The Neurology Lounge

  • Episode 65. CJD with Barbara Ludwig – Author of No Time to Cry

    I am joined in this podcast by Barbara Ludwig to discuss her experience of CJD, the disease that her husband Jurgen 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…

  • Episode 64. Metamorphosis – CJD and Other Brain Prion Shapeshifters

    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…

  • Episode 63. 10 Romantic Ways to the Neurology Clinic

    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.   Watch it on YouTube: https://youtu.be/mCdn-Ua6uUw Listen to it on…

  • Episode 62. Synaesthesia with Jamie Ward – Author of The Frog Who Croaked Blue

    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…

  • Episode 61. Hardwired – The Secrets of the Synaesthetic Brain

    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…

  • Episode 60. Brain Tumours with Christine Miskelly – Author of An Elephant in the Brain

    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…

  • Episode 59. Proliferation – When Tumours Rampage in the Brain

    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…

  • Episode 58. 10 Innocent Everyday Things That Can Trigger Epileptic Seizures

    In this short podcast, I count down 10 routine everyday things that can surprisingly be triggers for epileptic seizures.   Watch it on YouTube: https://youtu.be/pkHQPFhNFr4 Listen to it on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/20tsSw1aUupX29VIpty6BM Listen to it on RSS feed: https://rss.com/podcasts/theneurologylounge/1863128/ Listen to it on Apple podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-58-10-innocent-everyday-things-that-can-trigger/id1748456248?i=1000685306808 ***

  • Episode 57. Deep Brain Stimulation with Lone Frank – Author of The Pleasure Shock

    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…

  • Episode 56. Parkinson’s Plus with Leslie Davidson – Author of Dancing in Small Spaces

    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…