Healing Beyond Words: Trauma, Sobriety, and Brain-spotting with Darran Zenger

In this powerful and heartfelt episode of The Blind Chick, hosts Penn and Moses Street sit down with Darran Zenger, a licensed clinical social worker at Cirque Lodge in Utah. Darran shares his personal journey with Usher Syndrome, his experience with cochlear implants, and how his own life challenges led him to become a trauma-informed addiction counselor. He introduces us to brainspotting, a groundbreaking therapeutic approach rooted in EMDR, and explains how it helps clients unlock stored trauma in the nervous system. This episode is a deep dive into resilience, recovery, and redefining life after trauma.

⏱️ Chapter Markers:
00:00 – Welcome to The Blind Chick
00:28 – Meet the hosts + Moses’s “muse” confession
01:30 – Intro to guest Darran Zenger
02:36 – Darran’s background and where he’s from
05:01 – Living with Usher Syndrome and hearing loss
07:20 – Public school with accessibility support
09:19 – Becoming a stay-at-home dad & finding his calling
10:37 – Fear, faith & the journey to cochlear implant
12:44 – Music, retraining the brain & the power of sound
15:10 – Adjusting to dual cochlear implants
17:38 – Discovering social work & substance use counseling
20:00 – Working at the Moran Eye Center
22:02 – Brainspotting: What it is and how it works
24:27 – Real stories of healing through brainspotting
27:00 – The miracle moments of trauma therapy
29:00 – Closing thoughts & feedback invitation

📞 Contact Info:
Email us: feedback@aftersight.org
Call us: (720) 712-8856
Website: aftersight.org