by Sunny Tsai

Neuroplasticity is a fancy word for train the brain to begin to use another portion
of the brain to make up for the part that was damaged. According to statistic
that there is everage a person will be attacked by stroke in every 45 seconds in North American. Is the number
sound scary? Do you know of any family, relatives, friends, friend’s friend or
neighbor who is a stroke survivor? With one part of the brain closing down,
could another part start to work over? Can we “rewiring the brain”? The answer
is YES! With the help of hypnosis, the stroke survivors have learned how to
remove the fear of attacking by another stroke soon after the first one happen.
They also learn how to reduce falls and dealing with numbness of part of the
body. Pain control, emotion control, dealing with short term memory loss,
seizures, vertigo and sleeping are important for them in terms of living
quality. Hypnosis will re-train the brain to improve
stroke survivor’s communication and swallowing skills and even
vision enhancement. By using hypnosis, the caregivers can learn how to take
care of them effectively.

It takes time for the stroke survivor and his
or her family to help one and the other to go through this journey and hypnosis
will be another choice that you may consider.

I’ll discuss more in detail about how hypnosis
can help in the following article.

Definition of Neuroplasticity (by MedicineNet.com)

Neuroplasticity: The brain's ability to reorganize itself
by forming new neural
connections throughout life. Neuroplasticity allows the neurons
(nerve cells) in the brain to compensate for injury
and disease
and to adjust their activities in response to new situations or to changes in
their environment.

Brain reorganization takes place
by mechanisms such as "axonal sprouting" in which undamaged axons
grow new nerve endings to reconnect neurons whose links were injured or
severed. Undamaged axons
can also sprout nerve endings and connect with other undamaged nerve cells,
forming new neural pathways to accomplish a needed function.

For example, if one hemisphere of
the brain is damaged, the intact hemisphere may take over some of its
functions. The brain compensates for damage in effect by reorganizing and
forming new connections between intact neurons. In order to reconnect, the
neurons need to be stimulated through activity.

Neuroplasticity sometimes may also
contribute to impairment. For example, people who are deaf may suffer from a
continual ringing in their ears (tinnitus),
the result of the rewiring of brain cells starved for sound. For neurons to
form beneficial connections, they must be correctly stimulated.

Neuroplasticity is also called
brain plasticity or brain malleability.

Last
Editorial Review: 11/6/2004