Comments on: No Miracle As Brain-Damaged Patient Proved Unable To Communicate

By: Berber Anna

Berber Anna — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 11:27:31 +0000

Laureys talked about this to the newspaper I read (NRC Handelsblad, a Dutch paper). Mr Houben is STILL believed to be conscious and locked-in. Just not communicating. Which makes it even worse… he was actually aware while this scam was going on. Horrible.

By: Derren'sGoatee

Derren'sGoatee — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 04:28:52 +0000

At first I thought this was quite sad but on second thoughts, when this story first broke I remember feeling horrified that someone had been trapped inside their own body and mind for that length of time, unable to communicate with the world. I was also surprised that, all things considered, Rom Houben appeared to be sane.
So, as dreadfully sad as the situation is, it’s a good thing that he hasn’t been trapped in a silent world for all those years and is probably unaware. At least I hope he is. The alternative is too awful to contemplate.

By: Rob

Rob — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 11:14:23 +0000

I filed ‘Facilitated Communication’ under the heading ‘quackery’ and left it there, along with cranial osteopathy, chelation therapy, irlen lenses, antivaccination hyperbole, and numerous other approaches delivered by rich American ‘doctors’ (doctor of what? not medicine, most of the time) to the families of people with Autistic Spectrum Disorders who are desperate for any answer.
These people should be ashamed, but you know what? In my experience, they really aren’t.
Like mediums, they sell a lie that only a small percentage of them actually believe.
Some are misguided but genuine.
Most are greedy capitalists applying the principles of the free market to health care and education. (Always a bad idea.)
Just because a market exists, does not mean you should exploit it.

By: Rob

Rob — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 11:04:38 +0000

I used to have Facilitated Communication ‘training’ from the mother of a young man with autism who had no speech but was obviously quite bright. We would ask him questions from a general knowledge book. I would hold his arm loosely and he would point at the letters on the FC board. I felt under enormous emotional pressure to support him to give the ‘correct’ answer. You cannot help but provide less resistance when the correct letter is nearby.
I also do a simple card trick using a very old technique that Derren used to great effect in Venice, I believe. The ‘participant’ is asked to point at a row of cards and move across. The magician, holding the mark’s hand, ‘knows’ when his/her finger is above the selected card. Same principle, really. Another form of idiomotor response?

By: Richard Hulligan

Richard Hulligan — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 11:01:03 +0000

Surely there must be some consideration for language issues, as well as some of his basic communication skills being eroded through the comatosed state?

Is this research to state that this was little more than the possible effects of infinite monkeys/typewriters and the complete works of shakespeare?!

By: Don

Don — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 16:57:38 +0000

No surprise, except why did it take so long for them to carry out such a simple and obvious test?

By: Alyx

Alyx — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:41:52 +0000

Well, nobody here will be surprised by that “revelation”, we’ve known for years that it was a load of rubbish.

By: Elephant's Child

Elephant's Child — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:24:22 +0000

Why is every so eager to say coma patients are still in there thinking away ?

After 23 years I hope the poor sod has his brain switched completely off.

If it was me trapped in ther my only thought would be a constant scream of “Kill me, kill me now”

By: Lady Claire

Lady Claire — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:12:33 +0000

I just find this quite sad, that’s all.

LC x

By: Ghost

Ghost — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 14:45:57 +0000

Sad. And disappointing that they don’t proplerly describe the method before and don’t describe now again why it was not really working out, what lead to this conclusion.