SAVE A BRAIN X ROXY PARTNERSHIP
Hey Friends!
The team over here at Save A Brain has been working hard to keep a secret that we’re overjoyed to finally share with you! We have officially gained our first sponsorship partner - ROXY!! The road has been a long and windy one with obstacles and Roxy has been nothing but supportive and encouraging on the journey thus far.
Hey Friends!
The team over here at Save A Brain has been working hard to keep a secret that we’re overjoyed to finally share with you! We have officially gained our first sponsorship partner - ROXY!! The road has been a long and windy one with obstacles and Roxy has been nothing but supportive and encouraging on the journey thus far.
We’re beyond excited to see what we can accomplish together and still can’t believe it’s real!
Roxy is an all women’s’ action sport brand that has been encouraging and supporting other women to #MakeWaveMoveMountains since 1990! Not only are they an all women’s brand paving the way for the future but they have large sustainability efforts! They ensure that at least one entire line per season is eco friendly, using recycled materials to do their part in protecting Mother Earth! Check out the eco-friendly surf collection, HERE!
This past summer they created “Roxy Surf Diaries” an Instagram TV series that is a beginners guide to surfing. This series covers everything from which board to learn on to how to ride bigger waves! Check out episode 1!
One of their biggest surf athletes, Stephanie Gilmore holds 7 world surfing champion titles! She just finished within the top 5 in the most recent World Surfing Champions! Congrats Stephanie!
Check out her journey to the WLS finals HERE.
Yoga, Meditation and Your Brain
The first and most important thing to know if you want to start practicing yoga and meditation is that there are no prerequisites. You don't need to be flexible, have special clothing, or even have a ton of space. All you need is a willingness to learn, something comfortable to move in, and just enough space for your yoga mat.
The first and most important thing to know if you want to start practicing yoga and meditation is that there are no prerequisites. You don't need to be flexible, have special clothing, or even have a ton of space. All you need is a willingness to learn, something comfortable to move in, and just enough space for your yoga mat.
Something yoga and meditation practitioners have known is that they both help your brain and mental state immensely. It's been in more recent years this has actually been measured and proven by science. With the use of fMRI and EEG, you can see changes in the grey matter volume in your brain as well as changes in other structures. They also can see less activation in the parts of your brain that control your “monkey mind” or the part of your brain that likes to wander.
It's funny to think that less activation in your brain could be a good thing, but really when your mind is still you can really use your brain more efficiently! Think of having too many tabs or apps open on your computer, or trying to balance on one foot with your arm tied behind your back and make dinner at the same time. You can get the picture, your brain when bogged down with too much won't be as optimized.
A study conducted at Harvard University found mindfulness meditation actually changed key structures of the brain. The changes consist of increase in cortical thickness within the hippocampus, decrease in brain cell volume in the amygdala, and increase in grey matter. These areas control emotional regulation, fear and anxiety responses, as well as stress. Participants in the eight week study reported to feel all around improved well-being and mood.
At UCLA they did a study on the aging brain, finding that a person who has practiced meditating for around 20 years had more grey matter throughout their brain. Not to say they didn't experience some loss on volume, it was significantly less than a person who didn't meditate at all.
The list can go on with the positive findings from some of the country's leading scientists. It doesn't hurt to give it a try! This doesn't mean you have to jump right into an hour every day. Find something sustainable, something that works with your life. Even if that is just one minute, timed on your phone, and just focusing on your breath. Just letting your eyes close... noticing your breath. Begin to feel your chest rise and fall with every inhale and exhale. Can we find time throughout our busy days to live in the present moment?
Study from UCLA | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01551/full
Study from Harvard University | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3004979/
Meet The Team: Chelsie Moore
Hi! My name is Chelsie Moore. My journey in integrative health care and functional forms of wellness began six years ago with my own personal struggle with persistent post-concussion syndrome and chronic neuroinflammation following a series of concussions. I’m an avid mountain biker, snowboarder, and lover of the outdoors based out of Lake Tahoe, and the indescribable experience I went through left me desperately wanted to get back to doing the things that I loved.
Hi! My name is Chelsie Moore. My journey in integrative health care and functional forms of wellness began six years ago with my own personal struggle with persistent post-concussion syndrome and chronic neuroinflammation following a series of concussions. I’m an avid mountain biker, snowboarder, and lover of the outdoors based out of Lake Tahoe, and the indescribable experience I went through left me desperately wanted to get back to doing the things that I loved.
After years of not being able to find any solutions and feeling like my entire life had been sidelined, I began to search elsewhere for relief from my daily battle with anxiety, depression, fatigue, and insomnia. In my quest for these answers, I first stumbled across a yoga therapy training program in Salt Lake City, in which I spent two years and 1200 hours studying the various limbs of yoga and learning how Ayurveda, meditation, and asana can provide a healing platform for all sorts of chronic ailments. It was after this that I found Functional Medicine.
I obtained my Master of Science degree in Clinical Nutrition and Integrative Health with an emphasis in Sports Nutrition, Nutritional Psychology, and Chronic Disease. I learned all of the biochemical nuances of health and wellness, and the environmental inputs that can alter our overall sense of wellness. Over the past few years I have been able to bear witness to just how powerful this approach can be for patients with all sorts of chronic disease diagnoses, specifically those with a history of trauma and head injuries.
After finishing graduate school and becoming a Functional Nutritionist, I founded my own practice called Moore Integrative Health where I’ve had the absolute pleasure of serving people of all age categories and health concerns. I completed advanced training in Amino Acid Therapy through the Academy for Addiction and Mental Health Nutrition lead by Christina Veselak and Dr. Hyla Cass. This knowledge has served as a powerful tool to support patients in restoring balanced brain chemistry.
Lastly, I completed advanced training in Neuroinflammation with Dr. Kharrazian and The Kharrazian Institute. I have been fortunate enough to study among some of the world’s greatest experts in this field and am excited to share my clinical experience and knowledge to help others find their own haven of wellness. I’m a dreamer, I’m an optimist, and I am never complacent in my desire to serve the community, specifically the action sports community. I believe that we all have to do our part in making this world a better place, and this initiative of mine is my way of doing so.
How It All Started
My name is Kelsey Boyer and I am the founder of Save A Brain. Save A Brain is a non-profit organization. Our mission is to spread awareness of the long term mental and physical effects caused by Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) and concussions. We aim to connect individuals to treatment centers and provide financial support so they have the opportunity to heal and treat their brains to continue living a fulfilled life. I created Save A Brain because I sustained a traumatic brain injury in 2016 and had to undergo immediate brain surgery, my life has never been the same.
My name is Kelsey Boyer and I am the founder of Save A Brain. Save A Brain is a non-profit organization. Our mission is to spread awareness of the long term mental and physical effects caused by Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) and concussions. We aim to connect individuals to treatment centers and provide financial support so they have the opportunity to heal and treat their brains to continue living a fulfilled life. I created Save A Brain because I sustained a traumatic brain injury in 2016 and had to undergo immediate brain surgery, my life has never been the same.
I was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma which shifted my brain 11 mm. My brain was bleeding for two weeks after I had sustained a handful of concussions within a two month period. The doctors said it was a miracle I was alive. I am so thankful for my friend Micah for forcing me into the emergency room, because if she didn’t… I would not be here today. What the doctors didn’t say is what has impacted my life the most. Every brain injury is different so they never told me how I would have emotional side effects, slower cognitive function, issues sleeping and dysfunctional eye function. I’ve come to learn that no one is warned about these issues that flip your life upside down and seem impossible to enjoy life.
I’ve come a long way on my own because I would not accept that this was my new normal, something had to be done. After 3 years of having difficulties I found Cognitive FX. Cognitive FX is a treatment center located in Utah that takes a functional MRI of your brain and studies blood flow and oxygen movement to locate where your brain is damaged. Their studies and findings have proven that the brain can heal, rewire and refire the dead neurons that have been damaged during the accident. Finally, a sense of hope but wait… I can’t afford the treatment. Unfortunately health insurance covers little to none of these new and upcoming treatments. Once again, I was emotionally exhausted on how I was supposed to come up with the money. Then I found High Fives Foundation. The High Fives Foundation is a non-profit who supports the dreams of outdoor action sports athletes by raising injury awareness while providing resources and inspiration to those who suffer life-altering injuries. I applied for a grant with no not too much hope of receiving it, and I found out I was approved! The treatment at Cognitive FX was a week long and very challenging, I have never been pushed so hard mentally. After the last scan, my brain was fully back to a functioning brain prior to my head injury. All of my issues subsided and I felt like myself again; I cried as soon as I left the treatment center. How can this be? Three years of fighting a battle and the weight on my chest was gone. My life will never be the same because I am always reminded that I must be kinder to myself and prevent future damage to my brain.
My injury imprinted me in ways that I never thought it would and has taught me more about myself than imagined. Myself and millions of people are faced with a reality that this could be our new normal and it sets us up on a downward spiral. It is so frustrating that many of these treatments aren’t covered by health insurance because they are so new and considered to be outside of the scope of conventional medicine. Imagine if more people living with long term effects from one accident could be helped and their voices could be heard. This invisible injury takes over joyful lives and leaves individuals, caregivers and families in a position where loneliness speaks louder than words. I believe that there is power in numbers. One of Save A Brain’s values is knowing that we can help physically save a brain from depression, pain and suffering. Together we can form a community, spread awareness and save a brain. At the end of the day… we only get one brain!