Brain Changes itself- new resource

 

CBC- The Brain That Changes Itself

http://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/natureofthings/2008/brainchangesitself/

The Brain that Changes Itself

Join us as we explore the revolutionary science of "neuroplasticity" - a concept that expands not just our knowledge of how our brains work, but how we use them.

For centuries the human brain has been thought of as incapable of fundamental change. People suffering from neurological defects, brain damage or strokes were usually written-off as hopeless cases. But recent and continuing research into the human brain is radically changing how we look at the potential for neurological recovery. Researchers are discovering that you can teach an old brain new tricks. It seems the organ is more flexible than scientists originally thought. CBC Radio talks with Dr. Norman Doidge, the psychiatrist who wrote The Brain that Changes Itself. Known in scientific circles as "neuroplasticity," this radical new approach to the brain provides an incredible way to bring the human brain back to life. Some of the cases that we meet are:

Roger Behm, a blind man who is now able to see via his tongue (and can throw a basketball into a garbage can to prove it).

Cheryl Schiltz, who was written-off by doctors when she lost her sense of balance due to a drug's side effect. Once sentenced to a lifetime of wobbling, her brain rewired itself through a seemingly simple therapy, and has now regained her balance and returned to a normal life.

Michelle Mack, one of the greatest examples of the brain's ability to adapt: she was born, literally, with just half of her brain.

Michael Bernstein, who suffered a debilitating stroke in the prime of his life, paralyzing the left side of his body. He's now back to his former life, as his brain functions have been rerouted and re-invigorated. ( CBC TV)

Watch : CBC Video:

Listen Online: audio (real)

Also see...KSS Books

Comments

[Martin Walker (of brain fitness pro)]

Highly recommended. This book is nothing short of revolutionary. The findings about the brain that Norman Doidge reports on overturn many of our long held MISconceptions about what our brains can do with the right stimulation.

Anyone with a specific interest in brain fitness, autism, learning dysfunction, stroke rehab, ADD, etc., will find this book potentially life changing.

Martin Walker
www.mindsparke.com