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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender
@tomplender.bsky.social
370 followers 460 following 180 posts
Musician, Artist, chairman of FND Action
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Reposted by Tom Plender
fndportal.bsky.social
FND Portal @fndportal.bsky.social · Sep 4
Hey folks.

ILAE's International Epilepsy Congress is now concluded (great meeting!), so I thought I'd share a few highlights from my talk on Functional / Dissociative Seizures (FDS).

The full talk (and recording) belong to ILAE, but here are some of the key points!
A canvas sign advertising the 36th International Epilepsy Congress in Lisbon, Portugal
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Aug 22
Thankyou that means a lot 😁🙏
tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Aug 21
Thanks dude, that’s really kind 🙏
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Reposted by Tom Plender
fndportal.bsky.social
FND Portal @fndportal.bsky.social · Aug 21
I know what I’m reading this weekend! 😎
jonstoneneuro.bsky.social
Jon Stone @jonstoneneuro.bsky.social · Aug 20
Our new open access paper looking at Migraine and FND, two of the commonest conditions in neurological practice.

Migraine and functional neurological disorder (FND)—a review of comorbidity and potential overlap. academic.oup.com/braincomms/a... 🧵1/
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Aug 21
Thanks 🙏 - wasn’t sure if this is technically correct as I’m not a neuroscientist, just a musician trying to make sense of all this stuff!
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Aug 21
Ok thanks🙏 - so maybe I can use this way of thinking and explaining one of the mechanisms behind FND
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Reposted by Tom Plender
edinpublishing.bsky.social
Jane Boissiere @edinpublishing.bsky.social · Aug 20
Really looking forward to this www.rsm.ac.uk/events/hypno...
interest?
@mattburkemd.bsky.social @matthewbroome.bsky.social @jonstoneneuro.bsky.social @kingsioppn.bsky.social @susannahpick.bsky.social @wendyburn.bsky.social @inspirethemind.bsky.social @tomplender.bsky.social @fndportal.bsky.social
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Aug 19
@fndportal.bsky.social @jonstoneneuro.bsky.social @alancarson15.bsky.social @wesleytkerr.bsky.social @katerinafoto.bsky.social @nielsdetert.bsky.social @drzoffness.bsky.social @susannahpick.bsky.social
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Aug 19
Latest attempt to try and define predictive brain mechanism in #FND in the simplest terms -

A disconnect in the brain where -

Beliefs/expectations + prior experiences

Outweigh

Incoming sensory input from present reality

Does that seem accurate? Any thoughts appreciated 🙏
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jul 23
@fndportal.bsky.social @katerinafoto.bsky.social @doug-mcleod.bsky.social @gailfdavies.bsky.social
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jul 23
Is hypnosis the ideal therapy for #FND ?great presentation from Dr Abhijit Das -

youtu.be/GEKLOwfhvA8?...
Hypnosis and Suggestion: An ideal therapy for Functional Neurological Disorder (FND)?
YouTube video by Dr Abhijit Das
youtu.be
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Reposted by Tom Plender
fndportal.bsky.social
FND Portal @fndportal.bsky.social · Jul 23
Functional seizures don't act like epilepsy. Functional movement disorders don't act like nervous system damage.

But is FND feigning or malingering? No!

A great paper from @mahyog.bsky.social @jonstoneneuro.bsky.social explains why

www.pure.ed.ac.uk/ws/portalfil...
www.pure.ed.ac.uk
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jul 15
#fnd #disabilityrights
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Reposted by Tom Plender
fndportal.bsky.social
FND Portal @fndportal.bsky.social · Jul 11
“Connections between the nervous and immune systems are increasingly recognized as central to brain–body physiology […] we examine how these systems collaborate to detect and respond to both internal and external stimuli — such as psychological stress, circadian cues, infection, and tissue injury.“
annaciaunica.bsky.social
Anna Ciaunica @annaciaunica.bsky.social · Jul 11
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Connection and communication between the nervous and immune systems - Nature Reviews Immunology
Here, Swirski and colleagues explore how the nervous and immune systems connect and collaborate to respond to internal and external stimuli. In particular, they consider how the exchange of informatio...
www.nature.com
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Reposted by Tom Plender
fndportal.bsky.social
FND Portal @fndportal.bsky.social · Jul 4
“The findings emphasize the need for personalised and compassionate care for individuals suffering from FND, underpinned by increased service provision within the healthcare system.”
medrxivpreprint.bsky.social
medRxivpreprint @medrxivpreprint.bsky.social · Jul 3
The journey to a diagnosis of Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.07.02.25330696v1
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Reposted by Tom Plender
uclbrainscience.bsky.social
UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences @uclbrainscience.bsky.social · Jun 25
🎉 Congratulations to Prof. @katerinafoto.bsky.social‬, who has won the ALBA-FKNE Diversity Prize for her outstanding contributions to promoting equality and diversity in the brain sciences. ‪@network-alba.bsky.social‬ @kavlifoundation.org‬
Professor Aikaterini Fotopoulou Awarded 2025 ALBA-FKNE Diversity Prize
Professor Aikaterini Fotopoulou from UCL Division of Psychology and Language Sciences has been awarded the ALBA-FKNE Diversity Prize at the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies meeting.
buff.ly
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 22
For anybody struggling- great video from Dan Buglio on not losing hope with these #FND / chronic pain type conditions
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ccd...
Are You Losing Hope?
YouTube video by Pain Free You
www.youtube.com
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 18
Fascinating talk with @Brain_Tinkerer and Karl Friston on how hypnosis for #FND might fit into a Free energy principle/ computational neuroscience model

www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvoN...

@fndportal.bsky.social @katerinafoto.bsky.social @edinpublishing.bsky.social
FEP & Functional Neurological Disorder: Clinical Features and a Therapeutic Approach - Abhijit Das
YouTube video by Theoretical Neurobiology Group
www.youtube.com
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 17
4/I don't dispute that for a subset of #FND patients repression/dissociation is an issue that can make symptoms worse. However for many the exact opposite is true, the traumatic memory or triggering event is TOO vivid - and thats a big part of the problem
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 17
6/Not all FND patients have psychological trauma, and in those where trauma is a contributing factor, there is still a lot of variability and complexity
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 17
5/This is why rigid theories like Freudian conversion disorder frequently fail FND patients – they are too narrow and simplistic and don't allow for the complexity and variability within FND – in terms of causation, individual response etc
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 17
3/The theory is the traumatic memory is not processed into long term memory storage, so the brain ends up stuck and hyperdefensive, constantly reliving the event and watching for similar dangers. In this hyper aroused state it often misinterprets harmless stimuli as a threat.
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 17
2/they are more likely to remember traumatic events vividly as opposed to mundane events from the same time period. As a result the brains threat detection systems keep the memory alive in time, so it can 'hypervigilantly' watch for anything similar that could be a threat
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tomplender.bsky.social
Tom Plender @tomplender.bsky.social · Jun 17
1/A major flaw with Freuds conversion disorder theory- that patients who've been traumatised cannot consciously remember the event and it ends up repressed. In my experience people are more likely to vividly remember traumatic events from the past-
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Reposted by Tom Plender
fndportal.bsky.social
FND Portal @fndportal.bsky.social · Jun 17
Sadly still seeing many reports from newly-diagnosed folks in FND spaces that their doctor diagnosed them by “ruling things out.”

This is bad!

FND should be diagnosed based on positive clinical signs.

It is not a diagnosis of exclusion.

Someone please have a word with the neurologists 🙏
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