Hope in Neuroplasticity

Transcription

1 Hope in Neuroplasticity Upon doing further research on hydranencephaly, learning that these children are missing parts of their brain is devastating as a parent or anyone else researching the condition. Assumptions are automatic that because the entire brain is not there, a quality life cannot exist. Those in the medical profession help to exaggerate those assumptions. Mind you, these are only assumptions, and not accurate ones at that. There are hours upon hours of time spent in utter denial because it becomes difficult to wrap ones own mind around the fact that these children indeed do exist and are doing all these wonderful things that parents are told their children would never do. Not only are these children defying the medically impossible, they are doing it all without the portion of the brain that is medically defined as controller of all bodily response and consciousness. The concept of neuroplasticity was a stumbled upon subject, and that was the beginning of great hope for better things and the shear cause of undying determination. This topic is truly interesting and enlightening, though easy to find yourself lost in the reading. Brain plasticity, or neuroplasticity, is the lifelong ability of the brain to reorganize the neural pathways, or rewire so to speak, based on new experiences and things learned. As we learn, we acquire new knowledge and skills by repetition and teaching. In order to learn or memorize a fact or skill, there must be persistent functional changes in the brain that represent the new knowledge. The ability of the brain to change with learning is what has been determined to be the phenomenon of neuroplasticity (MedicineNet, 2004). Doing something repeatedly begins to make the brain form a new connection, a new pathway of communication and functioning. Pretty amazing, right? All people's brains are not wired the same, and it is almost as if the brain is a jumbo hunk of clay...regardless of the size of it, it can eventually be molded in to completing the task set forth for it (MemoryZine, 2010), as long as it has an experienced and determined sculptor! Facts from Neuroscience for Kids (Hoiland, n.d.): FACT 1: Neuroplasticity includes several different processes that take place throughout a lifetime. Neuroplasticity does not consist of a single type of morphological change, but rather includes several different processes that occur throughout an

2 individual s lifetime. Many types of brain cells are involved in neuroplasticity, including neurons, glia, and vascular cells. FACT 2: Neuroplasticity has a clear age-dependent determinant. Although plasticity occurs over an individual s lifetime, different types of plasticity dominate during certain periods of one s life and are less prevalent during other periods. FACT 3: Neuroplasticity occurs in the brain under two primary conditions: 1. during normal brain development when the immature brain first begins to process sensory information through adulthood (developmental plasticity and plasticity of learning and memory). 2. as an adaptive mechanism to compensate for lost function and/or to maximize remaining functions in the event of brain injury. FACT 4: The environment plays a key role in influencing plasticity. In addition to genetic factors, the brain is shaped by the characteristics of a person's environment and by the actions of that same person. Developmental neuroplasticity is important during the early years to forming the brain functions when there is very little to work with in some eyes. "Neurons in the brain are like telephone wires that communicate with one another. Following birth, the brain of a newborn is flooded with information from the baby s sense organs. This sensory information must somehow make it back to the brain where it can be processed. To do so, nerve cells must make connections with one another, transmitting the impulses to the brain. Continuing with the telephone wire analogy, like the basic telephone trunk lines strung between cities, the newborn s genes instruct the "pathway" to the correct area of the brain from a particular nerve cell. For example, nerve cells in the retina of the eye send impulses to the primary visual area in the occipital lobe of the brain and not to the area of language production (Wernicke s area) in the left posterior temporal lobe. The basic trunk lines have been established, but the specific connections from one house to another require additional signals. Over the first few years of life, the brain grows rapidly. As each neuron

3 matures, it sends out multiple branches (axons, which send information out, and dendrites, which take in information), increasing the number of synaptic contacts, and laying the specific connections from house to house, or in the case of the brain, from neuron to neuron. At birth, each neuron in the cerebral cortex has approximately 2,500 synapses. By the time an infant is two or three years old, the number of synapses is approximately 15,000 synapses per neuron (Gopnick, et al., 1999). This amount is about twice that of the average adult brain. As we age, old connections are deleted through a process called synaptic pruning. Synaptic pruning eliminates weaker synaptic contacts while stronger connections are kept and strengthened. Experience determines which connections will be strengthened and which will be pruned; connections that have been activated most frequently are preserved. Neurons must have a purpose to survive. Without a purpose, neurons die through a process called apoptosis in which neurons that do not receive or transmit information become damaged and die. Ineffective or weak connections are "pruned" in much the same way a gardener would prune a tree or bush, giving the plant the desired shape. It is plasticity that enables the process of developing and pruning connections, allowing the brain to adapt itself to its environment. Plasticity of Learning and Memory. It was once believed that as we aged, the brain s networks became fixed. In the past two decades, however, an enormous amount of research has revealed that the brain never stops changing and adjusting. Learning, as defined by Tortora and Grabowski (1996), is the ability to acquire new knowledge or skills through instruction or experience. Memory is the process by which that knowledge is retained over time. The capacity of the brain to change with learning is plasticity. So how does the brain change with learning? According to Durbach (2000), there appear to be at least two types of modifications that occur in the brain with learning: ~A change in the internal structure of the neurons, the most notable being in the area of synapses. ~An increase in the number of synapses between neurons. Initially, newly learned data are "stored" in short-term memory, which is a temporary ability to recall a few pieces of information. Some evidence supports the concept that short-term memory depends upon electrical and

4 chemical events in the brain as opposed to structural changes such as the formation of new synapses. One theory of short-term memory states that memories may be caused by reverberating neuronal circuits -- that is, an incoming nerve impulse stimulates the first neuron which stimulates the second, and so on, with branches from the second neuron synapsing with the first. After a period of time, information may be moved into a more permanent type of memory, long-term memory, which is the result of anatomical or biochemical changes that occur in the brain (Tortora and Grabowski, 1996). Injury Induced: Plasticity and Brain Repair During brain repair following injury, plastic changes are geared towards maximizing function in spite of the damaged brain. In studies involving rats in which one area of the brain was damaged, brain cells surrounding the damaged area underwent changes in their function and shape that allowed them to take on the functions of the damaged cells. Although this phenomenon has not been widely studied in humans, data indicate that similar (though less effective) changes occur in human brains following injury. "The principal activities of brains are making changes in themselves." ~Marvin L. Minsky Therefore, this explains the reasons for doing therapies that focus so much on cognition and developing vision and sensory. Early intervention is crucial, along with consistent sensory interactions. Children with hydranencephaly do a lot of simply sitting and staring, they are unable to move much and it is important to make the best of that by working their brains. A good start is by working on focusing on a single object, once that is seemingly mastered work on tracking objects. Exercise the muscles working the eyes and make a stronger connection through sensory exercises. Many babies are ticklish or react to feeling different textures and temperatures; however, children with hydranencephaly have to learn through exposure to those different senses. Cause and effect exercises in all sensory areas, greatly accelerate progress in sensory intensity.

5 In conclusion, here is an amazing article by local friend and practitioner of the Anat Baniel Method, John Robson: Neuroplasticity: What the Heck is a Plastic Brain? When I first heard these terms, I almost dismissed them because they sounded too strange. However, as time has gone by I have heard of neuroplasticity more and more and learned about some amazing changes in people's lives because of plastic brains. Peoples' heads are not filled with the bright primary colored stuff that toys are made of but our brains are plastic in the sense of the dictionary definition: "capable of being shaped or formed. During the 19th century, a theory about the brain was proposed and (unfortunately) became accepted as fact. The theory, known as localizationism postulated that a specific part of the brain was responsible for a specific part of the body. For example, it was thought that a defined area of the brain was responsible for moving each muscle such that a map could be drawn of the brain that indicated which part moved the tip of the right finger or the top of the left thigh or wherever. This theory was leant support after experiments in the 1930's conducted by Wilder Penfield. When electrodes were attached to specific areas of the brain and then apart of the body was stimulated - for example the right finger - it was found that electrical activity increased in the part of the brain responsible for the right finger. After studying a number of patients, a map was drawn of the brain that showed which areas were responsible for which part of the body. That then seemed to be that, the map was drawn, and localizationism was "fact. Maybe there is something about maps that makes us think boundaries are fixed even though they might not be (my old atlas shows a great big country in Eastern Europe called USSR and we have obviously found that map has not been any indicator of permanence). In the 1950 and 60, localizationism was challenged by scientists Bach-y-Rita and many others. Through theoretical and practical experimentation, it was found that different areas of the brain, under the right conditions, could take over the work of other areas and literally change the map.

6 Bach-y-Rita s father suffered a severe stroke that left one side of his body paralyzed. He worked at exercises designed to help him learn to reuse his affected side and eventually ended up with full function and returned to his occupation of college professor and his hobby of hiking. After he died (of a heart attack, age 72) an autopsy found a large lesion in his brain from the stroke. The existence of the lesion and the fact that he had recovered function indicates that the role of the damaged areas had successfully been taken over by other areas of the brain. I have taken this example from The Brain the Changes itself, by Norman Doidge. The book contains many fascinating and inspiring stories of where brain plasticity has resulted in triumph over a wide variety of conditions including dysfunctions of the brain, balance, mental processing, and pain. Brain plasticity is at the heart of my work with the Anat Baniel Method. In this work, we seek to create conditions for the brain to become plastic and create new neural connections, patterns and pathways. This then leads to new possibilities for movement, thought and feeling. Since the brain is responsible for almost everything we do, we have to make changes to the brain in order to change the way that we do things. Changing the brain in one area of function (such as movement) is very likely to change it in other ways such as the way information is processed (thinking) or how we react to our surroundings (emotion). It may be that a child cannot move his legs in a way that leads to a useful action because of cerebral palsy or some other condition that affects the brain. If he moves both legs at the same time, it is likely that his brain's map represents the legs as a single unit and not two separate legs. For purposes of discussion, we will assume that there is nothing wrong with the physical structure of the legs. (If they are small or underdeveloped that is likely to be because they have not been used - use creates structure not the other way around. That is why strengthening muscles without learning how to use them is rarely effective but that is another story.) The use of the legs can be learned with the help of a practitioner moving them in ways that present options to the brain. The movements may be individual parts of the legs or the movement of other parts of the body that would normally be part of leg movement - pelvis, low back etc. The ability of the back to move well is always important, as is the ability to

7 position the head. It is likely that learning to move one leg in relation to the other requires learning how to move many things other than just the leg itself. As the ability to move one leg independently of the other is achieved, the brain's map of the body will change. The most obvious change will be that the map of the legs will change to reflect that the legs are two separate parts rather than just one. The brain's image of anything that moves when the leg moves will also change, and so the representation of the back, pelvis, spine, ribs, head etc will also be affected. The way that the body moves will make more sense to the child's system as a whole; the brain will have put order into disorder and so will be functioning at a higher level. The brain's ability to perceive differences will have improved and this ability is a fundamental building block of intelligence - the better that we perceive differences in one area the better we perceive them in other areas. That is why mental function and the ability to relate to the world improve when movement improves. There is no question that the brain is plastic and can change to adapt to circumstances. The question is how to create the right conditions for maximum plasticity and maximum outcome. This is done by getting the brain into a learning state using slow subtle gentle techniques that improve the brain's ability to perceive differences. The Anat Baniel Method is based on using techniques that create these conditions and applying them in the way that best suits any given child in any given situation. When we are able to harness neuroplasticity and get the brain to work better, fantastic things happen. Children learn to do things that may have been thought impossible because of brain injuries or other challenges. As physical abilities improve so does the ability to process information, form intention, and take action. Since intentional action delivers meaningful results, the world makes more sense and emotional differentiation prospers. In other words, the brain functions better and its owner is able to more fully enjoy life. When this happens, we see things that might look like miracles but are really just the application of strangely named phenomena known as neuroplasticity.

8 **Expect to read more about the Anat Baniel Method on our Web site: References Hoiland, Erin (n.d.). Neuroscience for Kids: Brain Plasticity. Retrieved from: MedicineNet (2004). Definition of Neuroplasticity. Retrieved from: MemoryZine (2010). Introduction to Neuroplasticity: What is Neuroplasticity Anyway? Retrieved from: Robson, John (2011). Neuroplasticity: What the Heck is a Plastic Brain? Retrieved from: