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Updated September 24, 2021 51.5K votes 13.1K voters 1.8M views
Over 13.1K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The Most Unbelievable True Stories of How Brain Damage Changed People
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Vote up the stories about brain damage totally changing a person's personality that shock you the most.
The brain is the most complex organ in the human body, and as such, any injury to it can have a profound impact on an individual. Brain damage can result from a number of diagnoses, including strokes, traumatic brain injuries, and brain tumors. On this list, you will discover some of the craziest and most interesting cases of brain damage changing personalities, behaviors, emotions, and skills.
One of the most famous cases of brain damage causing personality changes is that of Phineas Gage. In the 1800s, a tamping iron went through his head when he was working on a railroad. Reports claim that, after surviving the accident, Gage's personality was drastically altered. This particular case of brain injury was significant in the fields of neurology and psychology, as it suggested a link between the frontal lobe of the brain and personality.
From newfound artistic talent to criminal behavior, here are some of the craziest stories of people whose personalities changed after brain damage.
In 2002, Jason Padgett was assaulted by two men and left with a severe concussion. Remarkably, the attack also turned Padgett into a mathematical genius and gave him the ability to visualize geometric shapes and angles. He is one of just a few people in the world this has happened to; it's called "acquired savant syndrome."
In August 1989, 35-year-old Jon Sarkin suffered a stroke and underwent surgery that removed part of his brain. After the surgery, Sarkin had the inexplicable urge to draw, something he had no interest in before. Sarkin became a prolific artist and his work has been shown around the world.
Ever since he suffered a stroke in 2004, Malcolm Myatt has been unable to feel sadness. The stroke affected his frontal lobe, which is the region of the brain that regulates emotions. Myatt sees being happy all the time as an advantage.
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Doctor Becomes a Pianist After Being Struck by Lightning
In 1994, 42-year-old orthopedic surgeon Tony Cicoria was talking to his mother on a pay phone when he was suddenly struck by lightning. A few weeks after the incident, he developed a penchant for piano music and began teaching himself to play. Prior to his near death experience, Cicoria was indifferent to music, but was now driven to spend his days composing. He continues to work as a surgeon and a pianist.
After recovering from a serious car crash in 2005, Leanne Rowe was left with a newly acquired French-sounding accent. Struggling to accept her new voice, Rowe has become reclusive and often has her daughter speak for her.
This extremely rare condition is known as foreign accent syndrome and was first reported in 1907.
Back in 1848, 25-year-old Phineas Gage was working on a railroad in Vermont when an explosion caused a tamping iron to shoot straight through his head. Miraculously, Gage survived the accident and has since become one of neurology's most famous cases of brain injury.
Though the true extent of his personality change remains unknown, the effects of the rod are believed to have been so profound that even Gage's friends considered him "no longer Gage."
In 2002, Jason Padgett was assaulted by two men and left with a severe concussion. Remarkably, the attack also turned Padgett into a mathematical genius and gave him the ability to visualize geometric shapes and angles. He is one of just a few people in the world this has happened to; it's called "acquired savant syndrome."
In August 1989, 35-year-old Jon Sarkin suffered a stroke and underwent surgery that removed part of his brain. After the surgery, Sarkin had the inexplicable urge to draw, something he had no interest in before. Sarkin became a prolific artist and his work has been shown around the world.
Ever since he suffered a stroke in 2004, Malcolm Myatt has been unable to feel sadness. The stroke affected his frontal lobe, which is the region of the brain that regulates emotions. Myatt sees being happy all the time as an advantage.
