Unwired: The Lobotomy Legacy

Medicine has always been a little… experimental.
And some ideas refuse to stay buried.

Welcome to The Cadaver’s Lesson, a podcast exploring the strange, fascinating, and unsettling history of medicine. In this episode, we look into one of psychiatry’s darkest chapters: the lobotomy—and how a desperate search for cures led to irreversible harm.

From the pivotal case of Phineas Gage to the rise of psychosurgery in overcrowded mental institutions, we trace how altering the brain became a widely accepted treatment for mental illness. We examine the social pressures, limited medical knowledge, and fear surrounding psychiatric disease that allowed lobotomies to flourish—culminating in Walter Freeman’s transorbital technique, a procedure as fast as it was devastating.

The conversation confronts the human cost of lobotomies: patients stripped of autonomy, families promised miracles, and a medical system that prioritized efficiency over consent and outcomes. We also explore how the introduction of psychiatric medications in the 1950s finally brought about the decline of lobotomies—and what this shift reveals about society’s evolving understanding of mental illness.

By reflecting on the rise and fall of lobotomies, we examine how medicine can be shaped as much by fear and convenience as by science—and why ethical safeguards are essential to progress.

New episodes drop Mondays, with companion historical case episodes on Fridays.
Follow along, stay curious, and remember—
Some lessons were never meant to survive.

☕ Support the show: https://buymeacoffee.com/the_cadavers_lessons
📲 Follow us on Instagram & TikTok @the_cadavers_lessons
Class is dismissed.

📚 References

• Natale, J. E., & Wolters, P. L. (2013). Violence, mental illness, and the brain – A brief history of psychosurgery: Part 1 – From trephination to lobotomy. Surgical Neurology International, 4, 49. https://doi.org/10.4103/2152-7806.110146
• National Public Radio. (2005, November 16). A lobotomy timeline. https://www.npr.org/2005/11/16/5014576/a-lobotomy-timeline
• International Museum of Surgical Science. (n.d.). Rosemary Kennedy’s lobotomy. https://www.imhm.org/page-1854827
• Ghodse, H., Galea, G., & Volpe, U. (2017). Historical development of psychosurgery. Journal of the History of the Neurosciences. PMC https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5510479/
• Andrade, C. (2020). Chapter title if known. In Neurosurgery, Psychiatry, and the Legacy of Lobotomy (Book or Section Title). In StatPearls. National Center for Biotechnology Information. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK568715

Amanda Fielding: Drilling into Consciousness

Medicine—and the mind—have always pushed against the edges of what we think is possible.
And some questions refuse to stay locked inside the skull.

Welcome to The Cadaver’s Lesson, a podcast exploring the strange, fascinating, and unsettling history of medicine. In this episode, we step away from the operating theater and into the realm of consciousness as we examine the life and work of Amanda Fielding—an aristocrat, artist, activist, and one of the most controversial figures in modern psychedelic research.

From her radical self-experimentation with trepanation to her founding of the Beckley Foundation, Fielding’s story sits at the crossroads of neuroscience, art, philosophy, and policy reform. We trace how her belief in expanded consciousness challenged scientific norms, provoked public backlash, and ultimately helped open doors for legitimate, evidence-based psychedelic research.

Along the way, we explore why trepanation re-emerged in countercultural movements, how early psychedelic research was halted by politics rather than data, and how modern science is cautiously revisiting substances once dismissed as taboo. The episode also tackles the stigma surrounding psychedelics, the ethics of self-experimentation, and the tension between personal conviction and scientific rigor.

By examining Amanda Fielding’s legacy, we reflect on how medicine and science evolve—not just through controlled trials, but through bold questions, cultural shifts, and people willing to challenge the boundaries of accepted thought.

New episodes drop Mondays, with companion historical case episodes on Fridays.

☕ Support the show: https://buymeacoffee.com/the_cadavers_lessons
📲 Follow us on Instagram & TikTok @the_cadavers_lessons

Class is dismissed.

📚 References

The Guardian – Amanda Feilding Interview
Source: Booth, Robert. “‘LSD can reset the brain’: Amanda Feilding on psychedelics, politics and suicide”, The Guardian, 10 February 2019.
URL: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/10/amanda-feilding-lsd-can-reset-the-brain-interview

Beckley Foundation – Amanda Feilding Bio
Source: Beckley Foundation. “Amanda Feilding” (official biography).
URL: https://www.beckleyfoundation.org/amanda-feilding/

John Horgan – Blog Piece
Source: Horgan, John. “Requiem for a Psychedelic Holy Lady” (blog post).
URL: https://johnhorgan.org/blog-1/requiem-for-a-psychedelic-holy-lady

Medical Republic – Feature on Amanda Feilding
Source: “Amanda Feilding: The woman who drilled a hole into her skull”, The Medical Republic.
URL: https://www.medicalrepublic.com.au/amanda-feilding-the-woman-who-drilled-a-hole-into-her-skull/119065

Medicine has always been a little… experimental.
And some ideas refuse to stay buried.

Welcome to The Cadaver’s Lesson, a podcast exploring the strange, fascinating, and unsettling history of medicine. In this episode, we open the skull—carefully—to examine trepanation, one of humanity’s oldest surgical practices, and its surprising survival into modern medicine.

From ancient cultural rituals and early medical reasoning to battlefield trauma and emergency neurosurgery, we trace how drilling into the skull evolved into today’s burr holes and life-saving interventions. Along the way, we explore why trepanation made sense at the time, how patients astonishingly survived, and what it taught us about intracranial pressure, Cushing’s Triad, and critical neurological red flags.

Hosted by B, a true crime junkie drawn to psychology, ethics, and moral gray areas, and Sam, an ER Physician Assistant grounded in evidence-based medicine and clinical reality, this episode lives at the crossroads of history, trauma care, and modern emergency medicine.

The conversation also dives into the emotional toll of trauma care, the human stories behind brain injuries, and the ethical weight carried by medical professionals—past and present. By connecting historical practices to modern technology, we reflect on how medicine continuously evolves through questioning, adaptation, and hard-earned lessons.

New episodes drop Mondays, with companion historical case episodes on Fridays.

Follow along, stay curious, and remember—
Some lessons were never meant to survive.

☕ Support the show: https://buymeacoffee.com/the_cadavers_lessons
📲 Follow us on Instagram & TikTok @the_cadavers_lessons
Class is dismissed.

📚 References

• Andrushko, V. A., & Verano, J. W. (2008). “Prehistoric Trepanation in the Cuzco Region of Peru.” American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 137(1), 4–13.
• Arnott, R., Finger, S., & Smith, C. U. M. (eds.). (2003). Trepanation: History, Discovery, Theory. Swets & Zeitlinger.
• Greenblatt, S. H., Dagi, T. F., & Epstein, M. H. (eds.). (1997). A History of Neurosurgery. AANS.
• Gross, C. G. (2004). “Trepanation from Antiquity to the Present.” Neurosurgical Review, 7, 1–5.
• Hippocrates. On Injuries of the Head.
• Martin, D., & Harrod, R. (2015). Bioarchaeology of Trauma. Wiley-Blackwell.
• Paré, A. (16th c.). The Works of Ambroise Paré.
• Prioreschi, P. (1991). A History of Medicine: Primitive and Ancient Medicine. Horatius Press.
• Roberts, C., & Manchester, K. (2005). The Archaeology of Disease. Cornell University Press.
• Verano, J. W. (2006). “Trepanation in Prehistoric South America.” World Neurosurgery, 66(3), 380–385.
• https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/hole-in-the-head-trepanation/ (On the historical methods of Trepanation)