Stefanie Leyden was born and raised in Lincoln, NE. She obtained her BSN from Union College in 2002 and worked at Bryan Hospital in the ER and ICU for over 11 years. During that time, she completed a Master's in Forensics at Wesleyan University in 2007. She became certified as a sexual assault nurse examiner and worked closely with law enforcement and advocacy agencies for victims of assault. She continues some medicolegal work with attorneys as a consultant on malpractice cases today. After

leaving the hospital she spent 6 years doing hospice care in both Lincoln and Omaha. In 2019, she completed a Master's of Nursing from Purdue University Global, where she has taught since 2016. Since then, she has been working as a board-certified family nurse practitioner in pain management, psychiatric mental health, urgent care, and aesthetics with a special focus on PRP rejuvenation, bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, autoimmune disorders, and weight loss. In February of 2022, she completed her Doctorate of Nursing Practice. Stefanie is married with 2 children and a beloved dog. Stefanie and Daniel have recently become foster parents, and when she isn’t working, she

enjoys spending time with her family.