On episode 54 of A Chat with Uma, we dive into Part 2 of my conversation with Dr. Rachel Wurzman—a neuroscientist, neuroethicist, therapist, entrepreneur, and lived-experience advocate who has walked through the fire of academia, identity, and survival while holding onto her nonlinear truth.

In this second half, Rachel takes us deep into her professional journey: navigating graduate school dysfunction, fighting stigma in the very labs that trained her, and finding ways to keep contributing even when mentors tried to hold her back. She opens up about what it meant to build resilience in the face of sabotage, ableism, sexism, and systemic barriers—and how she reclaimed her place in neuroscience, neuroethics, and innovation. Along the way, she reflects on the power of lived experience in shaping scientific insight, what it means to survive academia without losing yourself, and how embracing her multidisciplinary “many-hatted” identity ultimately became her strength.

What emerges is a conversation about persistence, reinvention, and refusing to amputate parts of yourself to fit a mold. Rachel’s story is one of learning to own her voice, design her own path, and use the very struggles that nearly pushed her out of science as fuel to transform it.

Topics Discussed (+ Timestamps):

(00:00:00 ) Introduction & welcome back to Dr. Rachel Wurzman, PhD!

(00:03:00 ) Entering the lab: Tourette’s, cannabinoids, and turning lived experience into scientific insight

(00:10:30 ) First publications: premonitory urges, sensory neuroscience, and shaping hypotheses through her own body

(00:14:00 ) Visible vs. invisible diagnoses: Tourette’s as “proof,” masking OCD & bulimia, and stigma in neuroscience

(00:17:00 ) Wanting to be a pediatric neurologist: reframing what parents see in their kids

(00:24:30 ) Graduate school reality: dysfunction, ableism, sexism, and the gauntlet of scientific acculturation

(00:28:40 ) Surviving sabotage: rewriting a stigmatizing letter, securing the NRSA, and finding allies

(00:33:00 ) Burnout, isolation, and social anxiety in the PhD years

(00:35:30 ) Thesis defense chaos: stigma exposed, resilience tested, and the relief of moving forward

(00:38:40 ) Rediscovering joy in science: mentorship, collaboration, and falling back in love with research

(00:46:00 ) Neuroethics and responsibility: bridging policy, military neuroscience, and human impact

(00:55:00 ) Becoming “many-hatted”: scientist, therapist, innovator, and entrepreneur shaped by lived experience

(01:07:00 ) Toward humane neurotech: what Rachel is building now and why lived experience must lead the way

(01:20:00 ) Final reflections: persistence, self-trust, and honoring every part of yourself

Connect with Dr. Wurzman!

• ⁠⁠⁠Email
• NeuroLivd Website⁠⁠⁠

• ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠

• ⁠⁠Facebook⁠
• ⁠Watch Rachel's TED Talk: How isolation fuels opioid addiction⁠

⁠⁠Try CURED Nutrition's CBN Night Oil, Serenity Gummies, & all of their other fantastic products--Use code 'UMA' for 15% off of all products!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Try CLEARSTEM's amazing skincare products, including VITAMINSCRUB, CELLRENEW, CLEARITY, HYDRAGLOW, and HYDRABERRY--Use code 'UMA' for 15% off all products!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Connect with me!

• My website⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠umarchatterjee.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠Instagram:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@UmaRChatterjee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Twitter:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@UmaRChatterjee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• TikTok:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@UmaRChatterjee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠hello@umarchatterjee.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Support my work: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://ko-fi.com/umarchatterjee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Have a guest you want on the show? Fill out the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Guest Suggestion Form!⁠⁠