Man destroyed part of his brain causing severe OCD after shooting himself in head and lived to tell the tale

A man who shot himself in the head not only lived to tell the tale, but also found an unbelievable effect of the incident.

Prior to the incident, the man - named only as George - had been suffering with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), which was having a severe negative impact on his life.

In the case of this man, the symptoms of OCD manifested as an obsessive fear of germs, meaning that he would wash his hands hundreds of times a day.

Tragically, things got so bad for George, who was studying at college at the time according to contemporary reports, that he attempted suicide using a gun aged just 19.

Fortunately, the attempt failed and he survived.

The man, known only as George, attempted to commit suicide. (Andrew Brookes / Getty)

But not only did George survive, when he recovered from the injury he found that the debilitating symptoms of his OCD had improved dramatically, news outlets including the New York Times reported in 1988.

A report in Physicians Weekly at the time commented on the extraordinary case, coyly referring to the bullet as 'successful radical surgery'.

But how did this even work?

Well, some people thought that when the bullet passed through George's brain by a remarkable chance, it destroyed only the part of his brain which was causing the OCD.

And by an even more insane fluke, none of his other faculties were affected either.

Speaking at the time, psychiatrist Thomas Ballantine of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston told the LA Times: “The idea that a man could blow out part of his frontal lobe and have his pathological symptoms cured is quite remarkable, but it is not beyond belief."

What is also extraordinary is that surgeries on the frontal lobe had been explored as a last resort to treat extreme cases of OCD, which yes, is effectively a lobotomy.

George amazingly survived the ordeal, and also had reduced symptoms of OCD afterwards. (SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Getty)

After the extraordinary incident, George went on to complete his high school education which had been interrupted by his mental health condition.

Psychiatrist Leslie Solyom told how surgeons were able to remove the bullet from his brain.

Solyom said: “When he was transferred to our hospital three weeks later, he had hardly any compulsions left. He was still depressed, but we were able to treat that with drugs.”

Solyom later wrote that five years after the incident he still suffered with some milder symptoms of OCD, but they were no longer at a level where they would interfere with his life.

This is a remarkable story, but to be absolutely crystal clear it was an enormous fluke.

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available through Mental Health America. Call or text 988 to reach a 24-hour crisis center or you can webchat at 988lifeline.org. You can also reach the Crisis Text Line by texting MHA to 741741.

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