Sunday 3 August 2008

Schizophrenia and migraine

I'm reading "The Daemon" and was reminded how much migraine aura visual disturbances were similar to the cat pictures of Louis Wain.

Wain was an artist who specialised in painting cats. Over time he became more and more subject to schizophrenia and his paintings vividly describe how his perceptions changed.







Migraine aura

18 comments:

SM Kovalinsky said...

This is interesting in relation to Tony's writings on the migraine aura and its relation to daemonic "leakings". Those cat pictures certainly do reveal the progression into the other perception. I know that you have said that you yourself suffer from migraines, and wonder if you feel your perception becomes "daemonic" at such times.

Anonymous said...

Susan Marie: In my case whenever I develop a migraine I find I am hyper-sensitive to all stimuli and lose the facility to use verbal thinking. In retrospect this could be likened to complete right-brain functioning which could well be opening up the doors to perception - daemonic led processing.

SM Kovalinsky said...

Oh, that is very interesting to me, that you lose the capacity for verbal thinking (which I am assuming would include verbalizing the thoughts as well). I do think perhaps migraine rests on a continuum with TLE, and the "right-brain takeover" would seem to indicate so. Thank you, Di, this is very enlightening.

johar said...

Di,

I'm really interested in what you say about verbal thinking and migraine.

It links in with my post on the forum about my husband's precognitive dream and being unable to verbalize it!

Could it be that opening up perception somehow dampens down the capacity to think verbally and therefore express it?

Is there an underlying purpose for this. Does the daemon want to guide us but not 'let too much out'??

What do you think?

Anthony Peake said...

Guys, You may or may not be aware but migraine is the route whereby I feel I access the daemonic within me. I have very visual and psychological migraines that consist of seeing the world in exactly the way shown by the cat picture. It is so accurate ... very similar to that supposed migraine artist Hildegard of Bingen. Indeed I rarely get the pain element - just the blind spot (white-out in the centre of my field of vision, tingling in my lips and sometimes pins and neddles in my arms and legs. During these times I also have the weirdest mental images, very hypnographic in content.

This is a family problem. My sister's migraines are so bad that she has "botox" treatment which apparently works for her (also makes her look a good deal younger - this seems to be the way they are treated in Canada).

johar said...

That's interesting, Tony, my husband had non pain migraines similar to the ones you describe.

He was alwyas quite withdrawn during them and seemed to 'go into himself' until they passed.

He never told me what was going on for him during these times.

Karl Le Marcs said...

Tony, Woodsprite, Susan Marie and Johar:

Excellent post Di, and wonderful imagery from Louis Wain.

Now, the comments of Tony, SMK and JoJo reminded me of a scientific report I read while lolling in my garden a couple of days ago, recovering from my largely ITLADic work driven week.

The links to Hypoxia, Daemonic leakage, aura etc are rather clear (at least to me)

Oxygen Therapy Might Ease Pain Of Migraine

Let me know what you all think!
*smile*

johar said...

Karl,

Really interesting article, thank you.

The connection with cerebral hypoxia and glutamate flood at the point of death is obvious.

It would suggest that mild hypoxia, glutamate leakage and therefore heightened perception occurs during migraine attacks as the application of oxygen therapy has been shown to ease symptoms.

I wonder what initiates the cerebral hypoxia in the first place that triggers the migraines?

Karl Le Marcs said...

Johar: "I wonder what initiates the cerebral hypoxia in the first place that triggers the migraines?"

Neuro-atypicality and the Scale of Transcendence?

Glad you enjoyed the report JoJo.

johar said...

Karl,

Yes, I can see that neuro atypicality and the Scale of Transcendence would certainly have a bearing on the onset of migraines.

I also wonder if eidolon resistance has a part to play. The daemon, in trying to open perception meets opposition from eidolon trying to push back or reject the experience it is having for many reasons, hence the onset of migraines?

Just because the daemon wishes to guide the eidolon doesn't mean the eidolon is going to cooperate!! *grin*

Karl Le Marcs said...

Johar: Sounds like me when I try and go to sleep!

*giggles*

Karl Le Marcs said...

Three further scientific articles/reports relating to the Schizophrenia side of Woodsprite's post that should be of interest to you:

Brain Chemical [DOPAMINE] Shown To Induce Both Desire And Dread

Partially Shared Genetic Profile Between Schizophrenia And Bipolar Disorder

Rates Of Rare Mutations Soar Three To Four Times Higher In Schizophrenia



TONY: I still think there is a need for a MENTAL HEALTH category on FORUM where we can all discuss The Scale Of Transcendence from Migraine, through Unipolar Depression, Bipolar, TLE etc to Schizophrenia and Dementia.

Karl Le Marcs said...

EVERYONE: Following my comment above, we now have a brand new caterogy on FORUM for MENTAL HEALTH, where we can place these scientific news reports and questions, theories etc on the whole Scale Of Trascendence from Migrain, to Bipolar, TLE, Schizoprenia and more.

This is to be a very useful addition to FORUM and we need a Moderator. I would suggest myself, but also Woodsprite as she works within the sector, and Ed, but his online time is limited sometimes.

I'll leave it to Tony to decide, but I still want to be the Moderator in CONSCIOUSNESS owing to our development of my CtCw theory that we are going to be working on together.

Link Below:

FORUM:
MENTAL HEALTH

Ed said...

Hi,

'tis I, back online again...

Clearly this post has awakened me from slumber...

As is no surprise to us these days, while you have all been chatting away about right brain, dopamine, daemon, schizophrenia and so on, our son,. Mark has been chattering to us about some new stuff.

Below is largely from my journal.

Yesterday, he asked us if we could find the little 'stress brain' thing - you know, the squeezy blob shaped like a brain. He asked for a pen and, with no prompting proceeded to draw a few shapes and lines on the blob.

He firstly drew a line from slightly right and rear of top centre down to bottom right at rear of temporal lobe. He said, "this is the string that i have told you about. It is inside my head and goes down my neck. Can you see it in my neck?" And he pointed. He has often gone on about 'strings throughout his body. He has sometimes referred to himself as the 'string man' when he has been slightly distressed. He even drew a body with a continuous 'string' looping through his head, arms, torso and legs. He also has asked for operations to remove the 'strings'.

He then drew a mini-skull shape dead centre of his right temporal lobe. He wrote in big letters "TIC". And he said, "I had TICS in here, my problems are in there.

Then he drew a line around the front of the 'blob' and said, "This is the frontal lobe. Just behind the frontal lobe he drew a diamond shape with what looked a bit like a heart shape inside it. It was right on the spot where the fontanel (?) is in babies. He said, "This is where the truth lies."

He then said something particularly mystifying, "There is a door in my head that is blocked. If I can open it, I will be fixed."

mmmmm. I could read al sorts into this. But it IS interesting, isn't it? Especially as he volunteered this without prior discussion (apart from the fact that we have been trying to help him view his 'voices' as his friend and to stop being afraid of them, and maybe even learn from them. Maybe he is??

As he was talking about 'blocked doors" I started to tell Marian about this mental imagery I was constructing by way of making something of it.

It goes like this.

Imagine that neurons are a bit like corridors with doors all along them. Keys (neurotransmitters) effectively open and shut these doors by bridging the gaps with neighbouring doors and corridors. If one door will not open, then more and more keys are tried until a veritable bucketful of keys of all kinds are in the corridor and some find their way into other doors, rather inappropriately, and a lot of doors into neighbouring neurons start to swing open... perhaps even 'right off their hinges' as Karl would put it!

In this analogy, unblocking the stuck door would be the answer, wouldn't it?

But where would it lead, i wonder? No doubt to a marvellous place.

More to come...

Ed

Anonymous said...

Ed: That is so interesting! It really sounds as though Mark is describing the way his brain functions using imagery that is personal to him. I'm so glad you are listening to him and recording what he tells you.

There is now a section on the forum dedicated to mental health and it would be great if you could post more like this there. That way everybody will see it and be able to respond. I find it absolutely fascinating.

Karl Le Marcs said...

Ed: Fantastic addition mate, thank you.

Consider what you have written here in light of Johar's post:

Daemonic Evolution And Neuro Atypicality: A Theory
[by Johar]


Woodsprite: ABSOLUTELY! Yes, between Ed, yourself and little old me, I'm sure we can get some very interesting discussions going in the coming weeks and months in the new FORUM Mental Health section.

Anthony Peake said...

ED: Great contribution. I agree fully with Karl that in many ways this is the route that itlad is probably going to take in the next few months. The publication of "The Daemon" will, I hope (and with everybody's help) by picked up by the mental health sector as an important model for atypical behaviours. If this is the case then this little group will be swelled by more professionals in the field that can add their "take" on the Dyad Theory.

Ed, I am delighted that Mark is now communicating more about his 'illness'. Indeed we have a good deal to talk about with regard to these developments. I look forward to maybe meeting you later today (we may have one of our famed "Conservatory Discussions"!) failing that maybe you can get along to my talk in Chester tonight.

Chris said...

I've only ever had 3 migraines in my life (I'm 19) and I had one last week. The visual disturbances are of course the indicator to run and get the paracetamol but are also (I find) very interesting the way they shimmer and the way you see a pulsing kaleidoscope type image.

I agree with Tony as this is also how I feel the presence of the daemon. I may be wrong but is this due to the increased blood flow to the brain maybe increasing our perception? This might explain the photophobia and hyperacusis.