About Us | The Connected Mind

Whatever brought you to this page, I'm glad you're here. Maybe you're exhausted and running out of options. Maybe someone you love is struggling and you're searching for anything that might help. Maybe you just have a feeling

that something is off and you can't quite explain it.

I know that feeling. I've lived it.

And I want you to know, before we go any further,

you'renot making it up. What you're experiencing

is real. And you deserve actual answers.

I'm Trish Herford — a Doctor of Physical Therapy with a specialized focus on concussion diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. I developed one of Maryland's first certified concussion courses and have trained over 1,000 clinicians in comprehensive concussion evaluation and treatment. My foundation in Athletic Training, combined with my Doctorate in Physical Therapy and years working with athletes, runners, and people living with chronic pain, has given me a deep clinical understanding of how the body performs, breaks down, and heals.

But credentials only tell part of the story.

What drives me, what has always driven me, is something that goes beyond a diagnosis or a treatment protocol. I believe that our lives are complex. That the person sitting in front of me isn't just a set of symptoms to address; they're a whole human being with a history, a story, and layers that a standard intake form will never fully capture. I take a deeper dive than that. I always have.

My approach is rooted in the belief that true healing comes from addressing the whole person — mind, body, and the space between the two that medicine doesn't always know how to name. I'm not interested in symptom management for its own sake. I'm interested in empowering people to genuinely understand what's happening in their body, take ownership of their health, and build the kind of resilience that lasts long after they leave my care.

I wake up every day motivated to learn. To stay curious. To look beyond the conventional and ask whether there's a better way. Integrative therapy, non-invasive approaches, preventative care; these aren't trends to me. They're a philosophy. One I've built my entire practice around.

I believe our health is our most valuable asset and that most of us are never taught how to truly protect it. That's what I'm here to change.

Several years ago, my husband, my 6-month-old son, and I were in a severe car accident. Car totaled. All three of us had concussions.

I'm a physical therapist. I knew what recovery was supposed to look like. I told myself to push through.

But the anxiety didn't go away. The brain fog didn't clear. The headaches kept coming. I couldn't sleep. I couldn't focus. I started to feel like a stranger in my own life, going through the motions, functioning on the outside, falling apart on the inside. And underneath all of it, trying to care for a baby and a husband who were also recovering...while pretending I had it together.

I didn't.

One of the hardest parts was the car. Every time we drove somewhere, I was gripping the door, bracing for impact, terrified, even on ordinary roads, even at normal speeds. My nervous system had decided the world wasn't safe anymore, and no amount of logic could talk it out of that.

Then I was introduced to Microcurrent Neurofeedback. I was skeptical. Honestly, I was desperate enough to try anything.

One hour after my very first session, my husband and I were driving home on I-495 during rush hour. And for the first time since the accident I wasn't afraid. I wasn't gripping the door. I wasn't bracing. I was just... there. Present. Looking out the window, noticing the world around me, completely at ease in a way I had stopped believing was still possible for me.

It had been one session. One hour.

And that night, I slept. Really slept. The nightmares that had been pulling me back into the accident, sometimes multiple times a night, did not come. I woke up the next morning feeling something I hadn't felt in months. Rested. Safe. Like maybe my brain had finally gotten the message that the danger had passed.

Over the next few days, I found myself sitting with what had shifted, trying to make sense of it. Something that months of pushing through, coping, and managing hadn't touched - had moved. Quietly. Effortlessly. In sixty minutes.

After twelve sessions, I felt like myself again. Not a medicated, managed version of myself, actually myself. Clear, calm, present.

From that moment, I knew this was something I had to be part of. I started finding every way I could to get more involved, learning everything about the technology, the science, the stories of others who had experienced what I had. It wasn't a career pivot. It was a calling.

I’ve seen what it looks like when someone struggles quietly.

When something feels off, but there aren’t clear answers. When symptoms are managed, but never fully resolved. When you keep pushing through because you don’t know what else to do.

I think about that often in my work.

Because there are so many people living that way—trying the medications, the therapy, the supplements, the self-help books—and still searching for something that actually helps. People who have been told their symptoms are normal, or “just stress,” or something they’ll have to learn to live with.

I don’t believe that.

I opened The Connected Mind for the people who are still searching.

The ones who know something deeper hasn’t been addressed yet.

For you.

When I’m not working, you’ll usually find me staying active; running, practicing yoga, or spending time outdoors.

I’m a runner at heart and have time qualified for the Boston Marathon twice, as well as completed the Chicago Marathon. Running has taught me discipline, resilience, and how to keep moving forward even when the path feels long; lessons that show up in my work every day.

I also enjoy pottery, gardening, and creating things with my hands; anything that allows me to slow down and be present. I love reading and am always exploring new ideas, perspectives, and ways to grow.

Travel and time by the ocean offer that same sense of reset; space to step back, gain clarity, and reconnect.

I want you to leave this page feeling like you found someone who gets it. Not someone who has a solution to sell you, but someone who has genuinely been where you are and found a way through.

Your brain matters. Your experience matters. And you deserve care that actually sees you as a whole person, not just a set of symptoms to manage.

If something on this page resonated with you, I'd love to connect. No pressure, no pitch. Just a real conversation about whether this might be right for you.

Whatever brought you to this page, I'm glad you're here. Maybe you're exhausted and running out of options. Maybe someone you love is struggling and you're searching for anything that might help. Maybe you just have a feeling that something is off and you can't quite explain it.

I know that feeling. I've lived it.

And I want you to know, before we go any further, you're not making it up. What you're experiencing is real. And you deserve actual answers.

I'm Trish Herford — a Doctor of Physical Therapy with a specialized focus on concussion diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. I developed one of Maryland's first certified concussion courses and have trained over 1,000 clinicians in comprehensive concussion evaluation and treatment. My foundation in Athletic Training, combined with my Doctorate in Physical Therapy and years working with athletes, runners, and people living with chronic pain, has given me a deep clinical understanding of how the body performs, breaks down, and heals.