#86 Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) Meets Concussion Care w/ Dr. Julie Hershberg PT, DPT, NCS
August 18, 2025 • 30 mins
🧠 Welcome to the Concussion Corner Podcast®, your trusted resource for interdisciplinary conversations related to all things concussion-related in healthcare, advocacy, and sport.
🥼 Hosted by Dr. Jessica Schwartz PT, DPT, CSCS, a doctor of Physical Therapy and brain injury survivor, who is unapologetically passionate about educating healthcare professionals about concussion, examination, intervention, collaboration, & advocacy.
🎙️Concussion Corner Podcast® is our Free Open Access Medical Education #FOAMed portion of our 24 weeks of educational programming at Concussion Corner Academy®. We're so happy that you're here!
🎓 Concussion Corner Academy® has two courses, Concussion: The Patient Rehabilitation Journey Part I & Part II, which has 30 hours of continuing education credits for each course for PT, OT, and ATC in all 50 United States. We’ve served hundreds of healthcare professionals all over the world and across all professions. We’re truly interdisciplinary and interactive across all aspects of our programming!
🔗 Visit us at https://www.concussioncorner.org to learn more about how you can join our #TeachOneServeMany community!
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💡 In this Episode:
🤝 Dr. Julie Hershberg, physical therapist, educator, and founder of Reactive PT and Reactive Education, shares her expertise on whole-person rehabilitation for concussion and Functional Neurological Disorder (FND). With decades of experience in neurology, Dr. Hershberg explains how sensory and autonomic systems influence recovery, how brain network science informs her approach, and why interdisciplinary teamwork is essential for complex cases. Learn strategies to improve outcomes, avoid misdiagnosis, and integrate neuroscience into compassionate care.
🥼 Dr. Hershberg founded Reactive PT to bring whole-person rehabilitation to the greater Los Angeles community. She leads a team of over 30 professionals, including PTs, OTs, speech therapists, psychologists, yoga therapists, and fitness specialists, serving people with complex neurological conditions and chronic disease. As a professor at the University of Southern California, she teaches and mentors clinicians worldwide through Reactive Education. A self-described “neuro nerd” and recovering perfectionist, she balances her passion for learning with life as a mom of two teens, a wife, and a lover of coffee (decaf) and the outdoors.
📣 This episode is for clinicians, educators, and advocates who want to meet their patients where they are and build trust through action, empathy, and education.
📄 #FOAMed Resources Mentioned In This Episode:
🔗 Concussion Headache Guide for People Post Concussion https://reactive.mykajabi.com/concussionfreebie
🔗 Reactive PT Instagram -- https://www.instagram.com/reactivept
🔗 Reactive PT – https://www.reactivept.com
🔗 Reactive Education – https://www.reactiveeducation.com
🔗 Functional Connectivity Gradients Reveal Altered Hierarchical Cortical Organization in Functional Neurological Disorder https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40502606/
📖 Chapters:
00:00 Introduction and Goals for Concussion Awareness
01:22 Journey into Neuro Physical Therapy
03:07 Building a Neuro-Focused Practice
05:35 Understanding Functional Neurologic Disorder (FND)
08:03 The Intersection of Concussion and FND
10:57 Patient Experiences and Healthcare Navigation
14:41 Trends in Neurodiversity and Patient Clusters
17:20 Neuroaffirming Care and Personal Insights
20:14 Resources and Community Support
22:46 Conclusion and Future Directions
A Word From Our Sponsor:
🏈 🚲⚽️🏒Since 2011, Virginia Tech researchers have been providing unbiased helmet ratings that allow consumers to make informed decisions when purchasing helmets. The helmet ratings are the culmination of over a decade of research identifying which helmets best reduce concussion risk. This work is done as part of Virginia Tech’s service mission and is 100% independent of any funding or influence from helmet manufacturers.
Please visit the Virginia Tech helmet lab website at bit.ly/VirginiaTechHelmets and spread the word to aid in lowering concussion risk in your community 🏇⚾️🥎
*This podcast is for entertainment purposes only and should not be
🥼 Hosted by Dr. Jessica Schwartz PT, DPT, CSCS, a doctor of Physical Therapy and brain injury survivor, who is unapologetically passionate about educating healthcare professionals about concussion, examination, intervention, collaboration, & advocacy.
🎙️Concussion Corner Podcast® is our Free Open Access Medical Education #FOAMed portion of our 24 weeks of educational programming at Concussion Corner Academy®. We're so happy that you're here!
🎓 Concussion Corner Academy® has two courses, Concussion: The Patient Rehabilitation Journey Part I & Part II, which has 30 hours of continuing education credits for each course for PT, OT, and ATC in all 50 United States. We’ve served hundreds of healthcare professionals all over the world and across all professions. We’re truly interdisciplinary and interactive across all aspects of our programming!
🔗 Visit us at https://www.concussioncorner.org to learn more about how you can join our #TeachOneServeMany community!
---------
💡 In this Episode:
🤝 Dr. Julie Hershberg, physical therapist, educator, and founder of Reactive PT and Reactive Education, shares her expertise on whole-person rehabilitation for concussion and Functional Neurological Disorder (FND). With decades of experience in neurology, Dr. Hershberg explains how sensory and autonomic systems influence recovery, how brain network science informs her approach, and why interdisciplinary teamwork is essential for complex cases. Learn strategies to improve outcomes, avoid misdiagnosis, and integrate neuroscience into compassionate care.
🥼 Dr. Hershberg founded Reactive PT to bring whole-person rehabilitation to the greater Los Angeles community. She leads a team of over 30 professionals, including PTs, OTs, speech therapists, psychologists, yoga therapists, and fitness specialists, serving people with complex neurological conditions and chronic disease. As a professor at the University of Southern California, she teaches and mentors clinicians worldwide through Reactive Education. A self-described “neuro nerd” and recovering perfectionist, she balances her passion for learning with life as a mom of two teens, a wife, and a lover of coffee (decaf) and the outdoors.
📣 This episode is for clinicians, educators, and advocates who want to meet their patients where they are and build trust through action, empathy, and education.
📄 #FOAMed Resources Mentioned In This Episode:
🔗 Concussion Headache Guide for People Post Concussion https://reactive.mykajabi.com/concussionfreebie
🔗 Reactive PT Instagram -- https://www.instagram.com/reactivept
🔗 Reactive PT – https://www.reactivept.com
🔗 Reactive Education – https://www.reactiveeducation.com
🔗 Functional Connectivity Gradients Reveal Altered Hierarchical Cortical Organization in Functional Neurological Disorder https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40502606/
📖 Chapters:
00:00 Introduction and Goals for Concussion Awareness
01:22 Journey into Neuro Physical Therapy
03:07 Building a Neuro-Focused Practice
05:35 Understanding Functional Neurologic Disorder (FND)
08:03 The Intersection of Concussion and FND
10:57 Patient Experiences and Healthcare Navigation
14:41 Trends in Neurodiversity and Patient Clusters
17:20 Neuroaffirming Care and Personal Insights
20:14 Resources and Community Support
22:46 Conclusion and Future Directions
A Word From Our Sponsor:
🏈 🚲⚽️🏒Since 2011, Virginia Tech researchers have been providing unbiased helmet ratings that allow consumers to make informed decisions when purchasing helmets. The helmet ratings are the culmination of over a decade of research identifying which helmets best reduce concussion risk. This work is done as part of Virginia Tech’s service mission and is 100% independent of any funding or influence from helmet manufacturers.
Please visit the Virginia Tech helmet lab website at bit.ly/VirginiaTechHelmets and spread the word to aid in lowering concussion risk in your community 🏇⚾️🥎
*This podcast is for entertainment purposes only and should not be
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