Captured at www.trepan.com

International Trepanation Advocacy Group

Introduction

Trepanation is the practice of making a hole in the skull. Trepanation is the oldest surgical procedure practiced by mankind. The earliest evidence of trepanation dates back 10,000 years. At no time had evidence been found that brain surgery was the intention of this procedure.

Purpose

The International Trepanation Advocacy Group is dedicated to accumulating the largest base of information about trepanation ever before assembled. Members of I-TAG speak from a firsthand basis about trepanation; we are all trepanned. Most of us have had to resort to self-trepanation after having sought the surgical expertise of the medical profession to no avail. Although self-trepanation is discussed here and is shown pictorially, it is for the historical record only. The International Trepanation Advocacy Group does not encourage self-trepanation. I-TAG does not support the practice of self-trepanation. I-TAG takes no responsibility for injuries sustained by anyone practicing self-trepanation. Even though trepanation is a simple procedure practiced as far back in history as the Stone Age in non-sterile settings with primitive stone instruments and without anaesthetics, it must be relegated to the medical profession in this age. However the medical profession tries to have it both ways: they refuse to perform trepanation on request and when an individual takes matters into their own hands they declare the individual a danger to himself and temporarily insane. The International Trepanation Advocacy Group is also dedicated to making the surgical procedure of trepanation, for its own sake, available from the medical profession on request.

People & Personalities: Email

In 1983 I was in an auto accident that left me with a depressed skull fracture, a portion of the skull was shattered and could not be replaced. The location of this injury is exactly where the trepanation is located in the picture of the skull on your web page. I recovered quickly, ‘went home 5 days after accident,’ to the amazement of the neurosurgeon who had told my mother I probably would not live through the first night! Exposed brain tissue was removed. Before I had this accident I suffered greatly with migraine headaches about twice a year. I have not had a migraine headache since the accident. I am a computer programmer, after the accident I had to relearn some things but am fine now.

Many thanks for your response. The personal stories of individuals like yourself are always of great interest. You are an interesting subject in that not enough brain damage was sustained to permanently set you back. At the same time then, an advantage could be correlated to having the skull opened and the intra-cranial pulsation restored, i.e. that your headaches went away. That’s fantastic.

For now I wish you well and good fortune. Feel free to communicate at any time. You have found people who understand what you’ve been through, both painful and miraculous.

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