#12: Benjamin Stecher – A personal account of Parkinson's and Deep Brain Stimulation

Stimulating Brains

Benjamin Stecher is doing impressive work in is role a scientific writer and patient advocate. He co-authored the book “Brain Fables” together with Alberto Espay, which recently won the prose award by the Association of American Publishers in the category Neuroscience. The book is truly unique in its way to combine both the views of patient and health professional on the history and misconceptions of Parkinson's Disease and what should change in our field to make progress.

Benjamin was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease at 29. Since then, he left a successful managing partner position in Shanghai to study the disease full time. He has been traveling the world to witness the latest and greatest progress being made in over 100 research laboratories around the globe. He has interviewed over 80 international experts and shares his insights on the website tmrwedition.com.

On June 2nd, Benjamin underwent deep brain stimulation surgery to the subthalamic nucleus. We are incredibly grateful that a mere nine days after that, he shares this experience lived from the most direct and intimate, the most important perspective: the one of the patient.