Ask Ms. Jessica Issue 9 – Learning to walk again (Patreon)

(The content for Ask Ms. Jessica comes from real questions from real people sent to AskMsJessica@gmail.com)

Dear Ms. Jessica,

How do mutants get used to new limbs so fast when they just mutated? How are they immediately able to move their new limbs?

Simply put, they can’t. You’ve probably seen depictions of the process of mutation showing subjects falling over and barely able to move? This is because their brain does not have the innate connections needed to move their new limbs. 

Now, that’s not to say the brain is completely unprepared. Many times mutations happen in two phases, internal and external. Internal mutations are sort of like a “preparation” mutation. During this stage of development, the old body is sort of a cocoon and new structures start forming inside. The beginnings of new organs, muscle, and bone, are usually what we think of when we describe this stage of mutation, but new brain pathways are also being developed. This is why phantom limb syndrome is sometimes used to predict an upcoming mutation. 

By the time the external mutation happens, the brain at the very least has what’s needed to control new organs, usually by duplicating existing neural pathways. Limbs and other mutations, however, usually take a bit longer. On the upside, many of these mutations don’t have to take too long because the subject already has a working neutral pathway for controlling their existing limbs. The biggest issue is differentiating between limbs, which can still take some time.

It’s much different for mutants with more extreme mutations. Wings, snake tails, tentacles, and anything not explicitly human takes much longer to learn how to control. Basically, mutants have to learn how to use them from scratch. Luckily, most governments fund physical therapy facilities that help new mutants learn how to control their bodies. A good bit of physical therapy can greatly shorten the adjustment period and get a mutant back to their normal life. 

Of course, this always changes on a case by case basis. Some mutants just take to their mutation faster than others while some require long periods of rehab to get back to life. But then again the same is true for humans. Some of us walk and talk faster than others when we are babies, and some of us can pick up new skills faster than others as adults. But every mutant eventually learns how to use their body, no matter how different it is.

Stay curious!

Dr. Jessica Park

AskMsJessica@gmail.com   

(The content for Ask Ms. Jessica comes from real questions from real people sent to AskMsJessica@gmail.com)

Dear Ms. Jessica,

How do mutants get used to new limbs so fast when they just mutated? How are they immediately able to move their new limbs?

Simply put, they can’t. You’ve probably seen depictions of the process of mutation showing subjects falling over and barely able to move? This is because their brain does not have the innate connections needed to move their new limbs. 

Now, that’s not to say the brain is completely unprepared. Many times mutations happen in two phases, internal and external. Internal mutations are sort of like a “preparation” mutation. During this stage of development, the old body is sort of a cocoon and new structures start forming inside. The beginnings of new organs, muscle, and bone, are usually what we think of when we describe this stage of mutation, but new brain pathways are also being developed. This is why phantom limb syndrome is sometimes used to predict an upcoming mutation. 

By the time the external mutation happens, the brain at the very least has what’s needed to control new organs, usually by duplicating existing neural pathways. Limbs and other mutations, however, usually take a bit longer. On the upside, many of these mutations don’t have to take too long because the subject already has a working neutral pathway for controlling their existing limbs. The biggest issue is differentiating between limbs, which can still take some time.

It’s much different for mutants with more extreme mutations. Wings, snake tails, tentacles, and anything not explicitly human takes much longer to learn how to control. Basically, mutants have to learn how to use them from scratch. Luckily, most governments fund physical therapy facilities that help new mutants learn how to control their bodies. A good bit of physical therapy can greatly shorten the adjustment period and get a mutant back to their normal life. 

Of course, this always changes on a case by case basis. Some mutants just take to their mutation faster than others while some require long periods of rehab to get back to life. But then again the same is true for humans. Some of us walk and talk faster than others when we are babies, and some of us can pick up new skills faster than others as adults. But every mutant eventually learns how to use their body, no matter how different it is.

Stay curious!

Dr. Jessica Park

AskMsJessica@gmail.com