My Broken Brain - I have hope

August 27, 2024. That is the day I wrote about Clara meeting Doctor Daniel Amen's team for the first time. I called the post "Lots of news about Clara's brain." I did not know that post would change so many lives, not just ours.

After I shared it, my inbox filled up. So many of you wrote to us. People who never got a diagnosis, people who got one and still felt lost. Everyone asked the same question.

“How do I get my child scanned? How do I get this treatment?”

I wanted to answer everyone. But here is the truth. When we started with Doc Amen, we did not have the money either.

Clara had a perinatal stroke, a stroke in my womb, before she was even born. For years, I only knew pieces. I never learned all the medical words. I did not know she had 12 different diagnoses until we came to the US. In Italy, nobody gave us the full picture. I raised her without a map.

When Doctor Amen's team scanned Clara's brain, everything changed. For the first time, I could see it. I could see where her cerebellum was quiet, and her basal ganglia were working overtime. I finally understood why some days felt impossible for her, and for us. It was not just character. It was her brain, working so hard to make her walk, speak three languages, make art, forgive fast, and love without judging eyes.

I wanted that for Clara so badly. But I could not pay for it. So I wrote to Doc Amen's team and asked for help. I found out about the Change Your Brain Foundation. I applied. They said yes. Clara got her scans and her care as a scholarship, at a moment we could not have afforded a single session on our own.

That scholarship gave us answers we searched for, for years. It changed how we understand my daughter. It changed how we show up for her every day. It changed how she sees herself and how she lives.

Now I keep thinking about everyone who wrote to me. Our community has so many people who need this same chance and do not have the means. I do not want that to stay out of reach for them the way it almost stayed out of reach for us.

That is why we started a collaboration with Doc Amen's team. Together, we want to spread the news, talk about it, bring awareness, and help raise money for the Change Your Brain Foundation, so other people and other families, can get the help we could not afford at the time.

Our first initiative is this event, and we are so happy to share it with you!

The Art of a Healthy Brain
An Interactive Art Experience with Clara Woods

Date: Thursday, August 6
Time: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM PST
Location: The Rogue Collective, Newport Beach

This evening brings together art, brain health, and giving back, to support the Change Your Brain Foundation. Clara will share her story. Dr. Daniel Emina (Clara's doctor) will join us for a conversation about brain health and about Clara's own progress. I will be there too, sharing what this journey has looked like as her mom.

Every dollar raised goes toward scholarships, the same kind of scholarship that gave Clara her chance. That money helps someone else afford care at Amen Clinics that they could not otherwise pay for.

How you can help, just by joining us:
- Attendance is free.
- Raffle tickets are $20 presale, $25 at the door. Winner takes home a one-of-a-kind original Clara Woods artwork, and we cover shipping.
- Online raffle sales close August 6 at 8:00 AM PT. In-person sales continue until 10 minutes before the drawing.
- You do not need to be present to win.

Click here to see all the info and get raffle tickets!

We built our whole story on the belief that even in hard moments, there is a way forward. This event is that belief, in action. If you have ever wondered what all our posts about Clara's brain were building toward, this is it. Come learn with us. Come be part of giving someone else the same chance we got.

With love,
Betina