The brain that changes itself : stories of personal triumph from the frontiers of brain science

by Norman Doidge

Paper Book, 2007

Status

Available

Publication

New York : Viking/Penguin, 2007.

Description

A new science called neuroplasticity is overthrowing the old notion that the human brain is immutable. Psychoanalyst Doidge traveled the country to meet both the brilliant scientists championing neuroplasticity and the people whose lives they've transformed--people whose mental limitations or brain damage were seen as unalterable. We see a woman born with half a brain that rewired itself to work as a whole, blind people who learn to see, learning disorders cured, IQs raised, aging brains rejuvenated, stroke patients learning to speak, children with cerebral palsy learning to move with more grace, depression and anxiety disorders successfully treated, and lifelong character traits changed. Using these stories to probe mysteries of the body, emotion, love, sex, culture, and education, Dr. Doidge has written an inspiring book that will permanently alter the way we look at our brains, human nature, and human potential.--From publisher description.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member Bcteagirl
This was actually my third attempt at this book. Not that it is not a good book. It is actually a fantastic book. Engaging, not hard to read, etc. It just seems to be one of those books you really need to be in the right mood for. January seemed to finally be it as I ran through half the book on
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the first day.

This book discusses breakthroughs in neuroplasticity, or the science of how our brain changes with input from the environment. Cognitive theorists viewed the adult brain as a 'machine' capable of very little actual change. Science shows our brains are constantly changing with new input for good (leaning to use skills again after a stroke, teaching the blind to 'see' with electronic input) or bad (repeating OCD compulsions deepens them further, watching hard pornography on a regular basis can make it harder to be aroused in a 'regular' sexual situation). It discusses many of the breakthroughs that help people lead normal lives and the research that discusses how neuroplasticity occurs. A great accessible read for the layperson, and a must read for anybody in psychology or medicine.
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LibraryThing member MeditationesMartini
The first thing to be said is that Doidge is no writer--he dangles participles like a bastard, he has a Tom Clancyish sense of the physical traits, personality points, and biographical notes that will make "brilliant physiologist Paul Bach-y-Rita" or "Holocaust survivor Eric Kandel" into the kind
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of pat characters whose life and work can be rolled out in a cheap moviesque narrative. Some of his sentences don't even make sense.


But that turns out to matter very little, because the material at hand here is so, so interesting. I'm a little suspicious of Doidge's "for years nobody believed in neuroplasticity, but now they realize it will FIX EVERYTHING", but I think that's more the fault of the presenter, because wow, neuroplasticity is going to fix everything! The basic concept is that while most of our mental and physical functions may live in specific locations in the brain, that's not hard and fast as suggested by old localization creed--neural maps can move, and new areas can take over for old ones, and with repetition and exercise we can train our brain to function in new ways and learn or relearn skills that brain damage should mean we've lost or never had. Help for kids with autism, aphasia, old people with Alzheimer's! Help for the deaf and blind! Understanding how falling in love wipes out our old mental maps as we neuroplastically mold to our new lovers! Amputating phantom limbs! Helping people with OCD, obsessive thoughts, chronic pain. Understanding the imagination. A sombre but not sensationalistic discussion of how neuroplasticity informs the whole internet-pornography thing. Helping people lose undesirable personality traits by learning why they developed them in the first place. Even a girl who is a little weird but fully functioning WITH ONLY HALF A BRAIN.


And let's go back, briefly, not to the brain girl, as interesting as she is, but to the personality traits thing. As an English grad student who was just laughing about how all the suggested t-shirt designs for our program feature quotations, not from literature, but from critical theorists, because that's still the way fucking English programs roll ("Dare to Dream" -Lacan. Nice sentiment coming from anyone else), what interests me is the way Doidge, obviously interested in the future of brain science but also a fairly old-school psychoanalyst and believer in the talking cure, manages to square the circle, reminding us that Freud ("Yo mama" -Freud. the others are even worse) was originally a neurologist and bringing stuff about plasticity back to the familiar ol' Freudian notions about how we learn to be who we are--and bringing Freudian notions about how we learn habits to protect our fragile psyches down to what that actually is proving to mean in the brain, and how true it's proving to be. Freud first proposed neuroplasticity. Freud first proposed the synapse, and the simultaneous firing of synapses is behind his ideas on free association. Other shit like that. I admit I'm not really qualified to evaluate the evidence coming as it does only from Doidge the true believer, but when I'm spending days in psych classes with Carrie Cuttler pooh-poohing the very notion of anything Freudian having anything relevant to say to modern psychology, which lest we forget is a real science, it's nice to get a corrective, however much truth is in it, that says hey, Freud may not be experimental science by the modern standard, but he created a model of serious explanatory power, and not just as a gussied-up metaphor the way English students use it. there is also a discussion of Marshall McLuhan in terms of how the medium actually affects the brain. Actually taking theory as referring in non-parameaningful terms to things and processes in the real world, and laying it all out for us in such compelling, even if sometimes crudely expressed, terms, is . . . well, it kind of restores your faith in the public (even the pop) intellectual, is what it does.
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LibraryThing member paulsignorelli
Norman Doidge's "The Brain That Changes Itself" offers a great starting place for those of us interested in understanding the physiology behind our learning process. Those willing to take the time to read the entire book will follow Doidge's explorations documenting how a variety of terribly
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challenged people have overcome tremendous physical and psychological disabilities far beyond the day-to-day issues confronted in our training-teaching-learning efforts. Those with less time to spare--or shorter attention spans--can move right to the heart of Doidge’s writings on the physiology of learning by diving into the third chapter, "Redesigning the Brain"--a fascinating and game-changing exploration of the work on neuroplasticity completed by University of California, San Francisco professor emeritus Michael Merzenich. Understanding the basics of neuroplasticity helps us understand the challenges our learners face. There are, for example, times in our lives--early childhood being one that is easily and commonly recognized--when learning appears to be easier for us. "Merzenich thinks our neglect of intensive learning as we age leads the systems in the brain that modulate, regulate, and control plasticity to waste away," Doidge adds. "In response he has developed brain exercise for age-related cognitive decline--the common decline of memory, thinking and, processing speed" and his efforts are producing noteworthy results (p. 85). The conclusions for those of us involved in workplace learning and performance or any other educational endeavor are obvious. If we want to help our learners, we have to make them aware of what it takes to expedite learning.
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LibraryThing member WalkerMedia
This very readable book takes the layperson on a journey through a variety of cases and researchers involved with neuroplasticity. Where other texts have tended to focus on one aspect (e.g., brain injury, countering aging, psychotherapy), Doidge is unusual in that he combines rather different cases
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into one book. In this mix, you'll find the tales of recovery from stroke, the story of a girl born with only one brain hemisphere, and musings on neural changes after exposure to pornography. The brain is not set in stone in childhood; it continues to add new cells and form new connections between cells until the day we die.

Be warned, however; much of what we've learned about the workings of the brain has come from animal research, and the details aren't danced around in this book. In fact, the author spends quite a few pages defending the research using silverbacks conducted by Taub; he makes the case that PETA had its facts wrong and actually did more harm to the animals by taking them away from the lab. Readers will encounter examinations of the brains of sacrificed animals, but they will also find descriptions of human autopsies and their findings. For example, the findings of new cells in the final days of life aren't from indirect evidence, but direct observations from autopsies. Such descriptions do not make up the bulk of the book, but they are more than a few pages and particularly sensitive readers may want to find another book to read.

Weaving clinical anecdotes with background on prominent researchers, Doidge makes a very good case that research on humans and other animals can translate to improvements in quality of life for those with impaired development or brain injury. Well-referenced, the work tucks away literature citations at the end of the book so that they don't interrupt the flow of the narrative.

Although the chapters of the text cover a variety of cases, the commonalities of neuroplasticity come through clearly for the reader to make this work a unified whole. I recommend this book for any educated layperson who'd like to know more about the flexibility of the brain without learning a vast new terminology.
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LibraryThing member annbury
A discussion of newly-emerging knowledge about the plasticity of the brain. This is written for the non-technical reader, in the form of a series of case studies. It is a fascinating book, and a very hopeful one.
LibraryThing member JAH711
The field of neuroscience is only now coming to grasp that the brain can continue to reprogram itself through a person’s whole lifetime. This book sheds light on the field of “brain plasticity” and its impacts on recovery from injury and lifelong learning.
LibraryThing member wodfest
Possibly the most exciting non-fiction book I've read. Certainly the most exciting this year. What a wonderful and amazing set of stories - and so much that is useful to apply in life. I wanted to make notes and I think I will go back and do so.
Not even horribly marred by the author's need to pin
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his psychiatrist's views on a couple of self-indulgent chapters without much underlying science.
The parts that are backed by science appear very well referenced.
I want to buy a heap of copies for family and friends - even though I don't think many of them would read it.
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LibraryThing member besina
For a long time, the brain was considered to be hard-wired. When damage was done to the brain, it was thought to be irreversible and something the sufferer must simply learn to live with.

'Not so,' says researcher Norman Doidge, a psychiatrist and researcher in neuroplasticity. He presents evidence
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of the brain's ability to re-wire itself following traumatic injury to allow other parts of the brain to completely or partially take over the activities previously associated with the injured area. He does this thru the compelling use of case histories and demonstrates the variable amounts of success patients have achieved.

A thorougly engaging read that opens up a myriad of possibilities for brain research and personal improvement.
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LibraryThing member Hanuman2
A work that is great because the science it presents is interesting and the way it presents the science is interesting itself and accurate. The science is that of neuroplasticity...how the brain changes (itself).
For what it is, it's nearly perfect, but for a broader understanding, would need to
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have a social analysis and a body-mind analysis.
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LibraryThing member BettyW
Doidge presents compelling evidence that the adult brain is not a machine. We can "rewire" our brain - in effect changing its structure and functions to deal with trauma or damage.

The ideas are entertainingly presented using case studies. A readable, inspiring book.
LibraryThing member delphica
(#30 in the 2008 book challenge)

Pop science, very intriguing reporting on recent case studies and research that suggest the human brain is much more plastic that has traditionally been believed. I thought it was a nice blend of medical theory and more personal interviews with individuals with a
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variety of neural conditions, covering accidental, congenital, and aging situations.

Grade: A-
Recommended: To people who like their medical reporting at about the same level as a good Nova episode (seriously, let's not get crazy, my degree is in the humanities), somewhat similar to an Oliver Sacks book. However, I will add the caution that unlike Oliver Sacks' writing, this book is full frontal on the animal research that is happening in this field. I respect the honesty ... but I was not expecting it and now I have some new images burned into my psyche that I will carry with me to the grave.
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LibraryThing member angella.beshara
Although, like a previous reviewer I too was a little disturbed by the "sewing the kitten's eyes shut" statement I did find this book fascinating and highly readable. The sections on autism and OCD were especially enlightening.
LibraryThing member raindiva1
one of the best books on the topic of brain science. Extremely accessible for both the layperson and scientist alike. I really enjoyed this book.
LibraryThing member ebethe
Interesting subject, fairly tightly written, but sometimes it strayed.
LibraryThing member SmokeJumper
Good book so far. Interesting to learn more about brain function but written with stories so it is not dry and boring with a bunch of graphs and numbers.
LibraryThing member hydrolith
An enjoyable and interesting read that I finished in one afternoon, the book explores the latest research showing how incredibly plastic the brain really is. I was already familiar with some of it, and hoping for a little more scientific depth (the jargon doesn't get much heavier than 'neuron' and
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various parts of the brain). But the anecdotes of patients with weirdly cool conditions and sketches of the "neuroplasticians" he meets are well done. A solid and entertaining summary, with an index and references to follow up.
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LibraryThing member thokar
Extremely interesting, rewiring damaged areas of the brain, moving mechanisms from one area to another.
LibraryThing member simbacat
A very enlightening read. Amazing accounts of the brain's ability to adapt and repair etc.
LibraryThing member mmason6288
The author, a psychiatrist, presents personal stories from his research and his practice of the remarkable ability of the human brain to "reinvent" itself following trauma, whether physical or psychological. A fascinating look at the workings of the human brain and research undertaken to understand
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its workings. Prose is easily grasped by non-medical types such as myself.
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LibraryThing member librisissimo
See review of copy-1; additional notes added there.

Bach-y-Rita's story about PETA and the Silver Spring monkeys would make a good book / play / movie about the overreach, inconsistency, and just plain meanness of the so-called animal lovers, especially the reaction of others to the charges that
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were later dismissed or found false (a la Duke Lacrosse team).
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LibraryThing member shawjonathan
The book is immensely satisfying science for lay readers, that is to say for people who know Sweet Fanny Adams about neuroscience but are interested in the workings of human brains. The subtitle – Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science – is a fair summary of the
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book’s approach to its subject: each of eleven chapters matches the work of a scientist or clinician with the story of a person who has benefited directly from that work.

Seen from one point of view, the book is full of wonders. A woman born with only half a brain nevertheless reads, relates intelligently to other people, performs astonishing feats of memory, and dreams of a heaven tailor-made for her needs. People paralysed by stroke years earlier recover speech or movement through an intensive exercise regime. Persistent pain in phantom limbs is relieved using a mirror in a box. People move objects using only their imaginations (helped by electrodes attached to their brains and linked to computers).

From another point of view, it charts the progress of hard science catching up with common wisdom. Contrary to the dogmas of the ‘mental health’ industry, observable changes in the brain don’t incontrovertibly indicate physical conditions that can only be remedied by drugs, surgery or electric shock. The aggressive assertions of evolutionary psychologists look even more ideologically based than they did without this evidence. addictions, including to internet pornography, Doidge is a Freudian, and describes the progress of one man’s analysis as an exercise in neuroplastic therapy. In an appendix, ‘The Culturally Modified Brain’ he writes:

Neuroplastic research has shown us that every sustained activity ever mapped – including physical activities, sensory activities, learning, thinking and imagining – changes the brain as well as the mind.

I’m glad my primary schooldays included endless amounts of memorising.
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LibraryThing member librisissimo
Substance: Accounts of current and past research into the workings of the brain, especially the results that depict its plasticity and ability to change. Encouraging stories of how people can train themselves to overcome brain dysfunctions.
Style: Uses anecdotes and case histories ties to a specific
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researcher's work to high-light different aspects of brain science.
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LibraryThing member The_Hibernator
This book covers past and present work in neural plasticity and is written for a non-specialist to understand easily. It gives some interesting case studies, which appeals to the mainstream audience. However, I found his Freudian expositions a bit irksome. I felt throughout the book that the author
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had a distinct agenda: to explain how modern advances in neuroscience 1) were already proposed by Freud or 2) are evidence that Freud's theories coincide well with physiological truth.
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LibraryThing member jefware
How the brain can re-wire itself after neuronal damage. This implies that some of what we think of as biologic brain function is really learned and rewired behavior and that it can occur very rapidly. Examples given are sexual preferences and pain, as well as brain damage stories.
LibraryThing member bookworm147
A fascinating look at how the brain works, presented in layman's terms. My only negative would be that it's written from a humanistic, evolutionary worldview, but that should not prevent anyone from learning more about the incredible ways the human brain functions.

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