Interesting Story about a man and his lobotomy

[Brasel]

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5014080

I was reading some random wikipedia entries and stumbled upon this guy's story. Very interesting and quite disturbing story. If I remember correctly, the wikipedia entry said that there were 15 lobotomies done between 1970 and 1986 in the U.S. Just thought I'd share.

[Aegix Drakan]

oops...ignore this post, ok!

[Aegix Drakan]

:uhoh: That...is...digusting... HIS PROCECURE INVOLVED STICKING A PICK-THINGY THOUGH THE EYEBLALS AND MOVING IT BACK AND FORTH?!?!? THE HELL KIND OF DOCTOR IS THIS NUT?!?

This is just nasty. :sick:

Also, aren't lobotomies supposed to severely reduce/screw up how you react to emotions and how you think? I'm sorry, but I'd like to keep my overreactive imagination, thanks. I dont' think fucking around with someone's brain like that is gonna help much. oh sure, some people reported a major imporvement to whatever issues they were having, but then again, you could possible have had the same results if you took a lead pipe to their heads.

This whole thing disgusts me. If you're over 18, and you want some loony toon doc to basically shove a screwdriver inyour eyes, fine, but otherwise...it's just wrong in so many ways.

[bigjoe]

The most tragic thing is that it seems like the stepmom just wanted to render him a vegetable and was displeased when, despite the fact that the operation did calm him down, he was not. That guy might have felt he lost his soul, but his stepmother had none to begin with.

[Aegix Drakan]

That guy might have felt he lost his soul, but his stepmother had none to begin with.

QFFT.

What is wrong with these people?

[Trevelyan_06]

Unfortunately, very little was, and still is, know about the brain and how it operates. Equally as unfortunate is the fact that you had and still have people like this guys stepmom who see nothing wrong with this kind of thing. I think that modern society is seeing a problem along the same lines with the over prescribing of ridlen to children.

[Modus Ponens]

Yeah, but at least Ritalin doesn't have any permanent effects. As a Ritalin user myself, I've got to say that it is an overwhelmingly positive thing. Almost everyone either has an obvious negative reaction, in which case it is not used; no reaction at all, in which case it is not used; or a positive reaction, in which case it can be used to great effect. With lobotomies, well... clearly it's different. There's not testing the waters with that treatment.

[Trevelyan_06]

Yeah, but at least Ritalin doesn't have any permanent effects. As a Ritalin user myself, I've got to say that it is an overwhelmingly positive thing. Almost everyone either has an obvious negative reaction, in which case it is not used; no reaction at all, in which case it is not used; or a positive reaction, in which case it can be used to great effect. With lobotomies, well... clearly it's different. There's not testing the waters with that treatment.

I didn't mean to say that the Ritalin itself wasn't a good treatment. It is. Nor was I trying to say that lobotomies and Ritalin where even the same type of treatment.

Rather I was getting at the fact that it seems in modern American society that instead of dealing with children that are extremely active and maybe a little disruptive people just want a pill to deal with it.

From the article I got the feeling that his stepmom did this because she didn't want to deal with disruptive or extremely active behavior and I feel that we're seeing that pattern repeat itself with Ritalin. People see this medicine that takes children who do behave badly and makes them able to function normally. They have kids that aren't all that bad really but maybe just really really active and they don't like it. However, instead of searching out things for the kids to do to get rid of some of that pent of energy they just want the docs to give them Ritalin instead.

The down side to that of course is that Ritalin gets a bad rep as something given to make kids zombie. Which it's not. It's a medicine designed to treat a specific problem that people want to use for the wrong purpose at time.

[Aegix Drakan]

I'm also on ritalin (I actually HAVE ADD, unlike a lot of ritalin users). heh, I can do without (like right now), but it really helps with the focus when I work.

but at Revfan said, Lobotomies are permanent, and their effects vary wildly. ...that and common sense says that sticking a pick in someone's eyes to screw around with their brain is a very retarded idea.