Happie Heads

Brittney Main is incredible. She is currently a junior at Oregon State University studying Mathematics and Education. No that is not a typo. She is majoring in both. Awe-inspiring, I know. She wants to use this to teach high school math! Also, not a typo. She is certainly a special person.

Towards the end of high school, Brittney was in a car accident in which she fell asleep at the wheel, crashing her car. Luckily, she was the only passenger. She was injured so badly that she was immediately life-flighted to Portland, OR for treatment. In this episode we discuss her long road to recovery, and the weapons she used to combat all of the obstacles being thrown at her post-accident. I loved recording this one, and I know you will enjoy listening to it!

Her story start at 8:12

Many people don't know this, but Noah Kochevar once crossed the entire continental United States on a wild bull, look it up. But really, Noah is one of the most soulful people I know. He tends to come off as highly logical, but as I got to know him, I realized how much he values the present moment. This is a rare find in people, so I enjoy any time I get to pick his brain. This episode digs into his struggle with his concussive symptoms in the midst of college and moving to a new town. We talk specifically about the role of meditation in his recovery and how positive self talk has jolted him into contentment and greater resilience.

His story starts at 7:09

Carolyn is someone who makes me feel like an underachiever. I personally do not know a person will more accomplishments and diplomas. She has a B.S. in environmental engineering, a Masters in Economics, an MBA, and a PhD in environmental engineering. On top of all this, Carolyn is a licensed massage therapist and treats clients in her spare time. Even with all these accomplishments, she continued to feel trapped and confined in her life. This is the story of her search for freedom. She crashed her VW bug into an oak tree during her undergrad.

Meet Dasi! She is quite honestly one of the toughest girls I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. Sure, surviving a brain injury is a challenge in and of itself, requiring quite a bit of resilience and fortitude, but Dasi grew up playing contact ice hockey. Like most people not from North Dakota, I respect ice hockey, but have no desire to get smashed into solid ice by another human. Of course, not to be outdone, once in college, Dasi decided to take up rugby. It wasn’t until the March 2015 during her sophomore year that she began to experience proprioceptive issues, nocturnal panic attacks, and major eye issues. Unlike other guests, Dasi cannot point to a single event that spurred on her symptoms, making her fight even more challenging. She often wasn’t sure if her doctors, friends, and family even believe something was wrong with her. She even received discrimination because of her “excuses.”

Her story starts at 9:20

Leia is a cycler extraordinaire! She currently is coaching cycling and working in a cycling shop in Corvallis, OR. She has competed nationally and in Division I Collegiate Cycling placing as high as 3rd in the country in her best events. In April 2011, Leia was in a cycling accident during race, resulting in a diffuse axonal injury. She scored 3-8 on the Glasgow coma scale for 2 weeks (she was in a coma). Here she tells her story, struggles, wisdom gained, and so much more. She is truly a treasure-trove of wisdom.

Rachel was born and raised in the land of Eugene, OR. She is an athlete of sorts and is the captain of the ultimate Frisbee team at Oregon State University. In May of 2015, she suffered a concussion during a ultimate Frisbee event, causing her to lose her orientation for a bit. After working hard to get back on the field she suffered another concussion at a late ultimate event, rendering her inactive for the rest of the season. Since then, she has been struggling, but growing in her task to keep up with school, family, and the social life. She will be graduating in the spring of 2016 with a degree in ecological engineering.

Carolyn hails from the cold yet beautiful land of Buffalo, NY. She studied creative writing in her undergrad and spent several years teaching creative writing to elementary school students in the Buffalo area. She now has taken on a new challenge of studying Hydrology as a graduate student at Oregon State University. Only one trimester into her studies she suffered an subdural hematoma during a cycling accident. She was treated at Peace Health Sacred Heart Hospital and Good Samaritan Hospital in Eugene and Corvallis, OR respectively.

Her story starts at 5:50

Juliette is a bright soul from many areas of the U.S. (but mostly LA) Originally attending undergrad in Southern California, she worked post-bacc in the Los Alamos, NM for several years. About 9 years ago she experienced some serious mental malfunction, which turned out to be caused by a healthy case of hydrocephaly. She was treated with a shunt from a brain ventricle (sinus within the brain) to her abdomen. The first implant failed and was replaced by a second shunt, which she still has today! She is in graduate school studying Microbiology at Oregon State University.

Ben is from the great land of Eugene, OR. He suffered a spontaneous stroke from an AV malformation a few years back one morning before going out to shoot photography. His father quickly realized the severity of his condition upon seeing his son vomit and seize within a few minutes of waking. Ben was treated at Peace Health Sacred Heart Hospital in Riverbend, OR after being comatose for a month. He is now kicking butt studying German at Oregon State University.

His story starts at 5:30