Brain on Fire

I watched a Netflix film titled, “Brain on Fire.” The film is based on a true story about a young woman named Susannah Cahalan. Susannah was a 24-year-old, who had just landed her dream job as a reporter for the New York Post. Unexpectedly, Susannah began experiencing strange symptoms that ultimately lead to the diagnosis of the rare autoimmune disease, anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis. The movie described Susannah’s symptoms, as well as her diagnostic process and prognosis. To further my learning on this disease, I researched other cases online. After learning that Susannah was the 217th person diagnosed with this disease, I continued to investigate other research studies. Since Susannah was diagnosed, thousands of other people have also been diagnosed with anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis. After conducting research, I learned than more women are affected by this disease than men. Additionally, I learned that this disease is still the subject on ongoing research. 

At the beginning on the film, Susannah experienced flu-like symptoms. These symptoms included headaches, numbness in her left arm and leg, dizziness, and hallucinations, which interfered with her job. Considering these symptoms, Susannah made an appointment with a neurologist. The neurologist conducted a neurological exam, blood work, EEG, and a MRI, which eliminated the possibility of a stroke or blood clot. Later, he met with Susannah and her parents to tell them that the results were clear, and that Susannah’s symptoms were from alcohol withdraw. Since Susannah had been staying at her mother’s home, her mother knew that she had not been drinking alcohol. Therefore, alcoholism could not be the correct diagnosis. Shortly after this, Susannah began experiencing symptoms of forgetfulness, depression, hallucinations, and paranoia. Her boss began to notice Susannah’s inappropriate behavior at work, and her inability to control her emotions. Thus, her boss asked her to work at home and to leave the office. 

As her symptoms persisted, she began to have seizures and started hallucinating more frequently. For example, during the film, Susannah was unable to see her own reflection in a mirror. Her parents began feeling that Susannah was not acting like herself and began to get very worried. They urged Susannah to gain other professional opinions, in which, she did. One psychiatrist prescribed her an anti-psychotic to treat mood and thought disorders. However, this medication failed to show success, and Susannah slowly began to “disappear.” Likewise, she began to lose herself in her own mind. 

Next, Susannah’s parents checked her into a hospital because her symptoms had escalated so quickly. Here, she was misdiagnosed with mania and was given anti-psychotics. One of the psychiatrists from the hospital contacted Dr. Souhel Najjar, a neurologist that agreed to meet with Susannah. When Dr. Najjar first met with Susannah, he tried to test her cognitive impairment by her orientation levels. However, Susannah did not respond. Dr. Najjar had Susannah draw a clock, which indicated that she had left neglect and that her right hemisphere was inflamed. Dr. Najjar explained that the visual world becomes distorted when one hemisphere of the brain is impaired. Thus, he ruled out bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. After this finding, he did a brain biopsy. In this biopsy he found that Susannah’s brain was on fire. Dr. Najjar stated that he found it early, and that it was treatable. He estimated that she would gain at least 90% of her cognitive abilities back. 

Dr. Najjar discovered that anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis was a neurological cause, not a psychological cause. After watching this movie, I learned that this disease had been mistaken for psychological disorders and that people had been misdiagnosed before Susannah’s case.  It was thought provoking to imagine all of the people that had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, when it was anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis. To think, so many people were left to be lost and forgotten. Something that really stood out to me in this film was when Dr. Najjar told Susannah that he would find her. He knew that Susannah was lost, but he was determined to find her and help her regain her abilities. After finding Susannah, he continued to practice medicine, and he opened one of the first clinics devoted to treating complex autoimmune disorders.

At the end of the movie, Susannah said that she had to learn everything from scratch, how to walk, talk, write, and love. She found a new appreciation for the mundane, everyday tasks that are so easily taken for granted. Since her recovery, she has helped people all over the world find autoimmune diagnoses and proper treatment. She also continues to raise awareness about autoimmune diseases as a journalist. After watching this movie, I gained imperative knowledge on this disease. I learned that my future career will also involve “finding people” and helping them regain “lost” functions. I will be able to help people reach their goals, regardless of the diagnosis. I chose this film as a part of my assignment because it provided insight to a rare autoimmune disorder, anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis and the symptoms associated. I also chose this movie because I wanted to learn more about inflammation and what it can do to the brain. 

I highly recommend this movie to anyone who would like to learn more about anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis, and Susannah’s story. 

Barrett, G. (2018, June 22). Brain on Fire. Netflix.