine).

As I walked some 15 or 20 feet to the car, I experienced an unfamiliar symptom: My hearing drained out. First the high end, then the mids went very quiet. A waterfall fountain became inaudible; male voices had a very flat timbre. I could hear the bass rumble of the car engine very clearly, but not its rattling-type noises, or much road hiss/tire noise.

Note that I am pretty bad at estimating loudness, but it was a profound loss. Frequency, I'm a little better with. I understood people speaking, so I must have had some hearing up to 1000 Hz (to make out the first two vowel formants). But 700 Hz is a good estimate for the top of the road hiss that I wasn't hearing, and the loudest sounds were definitely 100-160 Hz or so.

Qualitatively, here is how much shock I was in: My vision was washed out, but not tunneled. My lips, I'm told, were colorless. I did walk 20 feet, but I'm sure I couldn't have gone 40. I had the presence of mind to keep my knees slightly bent in case I went down, and to be irritated at the people who thought that holding my elbow was really gonna help if I fainted. (Arms go limp, yo?) I did not have the presence of mind to say, 'Hold me at the shoulder, not the elbow,' or better yet, 'Wait, give me a minute here, I can't walk yet.' In the car, with a few minutes' rest and some water sipped, the normal shock symptoms receded, and the hearing loss with them.

So: What was that? Has this happened to other people? Can you propose a mechanism? (Could shock drain fluid from your cochlea, or do some fibers of the auditory nerve have a better blood supply than others, or would it more likely be the auditory cortex going under?) I welcome hypotheses, but I'm not about to go gouge myself again to test them. (Hmm, guineapigs.metafilter.com is still available.)

The things you say

god particle — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 16:58:36 -0800

Out of curiosity: sometimes when I hear people talk, I get a strange feeling in the back of my head. It feels good and almost as if something is being secreted. the feeling is localized around the area where the skull meets the spine, or around the brain stem-ish area. I have never been able to figure out what specifically it is about some people's voices that make me feel this sensation or notice any other patterns. I don't have much else to go on. I'm wondering if anyone else experiences it or perhaps knows what it is?