Did You Just “DYS” Me?!
Kelly Harrigan Do you want the bad news or the good news? Okay, here goes with the knockout punch: dysautonomia affects more than 70 million people worldwide and, at this time, there is no cure. The good news?...
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7 Unique Symptoms of Dysautonomia
by Kellie Pokrifka Throughout this issue, we have discovered the basis for dysautonomia. Now let’s talk about the myriad of ways in which dysautonomia can present itself after brain injury. Note that there are numerous forms of dysautonomia...
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Dysautonomia: Historical Perspectives from Chinese Medicine
Dr. Amy Ayla Wolf, DAOM Chinese medicine (CM) has had a reference frame for understanding dysautonomia for thousands of years. What insights does CM provide—and can acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine offer any solutions for dysautonomia? As a...
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Are Faulty Veins to Blame for Dysautonomia After a Concussion
by Jonathan Chung, D.C. Dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system has become a more widely recognized problem in concussion research in the past 5 years. However, translating this knowledge into effective treatment has been lacking because many clinicians...
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What You Need to Know About Service Dogs
by Toni Popkin With 23 states having laws against the use of fake service dogs, it’s important to understand what a service dog is. The American Disability Act (ADA) clearly defines a service dog as follows: “A service dog is...
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January Tarot Reading: Olive Branch
by Sam Black Olive Branch - It is time to find a way to work together. You each have strengths and vulnerabilities that need tended, nurtured and loved. Be flexible without breaking, and understand your common bond. If the...
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Happy New Year
by Amy Zellmer, Editor-in-chief Happy New Year, everyone!! I am excited to kick off the New Year with an issue all about dysautonomia. This is such a misunderstood and often misdiagnosed symptom of brain injury. If you have...
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The Anxious Brain
by Dr. Jeremy Schmoe, DC, DACNB I’ll make this simple: when you injure your brain, you will affect the integration between your brain-gut and gut-brain axis. This can lead to gastrointestinal dysfunction, and it is very common to...
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Setbacks After Brain Injury
by Amy Zellmer | Editor-in-chief Setbacks. They’re a fact of life, right? After a brain injury, setbacks can be devastating. They can feel like the end of the world, wrapping you in a feeling of isolation and despair....
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Recovery and Persistence
by Amy Zellmer | Editor-in-chief I remember at the one-year mark of my brain injury, the neurologist told me that this was likely the best I was going to get as it had been a year. She explained...
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Yoga: Seated Cobra Pose
By Amy Zellmer, Editor-in-chief Yoga is a powerful tool for neuroplasticity. Contrary to some beliefs, everyone can do yoga — you don’t need to be super flexible, be able to balance, or even be able to stand up. The beauty of yoga is every pose can be modified to accommodate anyone. An important aspect of […]
Resilience After a Brain Injury
By Dr. Shane Steadman, DC, DACNB, DCBCN, CNS Recovery after a brain injury can be a long journey. Working hard and hoping to get back to baseline often can be frustrating, and for some, unattainable. With the many doctor visits, exercises, rehab appointments, medications, and supplements, goals can become lost. However, amid recovering from a […]
The Resiliency of the Human Brain and Body
By James A. Heuer, PA As a personal injury attorney for over 45 years, I have witnessed many of my clients successfully recover from a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Whether the TBI occurs from a car crash, a slip and fall, or blow to the head, the resiliency of the human body and brain is […]
Resiliency: Is It Just Personal or Part of Brain Chemistry?
By Deborah Zelinsky, O.D. The term resiliency encompasses “the range of personal protective factors, environmental supports, and resources, as well as self-regulatory processes, engaged in response to adversity,” according to investigators writing about recovery from traumatic brain injury (TBI) for the publication Disability and Rehabilitation. Indeed, author Mike Norton said it best when he wrote, […]
Stress Away Essential Oil
By Amy Zellmer, Editor-in-chief A complementary tool that can help you achieve a healthy lifestyle, essential oils are easy to use and smell great, with a variety of uses. All oils are not created equal. I personally only trust the Young Living brand because I know they maintain complete control over their product from seed […]
Resiliency and the Courtroom
By Jeff Heller Resiliency is one of the greatest attributes anyone can have. From an early age, parents teach their children, “if you get knocked down, you get back up.” Coaches teach their players, “when the going gets tough, the tough get going.” And one of the cornerstones of the underdog mentality is to “never […]
The Quality of Resilience
by Shauna Hahn Sometime in 2019, in the weekly “Healing and Recovery” therapy group I lead, we discussed the topic of the quality of “resilience.” When it came time for a patient to contribute, he said, “I don’t want to be resilient. I get tired of being resilient all the f**king time.” And I heard […]
Peanut Butter Protein Fluff
By Amy Zellmer, Editor-in-chief What You Need: 1 cup (250g) full-fat Greek yogurt 2 tbsp. peanut butter or almond butter 2 tsp. stevia Favorite garnish (banana, granola, blueberries) Add the yogurt, nut butter and stevia into a small mixing bowl and whisk together using a hand mixer, until fluffy. Transfer the mix into a bowl […]
Arizona Man Overcomes Three Traumatic Brain Injuries and Gives Back By Building Adaptive Recreation & Socialization Program for Survivors
By Ed Roth Randy Elston is finally living his best life, which may be an odd thing to say about a Marine Corps veteran with three traumatic brain injuries (TBIs). Recently named as the Brain Injury Alliance of Arizona’s new Adaptive Recreation & Activities Coordinator, Randy’s tours of duty in Iraq left him with a […]