Rachel Teranishi, M.D., assistant professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Heersink School of Medicine Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R), received a grant from UAB’s Center for Engagement in Disability Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (CEDHARS) to partner with LoveYourBrain — an organization that develops programs for patients recovering from traumatic brain injury focusing on mindfulness, yoga, psychoeducation and nutrition.
As one of LoveYourBrain’s Clinical Affiliates, UAB Medicine joins a network of premier rehabilitation facilities across the US and Canada committed to integrating evidence-based, holistic health services into neurorehabilitation care.
UAB Medicine’s Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, launched a program on October 1 designed to support patients with brain injury and other neurological conditions through skills-based group sessions that promote stress management, focused attention, physical activity, emotional regulation, and social connection.
The program is currently only offered to brain injury patients, with the hope to expand to all patients at UAB Spain Rehabilitation Center (SRC). There are inclusion and exclusion criteria to ensure they are appropriate for the program. If appropriate, they get scheduled as a therapy session and it is integrated into their rehab program at SRC.
As a physician focused on treating patients with traumatic brain injury, Teranishi provides the best approaches for care. In late 2024, Dr. Teranishi attended a LoveYourBrain Retreat in Colorado to continue learning about how to improve the mental, physical, and social well-being of people with brain injury and caregivers.
“We spent the week doing yoga, eating healthy food, and connecting with others who had gone through similar challenges,” Teranishi recalled. “The environment at the retreat made me want to bring a piece of it back to my own patients.”
The program is geared toward patients in inpatient and outpatient settings, expanding access to services that enhance traditional care pathways. Teranishi has enlisted UAB Arts in Medicine (AIM) to join this initiative. AIM will provide a certified yoga teacher to aid in this patient program.
The program comprises trauma-informed mindfulness and yoga, breathing exercises, and facilitated discussion based on the science of resilience. It was evaluated in the largest study of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and yoga ever published, which included over 1,500 people, and found significant improvements in quality of life, resilience, cognition, and positive affect.