Life After Impact: The Concussion Recovery Podcast
Life After Impact: The Concussion Recovery Podcast. This podcast is the go-to podcast for actionable information to help people recover from concussions, brain injuries, and post-concussion syndrome. Dr. Ayla Wolf does a deep dive in discussing symptoms, testing methods, treatment options, and resources to help people troubleshoot where they feel stuck in their recovery. The podcast brings you interviews with top experts in the field of concussions and brain injuries, and introduces a functional neurological mindset to approaching complex cases.
For those feeling lost, hopeless, or abandoned let this podcast be your guide to living your best life after impact. Subscribe now and start your journey to recovery!
Episodes
75 episodes
When Brain Injury Changes Who You Are: Grief, Identity & Finding Purpose Again | E75
A brain injury can change far more than memory, balance, headaches, or cognition. It can change your career, your relationships, your independence—and sometimes your entire sense of who you are.In this episode of Life After Impact
The Sensitive Nervous System: Rethinking How We Treat Complex Patients with Dr. David Traster | E74
Have we become so focused on what a treatment can do that we've stopped asking who it should—and shouldn't—be used on?Why do some people seem to tolerate almost anything, while others react strongly to medications, supplements, fo...
DTI: A New Era in Concussion Diagnostics with Dr. Rebecca Romero | E73
Can diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) detect brain changes after a concussion when a standard MRI or CT scan is normal? In this episode of Life After Impact, I sit down with board-certified neurologist Dr. Rebecca Romero to ...
Post-Concussion Syndrome: A Neurology Provider’s 2-Year Road Back | E72
Why do some concussion symptoms last for months—or even years—and what can you do when your recovery seems to plateau? In this episode of Life After Impact, I sit down with neurology nurse practitioner and traumatic brain injury...
Concussion and Loss of Smell: Why This Sense Matters More Than You Think | E71
Loss of smell after concussion may be more important than most people realize. Changes in smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch can occur after concussion and traumatic brain injury (TBI), yet sensory loss—especially olfactory dysfunction...
A Functional Neurology Perspective on the Concept of Stored Trauma with Dr. Matthew Tolstoy (Part 2) | E70
Can attachment theory influence concussion recovery, chronic pain, dysautonomia, and the success of rehabilitation? In Part 2 of this conversation, Dr. Ayla Wolf sits down with psychologist, somatic therapist, and Chinese medicine practi...
The Art of Concussion Recovery: Following The Thread - A New Audiobook by Ayla Wolf
A concussion can turn normal life into a maze overnight and the hardest part is realizing nobody can hand you a perfect map out. I share why I wrote The Art Of Concussion Recovery: Following The Thread after first writin...
How Early Attachment Shapes Dysautonomia And Stress Responses with Dr. Matthew Tolstoy (Part 1) | E69
Can early childhood experiences influence concussion recovery, dysautonomia, anxiety, and the autonomic nervous system? In this episode of Life After Impact, Dr. Ayla Wolf sits down with integrative therapist Dr. Mat...
Calm Your Brain After Concussion with Dr. Sanjay Manchanda | E68
Brain fog. Poor concentration. Anxiety. Memory problems. Why do some people recover quickly after a concussion while others continue to struggle with persistent symptoms months—or even years—after a traumatic brain injury (TBI)?In...
Brain Fog, Poor Sleep & Fight-or-Flight After Concussion: Can BrainTap Help? | E67
How do you calm a brain that feels stuck in survival mode?For many people recovering from a concussion, the injury isn't just about headaches or dizziness. It's the feeling that your nervous system is constantly "on"—poor sleep, b...
Concussions and Hidden Anterior Neck Pathology with Dr. John McClaren | E65
Persistent dizziness, headaches, and dysautonomia after a concussion may be coming from your neck — not just your brain. Dr. Ayla Wolf and Dr. John McClaren explore how deep neck muscle dysfunction, breathing mechanics, and the vagus nerve driv...
Nasal Release Technique for Post-Concussion Headaches, Brain Fog, and Sleep | E64
Waking up exhausted after a concussion can feel like betrayal: you “slept,” but the brain fog, head pressure, and headaches show up anyway. I sit down with physical therapist and nasal release technique instructor Cynthia Stein to explore a dif...
Clear Mind After Concussion: Recovery, Neuroplasticity, and the Search for What Works with Jordan Jay Adams (Part 2) | E63
In Part 2 of my conversation with Jordan J. Adams, founder of the United Fight Alliance and longtime combat sports commentator, we move beyond the problem of concussion and into the search for solutions.After experiencing multiple concus...
Fighters Are Still Falling Through the Cracks After Concussion - With Jordan Jay Adams (Part 1) | E62
Combat sports make brain injury impossible to ignore, but the most dangerous part might be what happens after everyone goes home. We’re joined by Jordan J. Adams, founder and CEO of United Fight Alliance and an Emmy Award-winning combat sports ...
Functional Neurology Explains Why Concussion Symptoms Spiral with Dr. Matt Antonucci | E61
For decades, patients with persistent post-concussion symptoms have been told that their imaging is normal, their brain has healed, and there is nothing more that can be done. But what if we've been asking the wrong questions?In this epi...
The Hidden Imprints of Trauma in the Body and Nervous System | E60
What if healing isn’t just physical?In this deeply thought-provoking episode, Dr. Ayla Wolf sits down with somatic practitioner and Inner Space Technique regression therapist Bre Hibbs to explore the fascinating relationship between trau...
The Right Kind of Fuel for Daytime Energy and Masterful Sleep with Dr. Ashkan Jalili | E59
Brain fog, mood swings, dizziness, sleep problems, carb cravings, that awful midday crash. If you’ve lived through concussion recovery or post-concussion syndrome, you know how quickly symptoms can become a full-time job. We sit down with Dr. A...
Measuring Brain Blood Flow and CO2 in Real Time—Why This Changes Concussion Recovery with Dr. Nate Keiser (Part 2) | E58
Your autonomic nervous system isn’t “just stressed,” and dysautonomia isn’t a single, one-size-fits-all box. We zoom out from symptom labels and zoom in on mechanisms: how the brain senses the body, builds an internal map, and then uses that ma...
Measuring Brain Blood Flow and CO2 in Real Time—Why This Changes Concussion Recovery with Dr. Nate Keiser (Part 1) | E57
What if the missing piece in concussion recovery isn’t just the brain—but blood flow to the brain?In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Nate Keiser to explore how real-time measurement of brain blood flow is changing the way we understand...
A Path to the First FDA Drug for Concussion? How Ghrelin Could Change Brain Injury Recovery with Dr. Vishal Bansal | E56
In this episode of Life After Impact: The Concussion Recovery Podcast, I sit down with trauma surgeon and researcher Dr. Vishal Bansal to explore what may become the first-ever FDA-approved pharmaceutical treatment for concussion
Hearing Loss, Tinnitus, & Hyperacusis: Treat Your Hearing, Protect Your Brain with Dr. Keith Darrow | E55
A “mild” hearing loss sounds harmless until you hear the data: it can raise the risk of cognitive decline and dementia by 200%. I sit down with Dr. Keith Darrow PhD, CCC-A, neuroscientist and clinical audiologist, to connect the dots between he...
Why Pain Doesn’t Always Match the Injury | Chronic Pain & Concussion Explained | E54
Pain isn’t a simple “damage equals symptoms” equation. Sometimes your nervous system turns the volume down so far you barely notice serious wear and tear, and other times it turns the volume up until every small sensation feels like an alarm. T...
When Concussion Symptoms Don’t End After Two Weeks | E53
A concussion can change your life in a second, but what happens when the people around you treat it like an excuse? Sarah Wuebbolt joins us to share what it’s really like navigating multiple concussions as a teenager while trying to keep up wit...
From TBI to The River Why to Empathic AI: Cameron Scott's Epic Journey | E52
A childhood head-on collision. A life shaped by traumatic brain injury. A moment of waking up after a suicide attempt and deciding, with total clarity, to choose life. Cameron Scott joins me for a raw, grounded conversation about what concussio...
The Hidden Habits That Can Speed Up — or Sabotage — Brain Recovery with Alex Lombardi | E51
Your brain doesn’t heal on your appointment schedule. It heals in the messy middle of real life, the mornings where you can’t think straight, the afternoons where your energy falls off a cliff, and the nights when you wonder if you’ll ever feel...
