We tell athletes to “shake it off,” “tough it out,” and “get back in the game.”
But what happens when the injury is inside the brain, quiet, cumulative, and deadly?

In this episode of Hope Illuminated, Dr. John Gaal shares the devastating story of losing his 24-year-old son to suicide and the painful discovery afterward that his son’s brain showed hallmark signs of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE).

That grief became a catalyst for John’s work at the intersection of repetitive head trauma, depression, pain, opioids, identity loss, and suicide risk, especially among athletes.

This conversation brings together heart and science to ask a question our culture often avoids:

How many deaths are we calling “mental health problems” when they may also involve brain injuries we never diagnosed?