We are told there is no official diagnosis, cure or even an effective treatment for the neurodegenerative disease CTE, Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Because of this bleak reality, people are turning their backs on the personal stories chronicling the effects of this devastating condition. After all, who wants to keep hearing about athletes killing themselves, or … Continue reading This Is Not Just Another CTE Story
BYU Hall Of Fame
In 1968, I was a barely 6 foot tall and 185 pounds. I was the starting offensive center for the Canoga Park California High School varsity football team. That team would go on to win the Los Angeles City Championship for the first and only time in its 100+ year history (before the city was … Continue reading BYU Hall Of Fame
Our Journey Begins
“Life must be understood backward. But … it must be lived forward.” Søren Kierkegaard
Never stop searching!
After spending years navigating the world of brain injury and disease currently surrounding and threatening the sport I love, I have found questions without answers, denials, lies and lawsuits. However, with my wife's patience and support, eventually a path emerged that brought us peace and should provide hope to all those whose lives have been … Continue reading Never stop searching!
The Research
In past posts, my wife Laurie and I have detailed how we “accidentally” found ourselves in a cluttered office on the twelfth floor of the Boston VA hospital. We were in the office of Dr. Margaret Naeser, a research scientist at the VA for the past 36 years, and a faculty member at the Boston … Continue reading The Research
The Need is Real
On Sunday April 14th a newspaper article about our struggle with CTE appeared in the Deseret News out of Salt Lake City. First online, and then in the Monday paper, the article by Lee Benson, chronicled our journey to find a treatment that actually worked for the symptoms my husband was suffering from. Science was … Continue reading The Need is Real
“Light” is the Answer
As I said in my last post, after around 7 weeks without treatment, we called the VA. We wanted to start the home treatment right away, however Larry needed to go back to Dr. Naeser for another round of fMRI's and testing first. I was really nervous about this step in the study. I knew … Continue reading “Light” is the Answer
The Miracle of Light
As I mentioned in my last blog post, Larry was the first ex-football player to be studied extensively as part of the Boston VA study using photobiomodulation (PBM) as a treatment for brain damage and possible CTE. As part of the study, he went through more neurocognitive testing to establish a baseline, and he had … Continue reading The Miracle of Light
The Next Morning
...continued from 'My Darkest Night' The next morning arrived without any more words. I could tell Laurie still wasn’t free from the terrible feelings from the night before, and I couldn’t blame her. It was summer, so we were out of school for vacation and had nowhere to go. I was sitting on the couch … Continue reading The Next Morning
My Darkest Night
As I introduce the gift and power of light and the impact it has had in our life, I feel compelled to tell the rest of the story. This is not easy. However, I believe it is important to fully appreciate the dramatic contrast of darkness as it is replaced with light, both metaphorically and … Continue reading My Darkest Night
Boston, Tuesday June 13, 2017 8:30am
"I can't stop weeping - couldn't go into the post office. He (Larry) had to go in even though his hip hurts. Why can't I just ignore this? Why is this so hard for me to deal with? Is it because we are on a mission and I expected it to be peaceful and happy, … Continue reading Boston, Tuesday June 13, 2017 8:30am
