Neuropsychological Effects on Peronality & the Soul

So, I was reading from one of my favorite books, "The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat" by Oliver Sacks. And, if you've never read it, and you are interested in neuropsychology, I strongly recommend it. It can be dry and technical at times, but I consider it to be interesting and quite thought-provoking. But, enough of the book report...

I began to think about people who have suffered damage to the brain that altered their personality and behavior. Remember the story of Phineas Gage from Psych 101? He worked on the railroad. He was a responsible and dependable guy. Then, one fateful day, an accident caused a rod to shoot through his skull. He survived...or did he? His personality became so altered, one could say that Phineas Gage was no longer there. He became aggressive and irresponsible, emotional and impulsive. So, who now was the real Phineas Gage? Was his soul too altered by the accident? One would think not, or hope not. One would hope that his soul was unaltered and unharmed, but could no longer express itself in the damaged body.

I think of the soul as the essence of who we are. It's our motivations. I believe that neurological impairments can affect our ability to express ourselves and our behavior may become warped. The judgement that all suicides go to hell is faulty in my opinion. For if someone is deeply disturbed by depression or bipolar disorder, they may have a psychotic episode that cuts them off from all sense of reason. Even without the psychosis, a depressive episode may impair judgement to the extent that the person is no longer in touch with their own soul. Now, if a person has a depressive episode and is contemplating suicide, that is a whole other matter. For the very act of contemplation is judging the act against their beliefs and motivations. They are making a conscious decision, even if they are in a world of pain.

I hope this has given you some food for thought. I will post more on this topic soon. What are your thoughts on the subject?