Since this year has been nothing but a dumpster fire for all of us humans, I decided to wrap it up with one of my FAVORITE people: podcaster, mental health advocate, and brain injury survivor Joe Borges.

Back in 2018 this random dude slid into my DM's and told me he appreciated my vulnerability talking about my brain injury...and that he liked my headphones. We've basically been inseparable ever since. Today we chat about what our lives looked like pre-2020 and how we can use this shitstorm of a year to propel us into amazing things to come.

You can learn more about Joe here:
http://joesorocks.com/
https://www.theneuronerds.com/
IG: @joesorocks @theneuronerds

AND check out Joe featured on my most recent WHYY radio feature here:
https://whyy.org/segments/how-my-mom-saved-my-life-after-doctors-missed-my-brain-bleed/

You wake up sweaty and screaming because a cloaked man with a bazooka is chasing you down an alleyway that has become a slip n' slide! Also, your mother appears and asks you if you've made your bed and a tiny monkey wearing a bonnet emerges from her pocket...

Hey, we've been there. Dreams are weird!

What do they mean? Why do we have them? Wait...are they even real?!?

Here to answer all our quirky questions about dreams is neuroscientist, TED speaker, and ex-computer hacker Dr. Moran Cerf, who may or may not be able to read your dreams!

Join us for one of our most interesting conversations yet...just be on the lookout for any strange characters lurking in your REM cycles, they might pull an Inception and steal your dreams Leo DiCaprio-style!

Extras:

Chicago Mag - "Moran Cerf wants to get inside your head"
http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/October-2020/Moran-Cerf/

Moran Cerf ft. Jake Gyllenhall
https://rubinmuseum.org/events/event/an-actors-dream-jake-gyllenhaal-moran-cerf-03-16-2015

Studying Consciousness Using Direct Recording from Single Neurons in the Human Brain
https://f409a5c5-7ea5-42fd-8d36-f35f13afdac0.filesusr.com/ugd/c15c1f_4e493fa6c84849ea8afac42968b121e8.pdf

Men vs. Women Recalling Dreams
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3389337/

Moran Cerf @TEDxPorto "Can you trust your own brain?"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QAyn5e15LY

KCRW - "The Man Who Could Record Your Dreams"
https://www.kcrw.com/culture/shows/unfictional/the-man-who-could-record-your-dreams

Falling Water - Understanding Our Dreams Interactive Timeline
http://dreamtimeline.usanetwork.com/

Moran Cerf on Wired - "Our brain is the puppeteer, we are simply agents"
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/moran-cerf

Moran Cerf @ The Moth Grand Slam
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJVHTQSvUIo&t=514s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfRkEUT7rgc

It feels like a distant memory, but just a few short months ago we were blissfully ignorant about COVID-19 and the global pandemic it was to become. We've quarantined, WFH'd, and made a lot of banana bread to keep ourselves from going *crazy.* The virus has yet to be eradicated, you know, because Florida. In this episode, I put my hazmat suit to good use and sit with Dr. Allison Navis (remotely, of course, I just like wearing it), neuro-epidemiologist, and fan-favorite, to discuss the impact of the Coronavirus on...you guessed it...the BRAIN. Scrub up, disinfect, and buckle up for a wild ride!

Some helpful links mentioned in this episode:
"COVID Toes"
Johns Hopkins Study
Mount Sinai Plasma Collection Center
Center for Disease Control
New York State Testing Centers
Free New York Crisis Counseling