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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 7 of 7. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by SLS on March 19, 2002, at 7:58:36
Quite a while ago, a thread appeared on PB describing mood illness resulting from an imbalance between left and right hemispheres of the brain. I think Noa posted it, but I don't remember. Wasn't it the "place an ice cube in one ear" thing?
I'd like to see what you guys think about this.
- Scott
-------------------------------------------
Report Supports 'Dual Brain' Theory of DepressionReuters Health - Reuters Report Supports 'Dual Brain' Theory of Depression Fri Mar 15, 2:06 PM ET
By Alison McCook
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Depressed patients who are not responding to treatment may benefit from a technique that activates one side of the brain, according to a recent report.
The study findings lend support to an intriguing theory: that people have a "dual aspect" to their personalities, and each aspect resides primarily in one brain hemisphere.
According to lead author Dr. Fredric Schiffer of McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts, these personality components can interact with each other normally. But in depressed patients, one hemisphere becomes "healthier" than the other, and patients begin to harbor "a troubled personality associated with one of the hemispheres," he explained.
In his own practice, Schiffer tests which side of the brain is healthier by asking patients to wear goggles that restrict vision to mostly one eye, stimulating the opposite hemisphere.
Schiffer told Reuters Health that stimulating one side of the patient's brain has an immediate--and often dramatic--effect on their emotions. Patients whose healthy side has been activated often report happier feelings, while stimulation of the "troubled" hemisphere can increase psychiatric symptoms, such as anxiety or depression.
"In my experience, this is hard to take seriously unless you've actually witnessed it. But the fact that someone can be visibly upset, or start to cry, whenever they look out one side, is very compelling evidence," he noted.
Schiffer has authored numerous papers and a book describing the dual brain hypothesis. In the most recent study, published in the March issue of Neuropsychiatry, Neuropsychology and Behavioral Neurology, researchers use Schiffer's goggles to detect the healthiest side of patients' brains prior to administering an investigational treatment that activates one hemisphere. The investigators sought to determine whether knowing which side of the brain was "healthy" would help predict how the patient would respond to the treatment.
In 37 patients who were severely depressed and resistant to other treatments, those who felt better when looking through their right eyes--suggesting they have a healthy left hemisphere-- responded well to a therapy directed to the left side of their brains.
Two weeks after treatment with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)--in which magnetic fields are passed through the skull, creating electrical currents in brain tissue-these patients reported an average decrease in their symptoms of 42%. In addition, nine patients said they had improved by at least 50%, which indicates a remission of their condition.
Alternatively, patients who appeared to have a healthier right hemisphere and received TMS to the left side of their brains experienced a decrease in their depression of only 11%, which is considered treatment failure.
In his practice, Schiffer tries to treat patients who appear to have a troubled hemisphere by helping them understand that part of their brain is emotionally damaged. "Treatment becomes the treatment of the child inside, the troubled mind, and educating it, teaching it that it's safer or more valued than it thought it was," he said.
Equally challenging, Schiffer admitted, is trying to convince other psychiatric researchers of the validity of the dual brain theory. "I think my goggles make people uncomfortable. The whole concept seems kind of ridiculous somehow...and yet these data come right down on it."
Dr. Cary Savage of the Massachusetts General Hospital's Cognitive Neuroscience Group told Reuters Health that he agreed these findings are "provocative," but was not convinced that Schiffer's goggles can activate primarily one hemisphere. The two hemispheres are connected, Savage explained, so while a visual stimulus seen through one eye initially reaches one hemisphere, it spreads throughout the whole brain within milliseconds. So if patients report feeling anxiety while looking through one visual field, Savage reasoned that is not likely due to something restricted solely to one hemisphere.
However, Savage could not think of any other mechanism to explain Schiffer's continued results with the goggles, and said he looks forward to seeing if future studies can mirror these interesting findings. If these data "were to hold up in replication," he reasoned, "they would be very important."
SOURCE: Neuropsychiatry, Neuropsychology, and Behavioral Neurology
Posted by colin wallace on March 19, 2002, at 8:41:56
In reply to Left / Right Hemisphere Imbalance = Depression ???, posted by SLS on March 19, 2002, at 7:58:36
Thought provoking stuff- I always feel my depression mainly in the left side of my head; feels like a football deflating.
Next time I go out for a run, I'll wear a pirate's eye patch over the left eye, and consult both sides when I'm finished, to see who feels the best!!Loser gets to read the newspaper.
Posted by Rach on March 19, 2002, at 9:01:56
In reply to Re: Left / Right Hemisphere Imbalance = Depression ???, posted by colin wallace on March 19, 2002, at 8:41:56
I recently posted about the goggles myself (at PBS)! I asked for people to give it a go, but only Kristi gave a reply - and said she got a headache. But I found it interesting at least.
http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20020314/msgs/19886.html
Posted by Ritch on March 19, 2002, at 23:28:26
In reply to Left / Right Hemisphere Imbalance = Depression ???, posted by SLS on March 19, 2002, at 7:58:36
I think I was involved indirectly. I went and done a search, then a google search and "refound" the source of all of it:
http://www.abc.net.au/quantum/s161005.htm
> Quite a while ago, a thread appeared on PB describing mood illness resulting from an imbalance between left and right hemispheres of the brain. I think Noa posted it, but I don't remember. Wasn't it the "place an ice cube in one ear" thing?
>
> I'd like to see what you guys think about this.
>
>
> - Scott
>
>
> -------------------------------------------
>
>
> Report Supports 'Dual Brain' Theory of Depression
>
> Reuters Health - Reuters Report Supports 'Dual Brain' Theory of Depression Fri Mar 15, 2:06 PM ET
>
> By Alison McCook
>
> NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Depressed patients who are not responding to treatment may benefit from a technique that activates one side of the brain, according to a recent report.
>
> The study findings lend support to an intriguing theory: that people have a "dual aspect" to their personalities, and each aspect resides primarily in one brain hemisphere.
>
> According to lead author Dr. Fredric Schiffer of McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts, these personality components can interact with each other normally. But in depressed patients, one hemisphere becomes "healthier" than the other, and patients begin to harbor "a troubled personality associated with one of the hemispheres," he explained.
>
> In his own practice, Schiffer tests which side of the brain is healthier by asking patients to wear goggles that restrict vision to mostly one eye, stimulating the opposite hemisphere.
>
> Schiffer told Reuters Health that stimulating one side of the patient's brain has an immediate--and often dramatic--effect on their emotions. Patients whose healthy side has been activated often report happier feelings, while stimulation of the "troubled" hemisphere can increase psychiatric symptoms, such as anxiety or depression.
>
> "In my experience, this is hard to take seriously unless you've actually witnessed it. But the fact that someone can be visibly upset, or start to cry, whenever they look out one side, is very compelling evidence," he noted.
>
> Schiffer has authored numerous papers and a book describing the dual brain hypothesis. In the most recent study, published in the March issue of Neuropsychiatry, Neuropsychology and Behavioral Neurology, researchers use Schiffer's goggles to detect the healthiest side of patients' brains prior to administering an investigational treatment that activates one hemisphere. The investigators sought to determine whether knowing which side of the brain was "healthy" would help predict how the patient would respond to the treatment.
>
> In 37 patients who were severely depressed and resistant to other treatments, those who felt better when looking through their right eyes--suggesting they have a healthy left hemisphere-- responded well to a therapy directed to the left side of their brains.
>
> Two weeks after treatment with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)--in which magnetic fields are passed through the skull, creating electrical currents in brain tissue-these patients reported an average decrease in their symptoms of 42%. In addition, nine patients said they had improved by at least 50%, which indicates a remission of their condition.
>
> Alternatively, patients who appeared to have a healthier right hemisphere and received TMS to the left side of their brains experienced a decrease in their depression of only 11%, which is considered treatment failure.
>
> In his practice, Schiffer tries to treat patients who appear to have a troubled hemisphere by helping them understand that part of their brain is emotionally damaged. "Treatment becomes the treatment of the child inside, the troubled mind, and educating it, teaching it that it's safer or more valued than it thought it was," he said.
>
> Equally challenging, Schiffer admitted, is trying to convince other psychiatric researchers of the validity of the dual brain theory. "I think my goggles make people uncomfortable. The whole concept seems kind of ridiculous somehow...and yet these data come right down on it."
>
> Dr. Cary Savage of the Massachusetts General Hospital's Cognitive Neuroscience Group told Reuters Health that he agreed these findings are "provocative," but was not convinced that Schiffer's goggles can activate primarily one hemisphere. The two hemispheres are connected, Savage explained, so while a visual stimulus seen through one eye initially reaches one hemisphere, it spreads throughout the whole brain within milliseconds. So if patients report feeling anxiety while looking through one visual field, Savage reasoned that is not likely due to something restricted solely to one hemisphere.
>
> However, Savage could not think of any other mechanism to explain Schiffer's continued results with the goggles, and said he looks forward to seeing if future studies can mirror these interesting findings. If these data "were to hold up in replication," he reasoned, "they would be very important."
>
> SOURCE: Neuropsychiatry, Neuropsychology, and Behavioral Neurology
Posted by IsoM on March 20, 2002, at 0:16:38
In reply to Re: Left / Right Hemisphere Imbalance = Depression ??? » SLS, posted by Ritch on March 19, 2002, at 23:28:26
Mitch, I still haven't given Rach's test a try yet but I am curious to try it & report back to her. But I think it'll only work for some people. Like headaches or stomachs, everybody gets them but from many different reasons. One headache may be tension related, another a hang-over, a third, banging their head on something, & in a rare case, a tumour even.
Same with depression. Depression is merely a symptom of something gone wrong. Most causes are physical but there are emotional blows that can seriously sap a person such as wars, death, & other disasters - some are more fragile than others too.
In all the psychological tests done on me, the results always show I'm almost smack dab in the middle of right-brained & left-brained. I could never figure out why any question would ask things like "If you're the head over a large group of people, does it make more sense to do it your way - the right way, or to do it the way that would make your employees happy?" To me, those are the stupidest questions as either answer really isn't the right answer. You do it both ways. Logic doesn't exist separately from feelings, & vice versa!! So I don't need to try balancing my sides.
But that doesn't stop me from be depressed & need treatment. Best, I guess, to try it out fair & square. I wonder how many times I'm going to be stepping on my cats' tails though. :-)
I plan to try to find more about the scientist & any other things he came up with to get an idea of how credible he is.
Posted by Ritch on March 20, 2002, at 10:58:23
In reply to Re: Left / Right Hemisphere Imbalance Butting In » Ritch, posted by IsoM on March 20, 2002, at 0:16:38
> Mitch, I still haven't given Rach's test a try yet but I am curious to try it & report back to her. But I think it'll only work for some people. Like headaches or stomachs, everybody gets them but from many different reasons. One headache may be tension related, another a hang-over, a third, banging their head on something, & in a rare case, a tumour even.
>
> Same with depression. Depression is merely a symptom of something gone wrong. Most causes are physical but there are emotional blows that can seriously sap a person such as wars, death, & other disasters - some are more fragile than others too.
>
> In all the psychological tests done on me, the results always show I'm almost smack dab in the middle of right-brained & left-brained. I could never figure out why any question would ask things like "If you're the head over a large group of people, does it make more sense to do it your way - the right way, or to do it the way that would make your employees happy?" To me, those are the stupidest questions as either answer really isn't the right answer. You do it both ways. Logic doesn't exist separately from feelings, & vice versa!! So I don't need to try balancing my sides.
>
> But that doesn't stop me from be depressed & need treatment. Best, I guess, to try it out fair & square. I wonder how many times I'm going to be stepping on my cats' tails though. :-)
> I plan to try to find more about the scientist & any other things he came up with to get an idea of how credible he is.
Hi,When I read this type of research stuff-I don't get as excited as I used to. I really think they are onto something, however. But, when it comes out in the wash it might not be what many think it is (including the researchers). I know that when I get into a "mixed" state it involves a lot of intrusive GAD/OCD-like thought loops. It is the worst thing that ever happens to me. When I am just "plain" depressed everything is just at a low ebb. No focus, no motivation, no energy, sleep and eat a LOT. Whenever I get hypomanic I get intrusive music! But, I don't mind intrusive music that much, it doesn't have as much potential to trigger angry or anxious emotions. It usually is music I have been listening to lately. I am definitely more right-brained according to the "tests"-whatever that means. AED's "quiet-down" the music considerably, and SSRI antidepressants pump up the volume and the patterns become very short, tight, and repetitive. Sometimes, I can get more than one tune playing simultaneously-I don't care for that. Right now I feel rather neutral and the music is playing in there, but it is rather faint and more melodic, contiguous. How does this all relate to "sticky-switch" theories (if at all)? Well, your music memories are in your right temporal lobe (I think), whereas your verbal center is in the left. It seems like I feel better if the right side is "in charge". I did try that "ice-water thing". I popped some in one ear and I couldn't walk a straight line! I kept curving the opposite direction of the side I put the icewater in. I put some icewater in the other ear and I nearly fell down! Walking was also-similar I would make a curved path the opposite direction as well. It felt like I was walking on a curved railing and someone was trying to pull me off of it and I had to resist them from doing so. Ok, I am a little weird I have to admit. The other day when I started the dexedrine trial, I noticed that the left arm/leg seemed *different* somehow. It was like it was awake-well it should be awake all of the time shouldn't it? Ok, this is strange, but I could look at my left hand and it seemed like it was "smirking" or seemed "mischievous" somehow. It reminded me of the flower on the Bullwinkle Show that was eating up everything-"the Pottsylvania Creeper", it just had that mischievous look about it. Ok, that is just too weird.
Mitch
Posted by judy1 on March 22, 2002, at 0:40:09
In reply to Left / Right Hemisphere Imbalance = Depression ???, posted by SLS on March 19, 2002, at 7:58:36
I've had several mri's that demonstrated my left hippocampus was smaller than my right. I think there has been articles about continued stress that promotes this condition. Other than my bipolar and panic disorders, i was sexually abused as a child and have been dxed PTSD and DD-NOS. I don't know if this is similar to what you were getting at, but it did show that years of stress physically changed that part of my brain- take care- judy
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