Today on the show, Dr. Gertrude has a conversation with one of her heroines, Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor. Dr. Taylor is a Harvard trained and published neuroanatomist. As a world renowned author, teacher and public speaker she loves educating all age groups, academic levels, and corporations about the beauty of our human brain - not only its amazing ability to recover from trauma but as the vehicle through which we experience ourselves as the life-force power of the universe. Maybe you are one of the (as of today) 28 million views of her 2008 TED talk, a Stroke of Insight (the first to ever go viral on the Internet). She states that this 18-minute presentation where she shared her story of surviving a massive cerebral hemorrhage in the left hemisphere of her brain and her 8-year journey of recovery, changed her world and the lives so so many others. Within 3 months of delivering that talk she was chosen one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world for 2008. She became the premier guest on Oprah’s Soul Series webcast. Her first book, My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey, spent 63 weeks on the NYT best seller list and remains the #1 on amazon on the subject of strokes 12 years later. Just over a year ago in May, 2021, her second book Whole Brain Living: The Anatomy of Choice and the Four Characters That Drive Our Life, dives into how we can short-circuit emotional reactivity and find peace, which she says, “Is only a thought away.” 

In this episode, Dr. Jill shares how, although she experienced pure bliss while half her brain was down, she still longed to return to her more normal state in which she’s subject to the full range of human emotions. It’s only in this state, which she calls, “Whole Brain Living” (WBL), that she feels truly alive. Dr. Gertrude talks about her personal experience practicing WBL and how powerful it is to “huddle” with all parts of her brain – particularly in stressful situations. It is also clear how WBL supports us with Rewriting our Mother Codes to make discerned choices in our mothering journey.

Today on Mot(HER):

• The definition and value of whole brain living
• The emotional systems of the human brain
• Jill’s journey of losing and gaining back her entire left hemisphere due to a stroke
• Understanding that pain is a natural human emotion
• Naming and integrating the four characters of the brain.
• The power of our pain as it relates to natural childbirth

Connect with Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor:

• Website: dr.jilltaylor.com
• Instagram: @drjillboltetaylor
• Facebook: Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor
• Youtube: Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor
• Dr. Jill’s Ted Talk: My Stroke of Insight

Join Dr. Gertrude’s community online:

• Visit her website to learn more about Rewrite The Mother Code®: drgertrudelyons.com/
• Follow Dr. Gertrude on Instagram: @drgertrudelyons
• Sign up for Dr. Gertrude’s Newsletter

Download Dr. Gertrude’s FREE ebooks and explore your own Mothering Journey:

• To the woman who is unsure if she wants to have children
• To the woman who never wants to have children
• To the woman who is certain she wants children in the future
• To the woman who has a child

This show is produced by Soulfire Productions

Mentioned in this episode:

Learn more about the 2024 Spring Equinox Self-Mothering Retreat at https://www.drgertrudelyons.com/spring-equinox-24