Curated Paper 2

Austin Kirkby - Brain Journaling

7/31/23

BIOL 4500

Dr. Karpel

My whole life I have been a fan of football. When I was 14 years old, I experienced my first brain injury as a result of football. I was hit very hard in the back of the head. I was not originally diagnosed with a concussion, so I continued to play. On the drive home, my mom kept asking me questions about my head. I eventually burst out in anger telling her to leave me alone. I was never one to yell at my mom. She says that when I yelled at her it was the moment that she knew I was concussed. I remember the second time I had a concussion, I was pacing up and down the sidelines of the football field. Finally, the athletic trainer noticed my behavior and took my helmet from me. I became very angry with him when he took it and told me I was done for the night. Head injuries really can affect more than just the physical health of an individual. They truly can change the personality of someone. 

In reading the paper published by the American Journal of Sports Medicine, I found it very interesting that simply following a new concussion protocol (SFWP) made it less likely for an athlete to have repeat concussion events. I wonder if I needed to wait longer after my first concussion to return to school and sports. Would I have been able to avoid consecutive concussions? In this same paper, they allude to the idea that concussion awareness is spreading and most schools now take large precautionary steps to make sure athletes are safe before returning to play. These new precautions certainly have been controversial to many people. Some are skeptical of the necessary symptom free period before returning to play. This certainly has affected society and people begin to diverge on such topics. Some might express distrust in sound science and make “logical” (and valid) arguments that if I have no symptoms I must be healthy. Oftentimes the findings of science have this effect on society. Distrust in science was a large factor in different stances during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and problems that arose then still stem into our society today. 

In the powerpoint on traumatic brain injury (TBI) I was previously familiar with the story of Phineas Gage. It is abundantly clear that our brain is very much the driver of who we are as people. It drives our tendencies and even our thoughts. This is where fields like neurobiology and psychology meet. At what point does a brain anomaly need to be blamed on the structure of the brain, and at what point does it need to be blamed on what goes on inside of the brain. It is crucial for these two fields to work with and relate to one another, they are intertwined in a very intimate way. I had a friend whose father was a player in the national football league. His father suffered many traumatic brain injuries during his time playing. A few years ago, he took his own life. He was otherwise a very pleasant and happy person. It was unexpected by everyone who knew him. Many doctors concluded that it was a result of CTE  (Chronic Traumatic Encephelopaphy). He simply wasn’t himself anymore after so many brain injuries. This crosses the interesting border that exists between “brain” and “mind” as is discussed in the powerpoint. When our biological structure is affected, how can we predict what will happen to our mind? This is the big question of neurology and psychology. This is why they are separate fields. This affects ayurveda or the balance of our bodies in a big way. As previously discussed, inflammation in the body often leads to different diseases within the central nervous system. What we do and eat can affect the inflammation in our bodies. One of the first things that affect our actions is our minds. There is almost a closed circle between how our mind affects our brain and how our brain affects our mind. 

However, we still have much to discover about how and why our brains work. But we do know that our brains play an essential role in producing our thoughts and character. As in the example with Phineas Gage, we know the brain controls those things. Those results have been repeatedly seen in many subsequent lobectomy cases. People simply aren’t the same after the structure of their brain is altered. This also plays a large role in how people change as they grow old. Young brains are alive and reckless, suggesting that they may lack adequate growth in their frontal lobe. Old people are often rude and lose their manners. This may also be due to some atrophy of their frontal lobes. The bottom line is, as our brains change, so do we.

It is interesting to note that some central nervous system diseases can be a result of  external processes and some can be a result of genotypes. I never knew that Huntington’s disease was autosomal dominant, meaning that anyone with one copy of the gene will be affected by the disease. Usually, evolution has seen to it that many if not most diseases are recessive. Something as small as the change in 68 amino acids of a protein can begin the rapid degeneration of someone's central nervous system and plague them with dementia. I also learned for the first time reading this powerpoint that Alzheimer’s Disease has an unknown cause. I was under the impression that it was a result of the build up of beta amyloid plaque in the brain, but it is the cause of that plaque build-up that is not entirely known. I mentioned a book called “BrainMaker” in an earlier entry. The author of the book mentions the billions of dollars that have been poured into finding an adequate treatment for AD with nothing to show for it. He alluded to the fact that the answer may be much more simple than we might expect. He refers to the gut flora and the role it plays in our bodies and how it can control the inflammatory response. This is strong evidence for the need for balance in the body or ayurveda. This could be a difficult answer. As so many infirmities have been medicalized, society wants the answer to be medicine. They want a magical pill to fix obesity, cancer, alzheimers, and many other diseases. It is difficult for people to hear that the answer to their problem requires more work than simply taking a pill.

In relation to my previous entry, I found it intriguing that the paper on personality disorders did mention the “mind theory”. Everyone sees the world differently. I remember a thought experiment I often discussed with my brother about our different perceptions of the world. What if when I saw “red” you saw “yellow”? But your whole life you have been taught that “yellow” was indeed “red”? Obviously there are some serious holes in the thought experiment, and sound physical science has shown us that we perceive different wavelengths of light in the same general sense (“red” is “red” for all of us). But, it is important to note that there are indeed different perceptions of the world around us. Oftentimes there may not be a definite right or wrong. This is where biological sciences do tend to fail humans and a more philosophical or “unseen” approach would be required. Indeed, this is where religion becomes an essential pillar for so many people. Religion may help explain the unexplainable. 

The first thought that comes to mind when discussing the growing problem of drugs is “say no to drugs”. I remember hearing the command several times from my youth. While the instruction is effective in teaching kids that “drugs” are “bad”, we come at a crossroads when a dentist prescribes a narcotic for a patient who just underwent extraction of their wisdom teeth. I have often felt that the saying “controlled substance” was equivalent with “we have a fire, let’s get everyone very close to it so they can be warm. But, we need to make sure no one falls in”. In short, it is very risky when controlled substances are prescribed. But the fire is indeed warm, and many people are helped by these prescriptions. How can one be sure to maintain ayurveda when taking narcotics for pain?

As mentioned in the slideshow, drugs are taking advantage of the body's natural mechanisms. Addictive substances do indeed throw off the balance of the reward system in the brain. I have long been a believer in “opposition in all things”. When we experience a low, we can be sure that a high is on the way (a natural one). But, when the equilibrium of lows and highs is tampered with, there is no promise in a remaining balance. If a high was given everytime a low was felt, there would eventually be no high, but our brain would not be able to handle the low. 

Listening to a podcast, I learned that most drug overdose related deaths are caused by an accidental ingestion of fentanyl. Synthetic opioids are laced with fentanyl very often because of the cheap methods for production involving this lethal and powerful drug. Drug trade, especially illicit drug trade, has an unimaginable impact on society. Too many families lose their loved ones. Drug addiction throws off the balance in one person's mind, but a drug addiction throws off the balance of relationships with co-workers, family, and friends. The amount of overdose deaths has skyrocketed since around 2015. Drug abuse is not always illicit. Many drug problems come from prescribed medications. A doctor’s poor decision in prescribing a controlled substance can lead to devastation for a patient and their family. This is a large issue when professionals study the interactions among our towns and societies. 

Drugs don’t always need to be the source of an imbalance. Oftentimes, people who have overloaded schedules and too many commitments turn to drugs as a result of the stress they experience. I feel it is important to address that we must maintain balance in the mind and in the body in order to decrease the risk of drug abuse and addiction. Prevention of fatal addictions is necessary. Balance of the mind rules over all. Depressants, stimulants, opioids, and other drugs may give a brief hope of short circuiting balance, but synthetic neurotransmitter use is often not the answer for finding balance. There are cases, as aforementioned, where these drugs do help people with chronic pain, anxiety, and depression, among other infirmities. However, we should look to other methods whenever possible for finding balance and restoring internal peace. This will heal people, but it will also heal families and communities.