News Woman Who Cannot Feel Fear May Help In Treating Ptsd

[samadian]

The woman feels other emotions but said as an adult, she had never felt afraid.
She is the first known case of someone who is unable to process fear.
Researchers at the University of Iowa said her inability to feel frightened was because she is missing a structure in her brain called the amygdala.
The structure has long been associated with emotional learning - experiments in animals have shown that removing it makes them fearless.


full article: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12017039

 

[AdamAnt]

I've read that if you remove the pituitary glad you can't feel love...

 

[Ananda]

I read the article, interesting. So all I need is for someone to remove that damned amygdala -- where do I sign up for a lobotomy?? LOL :)

 

[AdamAnt]

I read the article, interesting. So all I need is for someone to remove that damned amygdala -- where do I sign up for a lobotomy?? LOL :)

:)...........................................................:)

 

[samadian]

That's what I was thinking at first! A cure. Take out the amygdala and problem is solved.

I guess they are amazed she is not dead. Fear is very useful in keeping us alive.

 

[Ananda]

I saw that the amygdala is also useful in emotional learning - I suppose that's a good thing too :)

 

[anthony]

Moved from studies to news. This is not an active study being posted here, but a news story.

 

[shadowchaser]

Don't know how comfortable I'd be with my doc with this one "well we can help you out but first let's chop of the top of your head and then cut out a chunk of that pesky brain. "

 

[Lady of Longbourn]

Fear is the ultimate emotion...I can't imagine a life not feeling fear.

 

[anni]

It was a ridiculous notion, Ayesha- we have enough to feel guilty about, now we've been presented perhaps with the prospect of what, surgical fear removal? I know this isn't exactly what they were getting at here, but Good Grief-the article states some female was born with a birth defect, poor thing. It seems the implication would be that research could be targeted towards some completely medical fix for 'our' fear, not processing the traumas and healing them correctly.

I know you can't imagine a life without fear, but it's there. You're working so hard, and the answer will be through human care and contact and love. I couldn't quite put my finger on why this article annoyed me-possibly because it did seem to imply some 'yahoo' cure, like we keep seeing, you know? Then you wrote that you just plain have fear, well, this poor person was born with something missing, that's all. You're taking steps to be well again, no matter how hard it's been. It will happen, a life where fear doesn't rule every moment.

Hugs, if that helps today.

 

[Lady of Longbourn]

well, actually I think that having no dear would be a disadvantage. something like not being able to feel pain in your hands. Sort of good, until you touch something hot that can hurt you, and you have no idea its hurting you until you look down.

There is something annoying about it...but like you, I can't place my figure on it.

 

[Lady of Longbourn]

* having no fear, not dear