Affiliations: [a] University of Colorado School of Medicine, CO, USA | [b] Learning Services Neuro-behavioral Institute – West, CO, USA | [c] University of Colorado Denver, CO, USA
Correspondence:
[*]
Address for correspondence: Randall D. Buzan, MD, Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, 155 S. Madison Street, Suite # 222, Denver, CO 80209, USA. Tel.: +303 377 4956; Fax: +303 377 4965; E-mail: randybuzan@gmail.com
Abstract: Introduction:Patients and their families struggle with accepting changes in personality after traumatic brain injury (TBI). A neuroanatomic understanding may assist with this process. Objectives:We briefly review the history of the Western conceptualization of the Self, and discuss how neuroscience and changes in personality wrought by brain injuries modify and enrich our understanding of our selves and our patients. Conclusion:The sense of self, while conflated with the concept of a “soul” in Western thinking, is more rationally considered a construct derived from neurophysiologic structures. The self or personality therefore often changes when the brain changes. A neuroanatomic perspective can help patients, families, and clinicians accept and cope with the sequellae of TBI.
Keywords: Traumatic brain injury, personality change, philosophy of mind
