Transplant Patient Begins Seeing Things, Another Craves Beer and KFC - Just Like Their Organ Donors Did
Have you ever experienced déjà vu, that uncanny feeling you’ve lived through a certain moment before?
Well, for some organ recipients, especially those who have received a heart transplant, it can be more than just a feeling.
According to numerous reports and studies, some subjects have allegedly experienced personality changes, cravings, and even memories inherited from their donors.
For instance, Anne Marie Switzer, from Brampton, Canada, received a heart transplant when she was 50 years old, according to CBC Radio.
Switzer had experienced heart complications her whole life.
Born with a heart condition, Switzer underwent heart surgery when she was a baby.
But after her long-awaited transplant 50 years later, Switzer noticed something was wrong, since she no longer had quite the same butterfly-in-your-stomach emotions toward her family.
“I don’t know when the first time I realized it,” Switzer said. “I know I love my family, but I don’t get that squishy feeling.”
“I love my husband, but I don’t always get twitterpated anymore,” she said.
“It’s definitely a loss … because I’m a heart person. I’m a love person. I’m a relationship person. I don’t know how many people have told me, ‘You’ve got such a big heart.’ And I miss that,” Switzer said.
In another instance, several decades before Switzer’s transplant, Claire Sylvia of Massachusetts received a new heart and lungs, according to the U.K.’s Daily Mail.
But after the operation she did something unexpected.
She asked for a beer and began craving Kentucky Fried Chicken — just like her 18-year-old donor did.
Other transplant recipients have experienced darker episodes.
For example, a five-year-old adopted a “deathly” fear of drowning.
One man saw “flashes of light,” like his gunshot victim donor once did, according to the Mail.
Numerous studies have confirmed the validity of such cases, and have called the phenomenon “cellular memory,” or more simply, “heart memory.”
“Studies indicate that heart transplant recipients may exhibit preferences, emotions, and memories resembling those of the donors, suggesting a form of memory storage within the transplanted organ,” read a study published in the National Library of Medicine database called “Beyond the Pump: A Narrative Study Exploring Heart Memory.”
“Mechanisms proposed for this memory transfer include cellular memory, epigenetic modifications, and energetic interactions. Moreover, the heart’s intricate neural network, often referred to as the ‘heart brain,’ communicates bidirectionally with the brain and other organs, supporting the concept of heart-brain connection and its role in memory and personality,” the study abstract read.
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