Brain Wellness Solutions

04/14/2026

Today has been an emotional day for me as it is the 3-year anniversary of my car accident and TBI. While I can see all of the good things I’m doing, I’m still reminded that I’m not back to full time work yet. I don’t have the mental or physical endurance that I used to have, and it’s frustrating.

40-60% of individuals with TBI remain unemployed 2-4 years after their injury, and many struggle with maintaining steady employment due to limitations following their injury.

It took me almost 2 years to get back to being a nurse practitioner part time, and at 3 years I’m still working part time. I fully empathize with my patients on this.

So many of my patients voice concerns about not being back to work and not feeling like they’re recovering fast enough after their injuries. These are not people who just don’t want to work - they are individuals genuinely distraught about not being able to return to their livelihoods.

These individuals need to be seen and heard, and we need to normalize comprehensive therapies, including “outside the box” neuro technologies. Perhaps we could get more folks back to work if they received all the necessary treatments.

04/10/2026

It’s a beautiful day for a new podcast episode! Episode 181 is now available on your favorite platform!

This week I’m solo, talking about TBI policy. After heading to Washington DC a couple weeks ago to participate in a Congressional Briefing about neurotechnology at the Capitol, I thought I’d share about the experience and talk about some of the policies we have in place in the US and those that are proposed, as well as share what I know on the global front for TBI.

Tune in to hear the full interview now!

Find the episode on your favorite platform at https://bio.link/brainwellnessnp

04/08/2026

04/08/2026

A U.S. national survey in 2025 identified that 81% of adults did not identify concussion as a TBI. Over 8 in 10 adults don’t understand this.

Concussion is a “mild” TBI. Discussing the term mild is an entire lecture in itself, but that’s for another day…

For this reason, it’s very important that we recognize the symptoms and appropriately diagnose patients, so they can get the treatment they need. Having a concussion does not mean you will immediately recover. It is not something to ignore. Having a concussion is not a one-time event - it can lead to significant chronic symptoms.

It’s not just seeing starts or getting your bell rung. Concussion = TBI.

04/03/2026

It’s a great day for a new podcast episode! Episode 180 is now available on your favorite platform!

This week I’m joined by fellow Nurse Practitioner and author, Kelly Tuttle. Experiencing her own TBI made her more interested in the brain and fueled her shift from working in cardiology to neurology.
She transformed her healing journey into lessons to teach others who experienced a brain injury and she became and author and podcaster.

Tune in to hear the full interview now!

Find the episode on your favorite platform at https://bio.link/brainwellnessnp

03/30/2026

One final week of women’s history month/brain injury awareness month together.

Individuals at the extremes in age are at higher risk for TBI, but not equally between genders. Women over 65 are at much higher risk of TBI than men over 65. Coincidentally (or not), falls are the number one cause of TBI in females, which tends to also be the number one cause of TBI in the elderly.

Winter brings icy conditions, and the other seasons bring wet conditions that make surfaces slippery. Any time of year, people can fall down stairs if they lose footing, or get tripped up by small pets or throw rugs.

Women tend to have less supportive muscles for stabilizing and loss of hormones after menopause changes muscle and bone structure, leading to increased risk for falls.

What can we do? Be cautious walking on slippery surfaces, use hand rails on stairs and stay off of phones while going up/down stairs and walking. Regular exercise strengthens muscles, including some resistance training (important to keep bone structure strong after menopause!), so getting in 30 minutes a day, most days of the week, can help prevent some of the strength-related concerns.

What other recommendations would you give?

03/28/2026

Being a member of a panel speaking about neurotechnology in a Capitol briefing yesterday was an amazing experience.

I got to share why I find neurotech so important - because of my own experience - and got to share about all the new technologies that have helped me and countless others improve after traumatic brain injury.

I’ve got many more speaking engagements coming up in the next couple of months, and I cherish every opportunity to share my unique experience as a neurology Nurse Practitioner, turned patient, turned back into NP.

I now refer my patients to the same treatments that helped me, and they have hope again. The Senators and Representstives that heard my story yesterday got to put a face to an issue.

The BEACON Act was introduced this year to support neurotechnologies for veterans - I’d love for this to be expanded to civilians and veterans not served through the VA system.
The TBI Act authorizes funding for CDC research and surveillance of TBI - this was supposed to be reauthorized in 2025 but is still pending.

If you can’t get to DC to put faces to these Acts, write your congressmen - the topics they hear over and over will get their attention. As we were told yesterday, we’re not just competing with other medical policies, we’re competing with everything to get DC’s attention.

03/27/2026

It’s a wonderful day for a new podcast episode! Episode 179 is now available on your favorite platform!

This week I’m joined by Vance Mattzela, TBI survivor and founder of Brains 4 Bikers. He shares his TBI story, including his delayed diagnosis, and how B4B aims to improve policies for motorcyclists to be educated about the potential for head injuries. His organization also has a goal of helping to create a national database of resources so it’s easier for others to get help.

Tune in to hear the full interview now!

Find the episode on your favorite platform at https://bio.link/brainwellnessnp

03/26/2026

13th Annual Brain Mapping Day! We shared many examples of how neurotechnology can help people with a multitude of brain/neurological needs. We were a group of researchers, academia, and clinical practice. I was glad to have our own representative Dr. Kelly Morrison from Minnesota in attendance.