For brain injury survivors, having some sort of self-awareness when it comes to symptoms is key to moving forward in recovery. When we are able to learn our brain & body's "tells" or when a symptom flare-up is beginning to happen, we are better able to assess if we need to rest, or if we can push through. It also helps us to know what types of treatment to seek out - especially because it's invisible, so others can't see your symptoms on the outside. However, self-awareness after brain injury doesn't always come easy due to feeling disconnected from yourself, the constant fatigue, or even just headache pain. Today, Cristabelle walks us through how to grow in self-awareness so that we can become better advocates for our own recovery. Caregivers will also learn how to support their survivor in growing in this area.

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

Symptom flare-ups and hard days will happen when recovering from a brain injury / concussion - and it can be exhausting and disheartening. But there are actually things we can do to help, if we learn the right things to check and respond to our brain & body’s signals. Our nervous system is more adaptable than we may think! Dr. Jeremy Schmoe is here to teach us exactly how to help ourselves feel better on those hard days. 

Connect with Dr. Schmoe: theFNC.com 

0:00 Intro w/Cristabelle

10:00 Introducing Dr. Schmoe

17:00 Your Nervous System can Adapt

18:50 Topic Intro: Keeping Recovery Going

19:50 Check In with Yourself

20:25 Checking Autonomics

22:45 Checking Gut Inflammation

25:10 If Cardio Flares Up Symptoms…

26:00 How to Know if Cardio Will Help

29:45 Checking Vestibular

31:15 Adaptive Exercise

33:00 Checking Eye Movements

34:30 Finding the “Perfect Recipe” For Yourself

36:50 Checking Cerebellum

38:25 Checking Neck

40:40 Checking Dual Tasking

42:15 Learning to Recognize Flare-Ups

45:00 Finding a Good Provider

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

Concussion symptoms and mental health can be very interconnected, especially when you can't see the symptoms on the outside. Today, Cristabelle interviews Bella Paige (founder of Post Concussion Inc) on her journey with 10+ concussions and trying to hide her symptoms at first and pretending like nothing was wrong. This led to depression, which Bella openly shares with us today in a candid and inspiring conversation.

Bella Paige is a brain injury advocate. After sustaining over ten concussions and experiencing post-concussion syndrome for years, she hit a low spot and attempted to take her own life. After going to therapy, Bella knew she needed to do something for all those suffering from this invisible injury. She started Post Concussion Inc because she wanted to aid not only individuals who have suffered from concussions but also their families and friends.

Connect with Bella: @postconcussioninc or postconcussioninc.com

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

"I realized that I can recover without being who I was, and I can find myself without being who I was, and I don't need to fully recover  - and walk and see and do all of these things that might not be possible for me - to be happy. Like I can still be happy without being the person I was with the abilities I had." -Madi Grose

After a brain injury, it is really common to struggle with identity when your abilities and entire life changes. Today, we are talking about finding yourself again after your injury, even through the symptoms and changes. Cristabelle interviews inspiring TBI survivor Madi Grose, who shares her story and encouragement on how to cope with living with a significant traumatic brain injury. We also discuss how to find joy and happiness, even while walking through the very real feelings of grief and sadness. This is an uplifting episode as you'll hear Madi's joy radiate through the entire conversation!

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

Have you ever been so overwhelmed you couldn't finish a task? What about feeling overstimulated in a grocery store, to the point of panicking? Many brain injury survivors experience overstimulation and brain fog. This is a great episode to learn some tools on how to process this, whether you are a survivor yourself or a caregiver learning how to identify this for your loved one.

Overstimulation and brain fog can be frustrating both for the survivor and for the people around them. Taryn Barlow is here to teach us some tools on how to evaluate our environment, lifestyle, and symptoms to figure out the source of overstimulation. We talk about practicing Sensory Awareness, how to have a "battle plan" of strategies to help, and the importance of being patient with yourself.

Taryn Barlow is a Cognitive Health Coach (TM) which is a unique combination of her background in Speech-language Pathologist, Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, and a Certified Brain Injury Specialist. Taryn is the owner of a virtual private practice (The Well Brain), that combines her knowledge of cognition and brain healthy lifestyle balance to support adults who have sustained brain injury. Connect: IG- @taryn_thewellbrain Email- [email protected]

0:00 Intro

2:30 Cristabelle

9:00 Introducing Taryn

15:15 Lifestyle Beyond Therapies

20:00 Overstimulation - Sensory Awareness

29:00 Brain Fog

31:00 Making Your Battle Plan/Strategy

36:00 Finding the “Something” Source of Overstimulation

42:30 Cognitive Tasks

44:50 Letting Go of Perfection

48:30 Overdoing It Leads to Fatigue

51:00 Words of Hope

Note: We will be taking a short break, expect new episodes to return in a couple weeks!

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

It can be hard to hold onto hope when it feels like there are just setbacks around every corner. Listen as Cristabelle shares her heart on this and how to continue moving forward, even when things are really hard. You are not alone.

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

A major part of living with brain injury can become the doctors appointments, therapies, and healthcare system - but it doesn't have to be overwhelming. Dr. Kelsy Rayl is here to walk us through some steps to be more empowered as a patient, including practical tools on what to do to show up at appointments informed and get the most out of them. We also discuss managing symptoms in appointments, identifying personal recovery goals, and how to find the right medical team. It is important to know which doctors will help you to do which things, so that you can get your needs and symptoms addressed. 

This is an encouraging and very important conversation for anyone navigating the healthcare system post-brain injury. Whether you are a survivor, caregiver, or family member listening - you'll leave more empowered and informed to know that you can take an active role in this healthcare journey!

0:00 Intro

5:30 Introducing Dr. Kelsy

8:30 Identity Post-Brain Injury

9:40 Lifestyle Change of Dr. Appts

13:30 Patient Empowerment

16:30 Identifying Strengths/Limits

17:45 Provider Perspective

19:00 Understanding Roles of Different Providers

30:15 Managing Symptoms w/ Appts.

36:00 Practical Tips for Documentation

42:15 Identifying & Prioritizing Recovery Goals

47:40 Seeking Second Opinions

48:45 Self-Advocacy

50:00 Words of Hope

Connect with Dr. Kelsy: @drkelsyrayl_dpt

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

"I was given less than 10% chance of surviving. Doctors were saying that they couldn't imagine me walking, that I wouldn't be able to talk, that I couldn't see... and the one big thing about my story is that I proved them all wrong. Even if the odds are stacked against you, and hope seems almost lost, always believe in the little percent that things are going to be okay. Because I took that small percent that they said that I was going to make it - I took it and ran. And I'm still here today." -Dillon Berenty

Listen to an inspiring survivor story as Dillon Berenty shares his journey of hope through brain trauma. After a concussion, Dillon was taken to the hospital, and through the scans a brain tumor was discovered. Six brain surgeries later, and a 10% chance of survival, Dillon is beating the odds every day. He shares some of the symptoms, struggles, ways he has learned to adapt, and how he has learned to keep perspective through it all. This is an uplifting story that is sure to encourage you, wherever you are at on your journey.

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

Hormones can become disrupted after a brain injury, and today Melissa Biscardi is here to share current research and dive deeper into what this looks like for females, including the menstrual cycle, menopause, birth control, and more. We also discuss practical steps you can take if you think you or your loved one's hormones may have been affected.

0:00 Intro

4:55 Melissa & Her Research

8:10 When Menstrual Cycle is “Off”

10:25 Women and Concussions

12:25 Overlap with TBI Symptoms

14:25 Post-Partum Symptoms

15:55 Current Research of Brain Injury & Hormones

19:05 What you can do

20:10 anti-Müllerian hormone - Pre-Menopause & Menopause

23:45 Birth Control

26:20 Hormone Disruption

27:10 Cycle Connection with Risk of Injury

29:55 What you can do

Connect with Melissa: rehablab.ca @the.rehab.lab

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.

Living with a brain injury, some days hope is the only thing that gets you through. This week, Cristabelle is joined by her mother, Cyndie Braden, to speak about lessons they have learned over the 14 years of brain injuries. They speak vulnerably about some of the difficult aspects of the journey, while also sharing the growth in the family, caregiver, and survivor perspectives. You will also hear clips of Cristabelle from 10 years ago in 2012 speaking about her injury, at around the 5 year mark, as we reflect on 10 years of Hope After Head Injury.  

Empowered hope is knowing that there may still be things that will be hard, but there is always something you can do to move forward on your journey. You are not alone! Share how Hope After Head Injury has helped you - in a written or voice message format! https://www.hopeafterheadinjury.com/10years 

Connect with Cyndie: @cyndiebraden | email: [email protected] 

CONNECT

Find more resources, podcast episodes, & our monthly zoom support group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hopesurvives.org⁠⁠⁠⁠ | @hopesurvives

Hosted by Cristabelle Braden: @cristabellebraden | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠cristabellebraden.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Listen to the intro song "Hope Survives" by Cristabelle Braden on all music streaming platforms!

Thank you to Council on Brain Injury for supporting this podcast by providing a microphone as part of their grant program to the brain injury community. Check out the amazing work done by CoBI at: ⁠councilonbraininjury.com⁠

This podcast is for education and informational purposes only, and not intended for medical advice. If you need specific medical advice, please consult your physician.