In 2008, my guest today was invited to give a TED talk. At the time, there were just 6 TED talks online, and so she didn’t even know what TED was. She said yes. What she couldn’t have foreseen in that moment was that her TED talk would catapult her onto the world stage, that in 3 months, her talk would become the first TED talk to go viral (now viewed more than 27 million times), that Oprah would call, that her talk would birth a book. A one-of-a-kind bestseller called "My Stroke of Insight". Overnight, Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor became one of the most famous neuroscientists on the planet. It’s not just because her talk was witty and riveting and profound. It’s because the story she told was one of her near-death survival and unimaginable discovery. She is equal parts gritty, gutsy, and grateful to be alive. We talk about the morning, 13 years ago, when a massive stroke struck her left brain. We talk about her eight-year recovery and her life's discovery. We dive into her new book "Whole Brain Living", her acronym BRAIN, and how to "huddle" with our brain distinctly designed four modules in order to create opportunity for creating change, agency, and wellbeing. This conversation is pure BOLTE-energy. Enthusiastic. Enlightening. Irreverent. Deeply human. And I'm right there with her for the ride. This conversation is will make you think again about your own brain and its (your) functional relationship with the past, present, and future. Oh, one more thing. She lives in Kentucky - on a boat...named "Brain Waves."
This conversation is pure BOLTE-energy. Enthusiastic. Enlightening. Irreverent. Profound. Deeply human. And, at times, hilarious. (Nothing quite prepared me for her answer to my last question!) She is equal parts gritty, gutsy, and grateful to be alive. We talk about the morning, 13 years ago, when a massive stroke struck her left brain. We talk about her eight-year recovery and her life's discovery. We dive into her new book "Whole Brain Living", her acronym BRAIN, and how to "huddle" with our brain distinctly designed four modules in order to create opportunity for creating change, agency, and wellbeing.
This conversation is will make you think again about your own brain and its (your) functional relationship with the past, present, and future. Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor joins me from her boat...named "Brain Waves."
Dr. Taylor is a Harvard-trained and published neuroanatomist whose research specialized in understanding how our brain creates our perception of reality. She was interested in this subject because she has a brother who is diagnosed with the brain disorder schizophrenia. She is the author of the New York Times bestselling memoir My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey (Viking Penguin, 2008). Her new book is Whole Brain Living: The Anatomy of Choice and the Four Characters That Drive Our Life (Hay House, 2021).
Her Foundation Jill Bolte Taylor BRAINS is dedicated to providing educational services and promoting programs related to the advancement of brain awareness, appreciation, exploration, education, injury prevention, neurological recovery, and the power of movement for mental and physical health. She is the National Spokesperson for the Harvard Brain Tissue Resource Center (Harvard Brain Bank), and educates the public about the shortage of brain tissue donated for research into the severe mental illnesses.
Link to her website www.drjilltaylor.com.
Link to her viral TED talk from 2008 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyyjU8fzEYU
Follow her on IG https://www.instagram.com/drjillboltetaylor/
Watch her on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHfUhV_xjrJLPiLZSlTRNvg
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The Foreseeable Now is hosted and executive produced by Lu Hanessian. Co-production and original music by KÁNO SOUND. Subscribe so you don't miss an episode...and share!