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I read a book back in high school that I cannot quite remember the name of. It was about a boy who experienced seizures as a release. He apparently would feel nothing because the misfires in his brain caused his muscles to lock up and he experienced sensation of warmth and brilliant colors. And recently, while looking through some articles I chanced upon some information about epilepsy and epileptic seizures.

During adult seizures, the most common area to be affected is the mesial area of the brain. The mesial area is the middle part of the temporal lobe. This region encompasses the hippocampus, amigadala, and the uncus. The first two structures are in large control of emotions and the uncus is responsible for the processing of smells. Therefore when a seizure does occur, the neurons in this area misfire and do so rapidly. This often causes the rise of strong emotions such as fear or paranoia, and interestingly the sensation of the smell of burning rubber. The areas of the brain that are affected by epileptic seizures are usually pretty isolated as well. I assume this means that for each person with this neurological condition, will experience a seizure differently as well as uniquely. This makes me wonder about the possibilities of the brain. If there was a way for scientists to externally stimulate only certain parts of the brain and cause only specific neurons to fire, could we eventually control the human experience?

Different neurons sending signals change the way we process the information our brain receives. Understanding the patterns of misfire in the brain could allow us to help those with epilepsy. Not only would it open up a window for correcting the cause of these synaptic misfires, but it could make it possible to change the way an epileptic patient experienced a seizure. Rather than pain and paranoia, the brain could misfire in a way that was calm and harmless to the body.