Following the third anniversary of the 2011 Tuscon rally massacre, former congresswoman Gabby Giffords completed a skydive Wednesday to celebrate living life and surviving a gun-shot to the head. The severe brain injury left the right side of her body paralyzed and impacted her ability to speak. Giffords has endured thousands of hours of intensive physical […]

Vilayanur Subramanian Ramachandran is currently a Professor in the Department of Psychology and the Neurosciences Graduate Program at the University of California, San Diego. He is also the director of the Center for Brain and Cognition which is affiliated with the Department of Psychology at UC San Diego. Ramachandran has authored several books that have garnered widespread public […]

My mother and I had the chance to see this amazing film not too long ago and I cannot wait to see it again! From the film’s website: “This eye-popping film seamlessly combines twenty years of stunning action footage with new specially-shot verité footage and interviews as it follows U.S. champion snowboarder Kevin Pearce and […]

A number of studies have shown that exercise can rewire the brain for the better. Now it appears that inactivity, too, can remodel the brain according to a recent study conducted by Scientists at Wayne State University School of Medicine. Using rats, scientists tested the effects of activity on the brain by separating half of them in […]

Danielle is a seriously cool 8-year-old. Her mother decided to make this video as a means to communicate the realities of renal failure to Danielle’s 3rd grade class. She not only wanted her daughter’s classmates to see what goes on during dialysis, but also to combat bullying. “She has been getting bullied, yes, bullied because […]

One of the most valuable skills I have had to learn since my brain injury is learning HOW it is that I personally learn.

2013 Was an Amazing Year! In March, I played my first show after my brain injury, on stage at South by Southwest, the largest music festival in the world! [vimeo id=”82618307″ width=”300″ height=”175″] Later that month, I moved from my mother’s house to my own apartment within a community of mostly brain injury survivors. While […]

Last year, on Thanksgiving, I attempted to write about all of the things that I was grateful for (Giving Thanks), but I realized that I could only address some of the hundreds of thousands of them. That list continues to expand. I expressed my immense gratitude for so many of the incredibly benevolent and helpful […]

Last night, I spoke along side two other brain injury survivors that I am very proud to call friends. Although Matt had to leave early, there was a larger than usual turn out and Glenn and I had a great time. I even got Glenn, and a lot of the audience, to sing “Rocky Raccoon” […]

A few weeks ago, I was contacted by a strong woman who’s son is currently comatose. I want to share a letter that my mom recently sent to her. This isn’t the first letter that my mother and I have fielded from a parent whose child is comatose and I know that it will not […]

I had the opportunity to be interviewed by my old vision therapist for his blog: VT Works! Take a look! This post appears as part of a series called Sit Down – candid conversations with real people detailing their journeys and experiences with Vision Therapy. A Sit Down – with Cavin Balaster   For the […]

Lights, Coma, Action! Several months ago, I was grabbing a bite to eat at the original Whole Foods here in Austin when I sparked up a conversation with a man sitting next to me. His name was Jim, and he had a very gracious demeanor and was a pleasure to speak with. Several months ago, I was grabbing a bite to eat at the original Whole Foods here in Austin, when I sparked up a conversation […]