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Can a brain injury change who you are?

It turns out that this is not only possible, but relatively common. And there’s plenty of evidence for that.

One of the most popular cases is what happened to Phineas Gage. While working, he had an accident in which a rod pierced his skull. After this accident, previously a well-mannered, respectable, smart business man became irresponsible, rude and aggressive. Another controversial case is that of a teacher who was diagnosed with pedophilia. Later, it was discovered that he had a brain tumor. After the tumor was removed, the symptoms of pedophilia disappeared. 

There are much more cases like those, but they all have one thing in common: damage to areas of the prefrontal cortex, in particular the orbitofrontal cortex. The prefrontal cortex has a role in managing behaviours, regulating emotions and responding appropriately. So it makes sense that damaging it can change a lot. I think it's very interesting, but also scary, that an accident can make our character traits completely change.


Source: https://theconversation.com/can-a-brain-injury-change-who-you-are-95081?fbclid=IwAR2K_6-0M8Ba7UGBKUYPfP17ibRaxWqb8uzaCLew-P6KEJNPVWzajpwb0BM

Comments

  1. englishdiaryMarch 7, 2022 at 9:40 PM

    This is why our skulls are so thick and hard and relatively difficult to crack. Particularly the part protecting our prefrontal cortex.

    ReplyDelete

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