How isolation fuels opioid addiction | Rachel Wurzman

TED Talks Daily

TED

Creativity, Business, Design, Inspiration, Society & Culture, Science, Technology, Education, Tech Demo, Ted Talks, Ted, Entertainment, Tedtalks

4.1 • 11.9K Ratings

🗓️ 29 October 2018

⏱️ 17 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What do Tourette syndrome, heroin addiction and social media obsession all have in common? They converge in an area of the brain called the striatum, says neuroscientist Rachel Wurzman -- and this critical discovery could reshape our understanding of the opioid crisis. Sharing insights from her research, Wurzman shows how social isolation contributes to relapse and overdose rates and reveals how meaningful human connection could offer a potentially powerful source of recovery.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This TED Talk features neuroscientist Rachel Worsman, recorded live at TEDx Mid-Atlantic 2017.
0:10.0	What does it mean to be normal? And what does it mean to be sick?
0:15.6	I've asked myself this question from the time I was about seven when I was diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome.
0:22.1	Tourette's is a neurological disorder characterized by stereotyped movements I perform against my will
0:28.1	called ticks. Now, ticks are technically involuntary in the sense that they occur without
0:35.0	any conscious attention or intention on my part.
0:38.6	But there's a funny thing about how I experience ticks.
0:43.3	They feel more involuntary than involuntary,
0:47.7	because I still feel like it's me moving my shoulder, not some external force.
0:53.1	Also, I get this uncomfortable sensation called
0:56.9	promontory urge right before ticks happen, and particularly when I'm trying to resist them.
1:02.0	Now, I imagine most of you out there understand what I'm saying, but unless you have Tourette's,
1:06.6	you probably think you can't relate. But I bet you can.
1:11.9	So let's try a little experiment here
1:13.6	and see if I can give you a taste of what my experience feels like.
1:17.9	All right, ready?
1:20.1	Don't blink.
1:21.1	No, really, don't blink.
1:22.9	And besides dry eyes, what do you feel?
1:34.8	Phantom pressure? Eyelids tingling? A need? Are you holding your breath? Uh-huh. That's approximately what my ticks feel like.
1:45.0	Now, ticks and blinking, neurologically speaking, are not the same,
1:50.0	but my point is that you don't have to have Tourette's
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from TED, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of TED and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.