Brandi Binders: The Role Of Plasticity In The Brain
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Plasticity and neurotransmitters are terms that I expect to remember in five years not only because they are very useful terms, but they are intriguing and captivating subjects.
Plasticity is the brain’s ability to modify itself after something such as an injury. The highest plasticity occurs during childhood. Once someone reaches the age of ten the pathways in our brain start to become hardwired and the pathways we don’t use disappear. Once the pathways are hardwired into our brain the ability for it to conform and take on new jobs to compensate for an injury or illness is stunted. During childhood it is easier for the brain to adjust and take on some of the duties that have been inhibited or obliterated during an illness, but it does not necessarily only apply to young people. Adults who lose a finger will find that their other fingers compensate with sense of touch.…show more content… This procedure removes half of the brain, but the neural pathways of the brain were young enough in her six-year old body to start rewiring themselves. The plasticity of her brain wad very high, and as a result the consequences of the hemispherectomy were greatly reduced. Where once her parents thought she would lose her personality, creativity, and use of half of her body, the advice of one doctor to never stop challenging her proved an invaluable tool. Being challenged gave her the ability for the left side of her brain to take on most of the right’s jobs, including control over her left leg and her creativity. The plasticity of her brain let her regain control of much of her life