Cellular Neuroscience

Last semester was systems neuroscience, this semester is cellular neuroscience. 

What's interesting is the way the course is organized. It's very different from what I'm used to. Every week we get a different professor teaching the class on a different topic followed by a Friday quiz on that topic. Of course the other parts are there like a midterm, final and a class presentation. While the class feels a bit disjointed with a new professor this week (autism & change are not the best of bedfellows), its also kinda cool to be taught a topic by a someone researching that area specifically. They know the topic absolutely inside out. But the quizzes are tough!!

Wk 5: Synaptic Plasticity with Prof Roger Colbran (Molecular Physiology and Biophysics)

Wk4:  Voltage Gated Ion Channels and Presynaptic Calcium Channels. If last week was glutamate receptors, this week its GABA receptors with Prof David Jacobson (Molecular Physiology & Biophysics). 

Wk2-3 Presynaptic & Postsynaptic specialization: Prof Ege Kavalali (Pharmacology) and Prof Teru Nakagawa (Molecular Physiology and Biophysics)

Wk1:  Electrophysiology : This week was Bioelectricity of Neurons with Jerod Denton (Anesthesiology). After all, electrophysiology forms the basis of how the nervous system works, it determines how we interact with our environment, how we process that information in the nervous system and how we respond (hopefully appropriately?). And I loved how he said we should be so comfortable with it that we can strike up a casual conversation on the topic at the next VBI (Vanderbilt Brain Institute) meet. 

A lot of material is covered in each class. Interesting, a maze and tough all at once. 

Some poems being inspired by the neuroscience I'm learning. 

Woody Vine Dance

Woody Vine Dance

Gale tosses the woody vines of tall trees.

Strong wind and rustling leaves.

Nature roars, unrelenting crescendo 

Rustic music and Woody Vine dance.

Equanimity is the gentle acceptance of ourselves and others

Towards a more humane society. #MentalHealth. Contemplation, one line a day.

 

Fidget Stim Toys and Autism

Many autistics have sensory processing difficulties and may be hyper- or hypo-sensitive to environmental stimuli. 

Fidget stim toys (eg: stress balls or fidget spinners) have been associated with autism.

Do Fidget toys help ALL autistics? The answer may surprise you.

Equanimity is the non-judgmental awareness of our thoughts and emotions

Towards a more humane society. #MentalHealth. Contemplation, one line a day.

 

16 of 118

 16 of the 118 elements. Go Bears!! I have the Berkelium t-shirt. 

I laughed when i saw the last hashtag. Cal and Stanford have this friendly rivalry going on which is most evident at Big Game (annual football game). Like a former therapist (had been a student at Stanford when working with me), was overjoyed that I got into Cal, with the caveat of "except during Big Game."

Seatbelt? What is that

Seatbelts? What is that. 

This is the way to ride to school. Students in school uniform on the back of an auto. Carefree joy!! 

Photo taken during a 2018 India trip in North India. 

Equanimity is the acceptance that all things pass in due time

Towards a more humane society. #MentalHealth. Contemplation, one line a day.

 

Disheartened

I feel disheartened today
Can the sun's rays chase the gray?
Grad School challenges run deep.
Disability already a minefield

How do I handle this?

Equanimity is the inner strength that allows us to face life's challenges

Towards a more humane society. #MentalHealth. Contemplation, one line a day.

 

Equanimity is the clarity that helps us see things as they are.

Towards a more humane society. #MentalHealth. Contemplation, one line a day.

 

Twinkling Tree Canopy

Glass trees sweat in the winter sun

Refraction bends with ice melts.

Twinkling treetops in a blue sky

Canopy of stars in the daytime light.

The photo does not capture it but the tops of the trees were twinkling as the melting frost was refracted by the sunlight. It was like seeing stars in daytime. 

Research and the Testable Autistic

A fundamental issue in autism research is that again and again we are testing only a narrow band of "testable autistics." 

Essentially past and current research on Autism is oversampling the same ~30% of autistics, the testable autistics. Then we assume the results apply to all, when they do no. 

I was in a research stakeholder meeting last week where another autistic talked about the variety of different research studies she had participated in over the years. 

I was thinking of how many autism research studies where I've been a participant - it was ZERO, literally!! It was not that I did not want to, I was always in the exclusion criteria zone even in autism research. 

Growing up, I used to hear about what autistics are supposed to be thinking/doing, all based on the hundreds of studies that had already been done. And the thought was -  the results don't reflect me. Do I have the wrong dx?

We badly need to RETHINK RESEARCH METHODOLOGY along with new NEW TECHNOLOGY , so that we can expand this ZONE OF TESTABLE AUTISTICS so it's more representative of even those with high support needs like me. 

We can expand the range of testable autistics only if we use methods that don’t need fluent oral communication or fluent motor manipulation or expect a person to sit absolutely still. 

We need every neurodiverse/neurotypical mind thinking about this!!

So, what kind of methods can we use to extend the range of testable autistics.

We need to find answers and solutions for all autistics. THIS IS URGENT.