The Remote Control Brain

Invisibilia

NPR

Society & Culture, Personal Journals, Social Sciences, Science

4.6 • 22.6K Ratings

🗓️ 29 March 2019

⏱️ 47 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What would it be like if you could control your mood with a hand held device? Literally turn the device to different settings and make yourself happier and sadder? Alix Spiegel talks to a woman who has that power. If you or somebody you know might need help, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 at 1-800-273-8255 or at suicidepreventionlifeline.org.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey there, it's Lisa and I wanted to let you know that invisibility creates all sorts of
0:04.2	original content around each episode on mpr.org. So follow us on Facebook or Twitter to see photo essays,
0:12.5	read Q&As with our experts and learn more about the topics we discuss each week. You can also
0:17.9	send up for a newsletter at mpr.org slash newsletter slash invisibility. A warning to our listeners.
0:25.3	This story is about someone struggling with mental illness and so parts of it could be difficult to hear.
0:32.0	Massachusetts General Hospital May 7th 2018. Megan's obsessive-compulsive disorder has been
0:39.5	really bad so she's come to the doctor for some help. She sits in a chair as he fiddles with a
0:44.8	handheld computer, the one that talks to the device that's been implanted in her brain. He's
0:50.3	trying to find just the right amount of electricity to make her feel better. While you were talking,
0:58.8	I slowly ramped it up again, anything different now. A little bit. Yep, what's happened.
1:09.2	Um, slightly more aware. Okay. Like, and really it's not like in the past where it was like,
1:23.2	oh, I feel good, but it's like a different feeling. A general just sharpening or it's like
1:28.4	everything got like turned up a little bit. Yeah. Yeah, that's okay. People say that. Let's try going
1:36.0	up one more step. Anything different there? Yeah.
1:58.6	We should dial this one back a little bit. Now, if you notice me turning it down, then maybe I'll
2:04.8	change my mind on that. I'm sorry, doctor. Did you just feel it? I don't feel very good at all
2:19.4	right now. Oh, so something just changed. That's why because in the process of reconfiguring it,
2:25.0	it just temporarily went off. So you really noticed that, giving it one second. Yeah. Okay,
2:30.0	hang on a second. Let me get this back to a statement and then let's go back to that left side
2:35.2	and take a look. Tell me more like what's okay. That's okay. Yeah, let's sing a break.
2:51.6	This is Invisibilia. I'm Hannah Rosen. Today we have a story about a woman who is desperately
2:57.2	unhappy. So she signed up for the sci-fi sounding medical trial where she got an electrical
	...

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