I am joined in this podcast by Barbara Ludwig to discuss her experience of CJD, the disease that her husband Jürgen died from, and which she narrated in her excellent memoir No Time To Cry. She explained how and why she was able to assume and convey her husband’s perspective of his illness experience, and how she used the title of the book to convey the importance of time in context of illness.Barbara explored Jürgen’s early symptoms with walking difficulty and anxiety, and how this progressed to disorientation and paranoid jealousy. She also captured the uncertainty that trailed his early diagnostic process as all investigations initially failed to confirm a diagnosis, and the uncertainty of how long he had to live. She discussed how he was initially thought to have multiple sclerosis and then a psychological disorder, and how the diagnosis of sporadic CJD was eventually confirmed by spinal fluid analysis, and later by post-mortem examination.Barbara also explored the burdensome care that Jürgen required, initially provided by her, but eventually by a nursing home where his terminal illness played out. We also discussed how she has coped since the death of Jurgen.Barbara Ludwig grew up in the western part of Berlin. She met Jürgen during her training in local government. They went to Australia after their wedding, and then to Lake Constance in the south of Germany near the border to the Swiss. She worked at the university there whilst Jürgen studied. They then moved to Munich where she worked for many years at the Goethe Institute as head of human resources. Today she writes Mallorca crime novels with passion, and she has been living for five years with her new partner in Bad Orb in the Spessart, near Frankfurt. Her latest book is 'Do You Love the Sea?'

The focus of this podcast is the enigmatic theme of prion disorders. I trace the history of our understanding of this neurodegenerative disorder with how Nobel laureate D. Carleton Gajdusek, described the transmission of kuru - the first pathologically defined human prion disease. I also narrate how the similarities in the clinical and pathological features of kuru and scrapie, the disease of sheep, opened the way to this breakthrough. I also chronicled how the efforts of another Nobel laureate, Stanley Prusiner, characterised the pathology, genetics and transmission of scrapie, and how he succeeded in a bitter scientific race that transformed the field of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies which he named prion diseases. I also explored the pathology of prions, their normal functions, and how they cause disease when they become misfolded. In this theme, I discussed Creutzfeldt Jakob disease extensively, with reference to the roles played by Alfons Jakob and Hans Gerherdt Creutzfeldt, and depicting its classical manifestations and investigations. I illustrated the lived experience of CJD with such memoirs as Howie V CJD, by Sandy Bosman. I also exhaustively covered the clinical and management aspects of new variant CJD, and I illustrated this with the memoir Who Killed My Son, by Christine Lord. The podcast also reviewed the other established human prion diseases such as fatal familial insomnia, and it explored the similarities between prion diseases and other neurodegenerative diseases that are also related to misfolded proteins, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and motor neurone diseases. I also covered mad cow and other prion disorders of animals. I cited other helpful books such as Collectors of Lost Souls by Warwick Anderson, Fatal Flaws by Jay Ingram, Madness and Memory by Stanley Prusiner, and Consciousness: A User’s Guide by Adam Zeman.

In this short podcast, I count down 10 neurological disorders that can be associated with sexual activity. Whilst this list covers the usual suspects like HIV and neurosyphilis, it also includes less familiar disorders such as Lemiere’s and Elsberg syndromes.

I am joined in this podcast by Jamie Ward to explore synaesthaesia as he depicted in his book titled The Frog Who Croaked Blue: Synaesthesia and the Mixing of the Senses. Jamie Ward is Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Sussex, UK. His principal research interest lies in the cognitive neuroscience of synaesthesia, although he has published on many other topics, including frontal lobe function, memory and disorders of reading and spelling. We explored the history of synaesthesia and why the scientific interest has waxed and waned over time, and how the understanding of the condition has evolved. Jamie Ward also narrated how a chance observation by neurologist Richard Cytowic at a dinner launched the scientific study of synaesthesia. We also reviewed the defining features of synaesthesia, and its familial and acquired causes. The conversation also discussed the different types of synaesthesia, and what Jamie referred to as the fringes of synaesthesia. Other themes that the podcast reviewed are the ways by which the knowledge of synaesthesia has challenged the traditional concepts of our senses, how much control people with synaesthesia have over their experiences, and the possible evolutionary advantages of synaesthesia, such as heightened memory and creativity. We also reviewed the gaps in the scientific understanding of synaesthesia and the prospects for unravelling its complete picture .Jamie Ward’s research uses several methods in cognitive neuroscience, including human neuropsychology, functional imaging, EEG and TMS. He is the founding editor of the journal, Cognitive Neuroscience, and is currently President of the British Association of Cognitive Neuroscience (BACN). His other books include The Student’s Guide to Cognitive Neuroscience and The Student’s Guide to Social Neuroscience.

In this podcast I explore the fascinating phenomenon of synaesthesia. Using the enlightening book by Richard Cytowic and David Eagleman titled Wednesday is Indigo Blue as template, I discuss the different types and manifestations of the condition, and I highlight the current understanding of its genesis. As I review its associated advantages, such as a superior memory, I also discuss its downsides, such as physical pain. To illustrate the lived experience of synaesthesia, I deploy such historical anecdotes as that of Solomon Shereshevky as narrated by neurologist Alexander Luria in his book titled The Mind of a Mnemonist. This remarkable case showed how synaesthesia contributes to superior memory. I also use contemporary memoirs of syanesthesia, such as that of Daniel Tammett titled Born on a Blue Day, and that of physician Joel Salinas titled Mirror Touch. Other helpful sources for the podcast are Cytowic’s The Man Who Tasted Shapes, and Guy Leschziner’s The Man Who Tasted Words.

I am joined in this podcast by Christine Miskelly to discuss her experience of witnessing how a brain tumour manifested in her husband Ivor. Christine narrated the subtle symptoms that Ivor first manifested, such as poor planning, social withdrawal, excessive slowness, impassivity and easy distractibility. We also discussed how the brain tumour altered Ivor’s personality, particularly reducing his empathy, and how it impacted on their relationship. The podcast also explores the shock of getting a brain tumour diagnosis for Ivor, but also how this brought them together to face the challenges ahead. We also discussed the brain biopsy and the treatment plan which included surgery and radiotherapy. Our conversation also explored Ivor’s sad progression, his post-treatment initial improvement before the subsequent progression as he developed seizures, and as his scan showed further tumour growth. Christine explored the emotional turmoil she went through this period, and how family, friends, and the kindness of strangers helped her to cope. Her perspectives also included how the whole experience included finding beauty and love. Other themes we covered were Ivor’s advance directive, his terminal decline in a care home, and the aftermath of his death. Christine did her first degree in Psychology at the University of Durham back in the 1970s, and the bulk of her career was spent teaching Psychology at A-level. In more recent years, she studied Consciousness and Transpersonal Psychology with the Alef Trust. She said supporting students through this period of their lives has been one of her great joys.

In this podcast I explore the diverse perspectives of brain tumours, from their pathology and clinical manifestations to their complications and management. The podcast discusses the common primary brain tumours, particularly highlighting the usually benign meningioma, and the typically aggressive glioblastoma. I illustrate these themes with such graphic illness memoirs as The Iceberg by Marion Coutts, All in My Head by Jessica Norris, and Difficult Gifts by Courtney Burnett. I also discussed secondary brain tumours using the illustrative memoir of Barbara Lipska titled The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind. These memoirs helped to demonstrate the sinister and the subtle symptoms of brain tumours, their investigations, and their treatments – chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery. This theme also explored the risk factors for brain tumours, and their investigational treatments. I also explored the fascinating history of brain tumour surgery which chronicled the contributions of such pioneering neurosurgeons as William McEwan, Rickman Godlee and Victor Horsley, and I cited such accounts as that of Andrew Wickens titled A History of the Brain, and that of Michael Aminoff titled Victor Horsley.

In this short podcast, I count down 10 routine everyday things that can surprisingly be triggers for epileptic seizures.

In this episode I am joined by Lone Frank to talk about her book, The Pleasure Shock, in which she narrated the work of Robert Galbraith Heath, the unacknowledged pioneer of deep brain stimulation. We talked about how she got interested in the subject when she was writing about Parkinson’s disease, and how her exploration revealed that he developed the technique of deep brain stimulation, initially as a treatment for schizophrenia. She painted a vivid portrait of his personality and his ideas, and she explained why his contemporaries resisted his innovation, and how history forgot him. Lone has a Ph.D. in neurobiology and is the author of several books on neuroscience. As a staff writer at Weekendavisen, Denmark’s leading newspaper, she is a well-known voice in debates about science, technology, and society. Lone Frank is frequently invited as a public speaker, and she regularly appears as a commentator on Danish radio and television. She has written and presented several science documentaries, and she produces a weekly one-hour podcast about science and culture.

In this episode, I am joined by Leslie Davidson to discuss her husband, Lincoln’s illness with Lewy body dementia, and her experience of caring for him whilst she was herself struggling with the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Leslie chronicled the onset of his symptoms with night terrors and its progression to delusions, hallucinations, confusion, and memory impairment, and eventually culminating in motor difficulties. She explores the challenges of managing his fluctuating symptoms, his night-time confusion, and his tendency to think she was her own twin. The discussion also covered what Leslie referred to as the most difficult thing she has ever had to do – the decision to put Lincoln into care. Leslie Davidson started writing nonfiction to make sense of the hard changes in her life. Spilling thoughts and feelings on to the page helped her see that she was richly blessed, life can be hard, family and friends are everything, sorrow does not deny joy, and our stories matter. Leslie Davidson has also written two very well received picture books for children, In the Red Canoe and The Sun Is A Shine.