Published in The Woman Today magazine, February/March 2016
Inside the Mind of Dr. Rebecca Meyerson
Meet St. Luke’s newest neurologist
The human brain is a fascinating instrument. In an average adult, the brain
weighs about three pounds, which gives humans the highest brain-to-body
size in the animal kingdom. It contains over 100,000 miles of blood vessels,
over 100 billion neurons, and uses about 20% of the total oxygen and blood
circulating in your body. Yet for all its remarkable biology, it is the
brain’s ability to think—to form conscious thoughts—that
has long captivated St. Luke’s Neurologist Dr. Rebecca Meyerson.
The birth of an idea
“I grew up in a large family; I was the youngest of five,”
recalls Dr. Meyerson, “And it seemed to me that my older siblings
were all really successful at their thing, and I started to wonder, ‘what
makes them so smart? How do they think?’ And that curiosity is what
really started me down the path to studying neurology—which became
my thing.”
As she grew older, her interests led her to medical school, where she discovered
neurology during a rotation at Hennepin County Medical Center. “Like
a lot of students, I was interested in several aspects of medicine, but
during my neurology rotation, I had the benefit of working with Dr. David
Anderson, who was one of the most brilliant clinicians I have ever met.
He had such insightful diagnoses of patients, and treated them with such
respect. Watching him work, and seeing the impact of that work, I knew
that I wanted to emulate him.”
A specialty within a specialty
Dr. Meyerson said that people are sometimes confused over the nature of
her specialty. “When it comes to treating conditions of the brain,
there are many areas of specialization. As a neurologist, I specialize
in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous
system. My work mainly involves treating diseases such as multiple sclerosis,
epilepsy, Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease, or cognitive
impairments such as a stroke or traumatic brain injury.” When surgery
is required, Dr. Meyerson works with a broad team at St. Luke’s
that includes neurosurgeons and physical, occupational and speech therapists.
“I find in my work that there are a lot of misperceptions about diseases
of the brain, and how the brain can recover. Often, patients and their
families are looking to us to somehow ‘make it all better.’
While I am amazed every day about the brain’s resiliency, the reality
is that, with many neurological issues, our job is to slow the process
of the disease as much as possible.”
A process of continual learning
Much of what we thought we knew about the brain, says Dr. Meyerson, has
turned out to be incomplete—or incorrect. “I used to think
that the more I studied, the more I would understand. What I have found
instead is that I am always discovering that the more I
think I know, the more I realize how much I still
don’t know about the brain and how it functions.”
When it comes to maintaining our mental machines, however, Dr. Meyerson
says that it is definitely a case of “use it or lose it. Studies
show us that those who stop being active participants in life are going
to mentally decline much more quickly. Mental and physical activity is
critical to keeping our brains in good working order.”
To that end, Dr. Meyerson recommends activities that engage the body and
mind. “Exercise is the biggest thing you can do to maintain your
brain’s function. By increasing the blood flow to the brain, you
are increasing all the good stuff that your brain needs.” But, above
all, says Dr. Meyerson, exercise your brain by learning new things every
day. “Our brains crave stimulation. Stay engaged with life. Don’t
ever set the switch to ‘autopilot.’”
BELOW: Dr. Rebecca Meyerson, St. Luke's Neurology Associates