Neurorehabilitation and cognitive stimulation
New research in various fields has provided a better understanding of how the brain works, as well as of the brain’s potential for recovery or change (neuroplasticity).
Neuroscience is a field of science that studies the nervous system and how its different elements develop and interact to give rise to the biological bases of cognition and behaviour. Within it we find neuropsychology, the discipline that focuses on the relationship between brain structures and human behaviour, which is what concerns us here.
Until recently it was thought that human beings reached a maximum number of neurons and that no more were created, or that lost neuronal connections could not be recovered, but thanks to neuropsychology we now know that this is not the case. The brain is plastic and is continuously learning from its surroundings, which is why it is important to give it new stimuli, environments and learning so that it can exercise. The richer the stimulation a person has received during their life (education, culture, experiences, challenges…), the more likely they are to have a reserve that allows them to face age-related changes or respond better to a brain injury. This is known as cognitive reserve (the amount of knowledge, cognitive resources and coping strategies a person accumulates throughout their life).
Returning to the brain’s capacity to learn, this is possible thanks to neuroplasticity, the potential the brain has to change and adapt in response to experience, chemical substances, hormones or injury. It should be stressed that, although the brain itself is able to activate neuroplastic systems, these have their limits, so it is essential to stimulate and modulate them throughout life. When we are healthy we can do this ourselves by carrying out certain actions such as learning new things, caring for our social relationships, reading, travelling…, but when there is a pathological impairment, appropriate therapeutic intervention focused on the particular needs of each case is essential. In this way, the professional will make use of this capacity of the brain to reorganise itself, creating and strengthening neuronal connections, in order to achieve recovery, whether partial or even complete, after neuronal damage caused for example by a stroke or a traumatic brain injury, both so common nowadays. It will also be taken into account when treating neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s or multiple sclerosis, since although the deterioration cannot be reversed, it can be significantly slowed down.
Professional intervention: rehabilitation and cognitive stimulation
The main objective of both is the same — to enable people to have the best possible quality of life for as long as possible — but we will speak of one or the other depending on the condition we want to treat.
Neuropsychological rehabilitation
Neuropsychological rehabilitation comprises various learning and training techniques so that the person recovers, as far as possible, lost abilities and develops new ones needed to achieve the greatest possible degree of functioning and independence, physically as well as psychologically and in terms of social adaptation. It is aimed at people who have suffered brain damage or who have neurodevelopmental disorders, intellectual disability or mental illness, among other conditions.
Cognitive stimulation
Cognitive stimulation uses similar techniques but with the aim of slowing cognitive decline and maintaining and strengthening preserved abilities for as long as possible. It is applied in neurodegenerative diseases and normal ageing.
Both must meet three basic conditions:
– Being prescribed and supervised by a professional: the role of a properly trained and experienced professional is essential when designing, monitoring and adapting any neuropsychological intervention, which will cover the cognitive sphere, the emotional domain, the psychosocial area and each person’s daily functioning in the most appropriate way.
– Personalisation: each therapeutic intervention must be unique and tailored, since it depends on factors as varied as the type of impairment or the person’s characteristics and personal circumstances.
– Ecological validity and generalisation: there must be a relationship between the improvement of the skills trained in the clinic and better performance of day-to-day activities. In addition, the results produced by training on certain tasks must also be evident in other similar tasks, thus showing that what has really improved is the underlying function.
Which conditions can be worked on with NeuronUP?
The brain has been shown to be a dynamic organ capable of undergoing considerable changes after injury or environmental change. Because of this, great importance is now given to providing effective rehabilitation in cases of brain injury, or appropriate stimulation to slow the cognitive decline characteristic of certain conditions.
The main fields that can benefit from neurorehabilitation and cognitive stimulation with NeuronUP are:
Acquired brain injury
Acquired brain injury is damage to the cells of the brain that occurs after birth. It can be due to various causes and, depending on where the damage is located, different processes will be affected. It should also be stressed that it will not affect a developing brain (children) in the same way as a fully developed one (adults).
Neurodegenerative diseases
Their cause is the progressive death of neurons in different regions of the nervous system. This progressive loss of nerve cells is what gives rise to the neurological and neuropsychological signs and symptoms characteristic of each of them.
Neurodevelopmental disorders
A child’s brain is not a miniature replica of the adult brain; it is a brain in continuous development, sometimes growing at a dizzying pace, and subject to countless changes and connections brought about by the continuous stimulation provided by the environment in which it develops.
Intellectual disability
It is characterised by significant limitations in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behaviour, which appear during the developmental period (it is a neurodevelopmental disorder, but we have considered it appropriate to devote a separate category to it).
Mental illness
The two main conditions in which cognitive impairment is observed are:
Esquizofrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder, a complex personality disorder that produces distortions in thinking, in behaviour and in the perception of reality.
Trastorno bipolar
It is characterised by fluctuations in mood, with mania at one extreme and depression at the other. Depending on the number of episodes and their intensity, this disorder has several types.
Normal ageing
Ageing is an integral and natural part of life, but not everyone goes through this process in the same way. The way we age and how we experience this process, as well as the health and functional capacity we have, depend both on our genetic make-up and on the environment that has surrounded us throughout our lives: what we have done, the kinds of things we have encountered, how and where we have lived, and so on.
Objectives of rehabilitation and cognitive stimulation
As we have already said, the main objective of both rehabilitation and cognitive stimulation is to enable people to have the best quality of life for as long as possible. This concept is directly related to functional independence, which is characterised by:
- Being independent in carrying out activities of daily living, such as being able to do the shopping, prepare meals, maintain personal hygiene, manage accounts…
- Receiving family and social support in order to relate appropriately to the environment.
- Being able to maintain an acceptable state of health, taking physical exercise in line with one’s abilities and maintaining a good diet.
- Having tools for appropriate emotional management, learning to control anxiety, stress and different moods.
