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After a traumatic brain injury, farmer and advocate describes months without insurance and the role of community support
Summary
Dr. Ivette Ruiz recounts a December 2020 fall that caused memory, mobility and speech loss; she describes losing employer benefits, facing food insecurity and suicidal ideation, and credits a friend and gardening for helping her recover and start a nonprofit farm program.
Dr. Ivette Ruiz told host Nancy Barrow that a December 2020 injury ‘‘shifted my whole life’’ and left her with memory loss, difficulty speaking and mobility challenges. Ruiz said she resigned from disaster‑relief work because she could not continue in that role and that losing employer benefits led to food insecurity and difficulty affording care. "I didn't have health insurance or cash to pay for them," she said, explaining that many assistance programs she sought required age or veteran status or physical mobility she did not have.
Ruiz also described the emotional toll of recovery, including a period of suicidal ideation, and credited a friend for encouraging her to seek help. She said that reconnecting with gardening and later inviting others to the farm provided practical and emotional support: "I just started going outdoors and started just messing with the soil…" Ruiz framed her path from crisis to founding Healing by Growing Farms as a combination of personal perseverance, community help and gradual skill rebuilding.
