Author: This Is Your Brain producer
Chronic pain is a national epidemic. Journalist Melanie Thernstrom, author of The Pain Chronicles, explains the difference between chronic and acute pain, how chronic pain rewires the brain, and the brain’s ability to modulate pain. Dr. Stieg: Today I’m with Melanie Thernstrom, a journalist and author of several books including a New York Times Bestseller, The Pain Chronicles. She served on the National Academy of Science Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Advancing Pain Research, Education and Care in response to a congressional mandate to investigate the state of pain treatment in the United States. Melanie, thank you so much for…
From Abraham Lincoln’s untreatable melancholy to the serendipitous discovery of SSRIs, we have come a long way in understanding depression. Psychiatrist Conor Liston, MD, PhD, explains the diagnostic challenges psychiatrists face, and the trial-and-error process to finding the right medication that frustrates both doctors and their patients. Dr. Stieg: We all go through depression at some point in our lives. It is part of the human condition, but there is more than one kind of depression. I’m pleased to welcome Dr. Conor Liston today to talk with us about some exciting advances in diagnosing and treating depression. Dr. Liston is…
Stem cells hold the potential to change the landscape of medicine and bring patient care and well-being into a new era. Neurosurgeon Robert Hariri, MD, PhD, talks about the possibilities and promise of using placental stem cells to target cancer cells, control diseases like HIV, restore brain function, and extend life expectancy. Dr. Stieg: I’m extremely pleased to have Dr. Robert Hariri as our guest today. He’s not only a visionary in the STEM cell industry, but also a neurosurgeon, biomedical scientist, and a highly successful entrepreneur, i.e., the Renaissance man. Bob is the founder and former CEO of Celgene…
“Neuro-pianist” and conductor Eitan Globerson explains the intricate connections between a musician’s instrument, hands, and brain and how the power of music can heal and improve brain performance and enrich our lives. Dr. Stieg: That music you just heard was performed by today’s guest. You may be wondering why we have a pianist on the show. Well, everything we do relates back to our brains including playing music, but more than that our guest is a neuro-pianist, both a scientist and a performer. We’ll be talking with him about yet another dimension of the human brain related to the performance…
Coma and vegetative states are confounding for loved ones of brain-injured patients. Dr. Joseph Fins, Chief of Medical Ethics at Weill Cornell Medicine, explains the sobering discovery of hidden consciousness in coma patients and shares a painfully fascinating patient story. Dr. Stieg: We’re back again with Dr. Joseph Fins, Chief of Medical Ethics at Weill Cornell Medicine / New York Presbyterian Hospital. I now want to get into the area of your particular expertise, which is brain injury and altered conscious states to see where medical ethics plays such a dominant role in that whole subject. Can you briefly describe…
Throughout history, humans have experienced pain as punishment from the gods, a metaphysical struggle, or a simple biological process. Journalist Melanie Thernstrom, author of The Pain Chronicles, talks about the different ways humans have tried to conquer pain over the centuries. Dr. Stieg: Today I’m with Melanie Thernstrom, a journalist and author of several books including the New York Times Best Seller, The Pain Chronicles. She served on the National Academy of Science Institute of Medicine’s Committee on Advancing Pain Research, education and care in response to a congressional mandate to investigate the state of pain treatment in the United…