Project Updates

I really enjoyed getting to present at the Wildcat Colloquium and on a smaller scale at EOY! Educating about FND can be challenging, but after years of practice, I'm proud of my ability to present the information in a digestible way. MARC has undoubtedly been a highlight of my time at MA and I think the Colloquium was a great way to conclude this journey. I'm so grateful to my mentors, my peers, and all the MA staff who helped make the past two years possible.

Our data showed higher average drift for FND patients across trial types, but also increased variability within the group, which aligns with FND's profile as a heterogeneously-presenting dissociative condition. After accounting for individual predilections for over- or under-estimation, we found that FND patients connected with the virtual body less than healthy controls when given cues synchronized to their heartbeat, but the difference between groups was close to zero when the cues were asynchronous; thus, FND patients were not connecting the external signals to their own bodies, likely due to reduced interoceptive ability. However, this pattern was reversed in the respiration-linked trials. 

I'm currently working on a more formal introduction section. The methods section for the Full-Body Illusion is almost fully drafted, but I still need further details on certain specifics.

I've begun the process of drafting a potential introduction and methods section for the Full-Body Illusion section of my project. I've been exploring non-FND specific literature for part of the methods section, which is an interesting change after being immersed in FND research for so long. 

I also gave a lab meeting to my peers to update them on my data analysis.

I'm now back at school in California and ready to get back to work on my project! I've done some more data analysis since leaving Switzerland, and my mentor and I are currently looking into more pathways for me to continue working on the project remotely.