University of Nevada – Reno, Undergraduate researcher Anirudh Praveen explores complexities of brain aging and neurodegenerative disease. In this first-person narrative, Anirudh Praveen, undergraduate researcher, tells Nevada Today about his experience researching neurological and neurodegenerative disorders in the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine.

Imagine waking up one day and forgetting where you put your keys, only to realize you’ve forgotten aspects of your whole life. Or suddenly, your own body feels foreign, as if it’s moving without you, no longer responding the way you expect. Moving out of bed seems like the day after a brutal leg day at the gym, with every step feeling harder to place than the last. For some, this isn’t just a bad day, but the gradual breakdown of both mind and body, a process that feels like it never stops.