In this week'sedition of special series on Bizarre Medical Conditions, there is a report of the case of Michelle Myers. (9)Myers is an American woman who woke up one day speaking with a British accent, even though she'slived in the United States all her life. In 2015, Myers went to bed with a terrible headache. She woke up sounding like someone from England. Her British accent has remained for the past two years. Previously, Myers had woken up speaking in Irish and Australian accents. However, on both of those occasions, the accents lasted for only a week.

Myers has been diagnosed with Foreign Accent Syndrome. It'sa disorder in which a person experiences a sudden change to their speech so that they sound like they're speaking in a foreign accent. (10)The condition is most often caused by a stroke or traumatic brain injury. Although people with the syndrome have intelligible speech, their manner of speaking is altered in terms of timing and tongue placement, which may distort their pronunciation. The result is that they may sound foreign when speaking their native language. It'snot clear whether Myers has experienced a stroke or other brain damage, but she also has a separate medical condition, which can result in loose joints, easily bruised skin and other problems.

Foreign Accent Syndrome is rare, with only about 60 cases reported within the past century. (11)However, a different American woman reportedly spoke with the Russian accent in 2010 after she fell down the stairs and hit her head.