In this episode of the I Love Neuro podcast, host Erin Gallardo, PT, DPT, NCS interviews physical therapist and neuro rehab residency coordinator Jennifer Lazaro, PT, DPT, NCS about evaluating and treating people with long COVID and dysautonomia. Jennifer notes the similarities in presentation for individuals who have post-COVID those with other conditions affecting the autonomic nervous system, like concussion with cognitive fog, severe fatigue, post‑exertional malaise, dizziness, and orthostatic intolerance. She walks through practical assessment strategies such as active stand testing, symptom‑mediated exercise testing, and multi‑system screening to differentiate vestibular, cardiac, pulmonary, and autonomic drivers. Jennifer outlines how she starts with education on the autonomic nervous system, diaphragmatic breathing, and strict pacing, then progresses patients from supine conditioning through graded dysautonomia protocols like the Adapt protocol, emphasizing heart rate parameters, symptom monitoring, and buy‑in to "doing less to do more." She highlights the importance of interdisciplinary care with OT, speech, cardiology, neurology, and mental health, shares a powerful success story of a college student who returned to school after structured rehab, and offers real‑world strategies for self‑management using wearables, pacing tools, and lifestyle changes in sleep, hydration, and daily routines.

In this 300th episode, hosts Erin Gallardo, PT, DPT, NCS and Claire McLean, PT, DPT, NCS invited long-time collaborator JJ Mowder-Tinney, PT, PhD, NCS to join so we could recap the best takeaways from Dendrite Expansion Days (DED), NeuroSpark's three-day, fully experiential education event for OTs and PTs. We share how Naomi Castro's "falling well" course progressed clients from floor work to standing falls in one session, describe hands-on equipment stations featuring frictionless sheets, BlazePod, Rifton, Saebo, UprightVR, and more, and highlight real client stories—especially Connor, a young man with severe ataxia who gained new independence and freedom using a transfer pole and the Rifton Pacer overground gait trainer. The conversation emphasizes why equipment can be a powerful ally in neuro rehab, the importance of collaborating with vendors and fellow clinicians, and how community events like DED spark practical, immediately applicable ideas for improving outcomes and patient autonomy. You'll gain insights to use in your practice today!

Do you feel ready for that next big step? A transition in your career like leaving your job to start your own business, or transitioning your side gig to full time, or hiring your first employee. Neither did any of us! In this episode hosts Erin Gallardo, PT, DPT, NCS and Claire McLean, PT, DPT, NCS have a discussion with NeuroBiz coach Emily Duval Ledger about what it really means to be "ready" for big transitions like starting a business, leaving a job, or hiring your first team member. We share our stories like Claire and Emily opening brick-and-mortar gyms, Erin and Claire starting and building NeuroCollaborative, Erin transitioning from working in the clinic to going full time in NeuroCollaborative, and all of us navigating business entities, taxes, and imperfect systems. This discussion will help you see the way we worked through fear, uncertainty, and messiness. Learn from the mistakes we share and how we fixed them like when Claire's corporation paperwork was filed wrong. The episode closes with encouragement for listeners who are "ready-adjacent" to take the next step and an invitation to connect, join our biz group, or come on the podcast to talk through your ideas with us.

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