AwakeningsAwakenings — which inspired the major motion picture — is the remarkable story of a group of patients who contracted sleeping-sickness during the great epidemic just after World War I. Frozen for decades in a trance-like state, these men and women were given up as hopeless until 1969, when Dr. Oliver Sacks gave them the then-new drug L-DOPA, which had an astonishing, explosive, "awakening" effect. Dr. Sacks recounts the moving case histories of his patients, their lives, and the extraordinary transformations which went with their reintroduction to a changed world. |
Contents
PARKINSONS DISEASE AND PARKINSONISM | |
THE SLEEPINGSICKNESS Encephalitis Lethargica | |
Awakenings | |
MARGARET | |
MAGDA | |
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activity akathisia akinesia amantadine attacks became become behaviour brain catatonia clinical completely continued developed disabled disorders documentary film DOPA dopamine dosage dose of L-DOPA drug drug holidays dystonia effects encephalitic encephalitic patients encephalitis lethargica epidemic Epidemic Encephalitis excitement experience extreme feeling felt festination film of Awakenings forced Gertie Havelock Ellis Hester hospital illness intense Kind of Alaska Leibniz Leonard Leonard L living look Luria medication medicine Miriam H Miss H months motionless motor Mount Carmel move movement MPTP nature neurological never normal nurses observed occur oculogyric crises once palilalia Parkinson's disease Parkinsonian patients Parkinsonism pathological perhaps person physiological possible post-encephalitic patients posture profound reactions to L-DOPA respiratory response rigidity Sacks seemed seen sense severe showed side-effects sleep sleeping-sickness sometimes sort speak speech started stopped strange sudden suddenly symptoms syndrome therapeutic thought tics tremor violent walk weeks