Cognitive Conversations #9 Language Matters: Re-writing the Narrative of Functional Neurological Disorders (FND)

This week on the SWN podcast, we chat to neurologists Dr Alex Lehn and Dr David Palmer with sociolinguistic expert, Dr Shelley Dawson on re-writing the narrative of functional neurological disorders (FND) and why labels — and language — matter. Functional neurological disorders are one of the most common disorders you’ve never heard of. But an estimated 4 to 12 out of 100,000 people develop FND, and it’s the second most common presentation in neurology clinics worldwide. Tests and scans such as MRIs and EEG can’t pick up functional issues, however; leaving patients misdiagnosed, or dismissed entirely. This is where the arts — the power of our stories and language — come in. In this conversation, we get to the heart of our grey matter, exploring a topic that is deeply personal and yet widely felt in our communities, among patients, allied health professionals and medical experts. An issue that is largely invisible and yet deceptively common. We uncover the historical basis, harmful discourse, and pervasive mythologies underpinning functional disorders, and what the future holds in terms of emerging research at the intersection of mind, brain and body.It’s time to re-write the narrative. Access the FULL SHOW NOTES on the SWN website. Cognitive Conversations is hosted by Bianca Millroy. This episode was recorded and produced in Meanjin, Brisbane. Enjoyed this episode? Share the SWN love!If you liked this episode, leave us a review and share it far and wide. Science Write Now is dedicated to accessibility, connectivity, inspiration and collaboration across disciplines. Our content is free to access and we want to keep it that way, so if you’re keen to be part of this growing community of creative writing inspired by science, hit subscribe!We’ll be back with another episode soon, and more conversations inspired by science and creativity to come!We acknowledge the Jaegara and Turrbal People, Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is created, and the unceded cultural lands on which our guests live and continue to make and tell stories.