Mark:

I think you raise some valid points, but you also seem to be entirely dismissive of Dr. Scaer's work, which I don't believe is justified. I don't doubt that the information you've presented is has a solid foundation in medical literature, but I think we're in one of those oh-so common situations where the whole truth lies somewhere in between - a confluence of psychological trauma and physical injury.

And here's where we continue to butt heads, Mark: After all of this impressive information you've relayed on the physical composition and stress reactions of the brain, you say nothing about what to do about it other than coping - with accepting what you have as final and learning to navigate around it. You seem to have such a singular focus on the "why" of how your brain has become what it is now that you give no thought whatsoever to the notion that it could heal. That you could get back at the very least some of those parts of you that you've lost over the years.

You may well believe that it's impossible for your brain to come back at all from where it is right now, and I have no intentions of stopping you from thinking that way, but that's not what I believe. I also don't believe that your way of thinking benefits people with PCS a great deal. Hope trails only love in terms of its healing potential, and you seem to only deal in clinical jargon and cynicism.

I am very much impressed with your intellect, and more power to you for coming to accept everything that you've had to deal with in your life, but talking to you in all honesty makes me feel worse. I'm no masochist, so I'm probably going to be on my way.

I'll close with one last quote:

"We become what we meditate on."
-Eknath Easwaran

Best of luck to you.