Vets First Podcast

Content warning: This episode contains conversations on self-harm.  In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, Levi Sowers is joined by guest-turned-cohost, Louis Kolling. If you’re interested in learning more about Louis Kolling’s story, listen to Season 4: Episode 2 to hear about his journey from army veteran to molecular biophysicist. Now join the two as they speak with Jennifer Van Tiem and Ni...

Content warning : This episode contains conversations on addiction and self-harm. In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, our host Levi Sowers tackles his first solo interview as Brandon takes time away to focus on his education. Join us as Levi speaks with our guest, Louis Kolling.   Louis Kolling has a PhD in molecular biophysics and is also a US Army veteran, having served from 2006 to 2012...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea are joined by Neil Andrews for a collaborative interview.   Niel Andrews is the executive editor and science journalist for the Migraine Science Collaborative, which serves as an online platform dedicated to a wide array of migraine-related research in pursuit of their mission statement, “To accelerate research advances in...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, hosts Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Dr. Steven Fliesler, a SUNY Distinguished Professor at the University of Buffalo and a career scientist at the VA in Buffalo, New York. Dr. Fliesler holds positions as an endowed Chair of Ophthalmology and Director of Research in the Department of Ophthalmology. Dr. Fliesler was born and raised in New York a...

In this episode Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Dr. Lina Kubli. Dr. Kubli is the RR&D Scientific Program Manager for Sensory Systems/Communication Disorders. Dr. Kubli was born in India and lived there until age 7 before moving the United States and settling in Maryland. She attended college at the University of Maryland initially majoring in Biochemistry, then switching to Hearing a...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Elizabeth Holmes. Elizabeth “Liz” Holmes is the Blinded Veterans Association National Secretary and is part of the Georgia regional group. She is an Army Veteran and during her career she attended both basic and advanced ordinance courses and airborne school. Liz was born and raised in the south side of Chicago abo...

 In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, hosts Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Dr. Eric Singman, a neuro-ophthalmologist working at the Department of Defense Vision Center of Excellence in Baltimore, Maryland. He has been working with Veterans and active-duty military for 20 years. Prior to his position at the VA, Dr. Singman spent most of his academic career in the greater New York C...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, hosts Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Dr. Laura Peters. Dr. Peters currently works as a licensed counselling psychologist at the VA Blind Rehabilitation Center in Palo Alto, California. Originally from California, Dr. Peters completed her graduate degree in counseling psychology at University of Utah. She began working with the VA during a pract...

Warning before the podcast, this episode contains graphic content of an Iraqi Veteran’s experiences and may be difficult to hear for some listeners.     In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Veteran Tim Hornick. Tim Hornick is a post 9/11 Army Captain who served from 2002 to 2011 in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He earned his Master's in Social Work and be...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, hosts Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Dr. Renata Gomes. Dr. Gomes is a medical and forensic specialist with a sub-specialized in regenerative biomedicine who works with blinded Veterans in the United Kingdom. She was born in Portugal into a family with 5 generations of Army officers and moved to England at a young age. She earned her degree in F...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, hosts Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Dr. Oliver Gramlich, a research health science specialist at the Iowa City VA Health Care System. He is also a research assistant professor in the Neuroscience and Pharmacology Program at the University of Iowa.  Dr. Gramlich was born in Frankfurt, Germany, and went to graduate school at the University of Mi...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, hosts Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Loretta Phillips, an Army Veteran from Lancaster, South Carolina. Loretta suffers from visual impairment due to complications from diabetes that progressed due to depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. During this conversation, Loretta talks about the patient perspective of dealing with visual loss a...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, hosts Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview Dr. Thomas Zampieri. Dr. Zampieri currently serves on multiple Department of Defense grant review panels and has been appointed to the VA National Research Advisory Council, which is a Congressional mandated council to advise research at the VA. He is also the past president of the Blinded Veterans Associati...

In this episode Dr. Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea interview returning guest Dr. Randy Kardon. Dr. Kardon is a neuro ophthalmologist at the Iowa City VA Healthcare System and the University of Iowa in Iowa City who has had federal funding for over 30 years. This episode focuses on diabetic neuropathy and diabetic retinopathy. Diabetes affects many different types of body tissues, including the eye. W...

We are finally back! It has been almost 2 years since we last published a season. A lot has changed over that time. Dr. Sowers started a faculty position at the University of Iowa in the Department of Pediatrics where he is studying migraine pathophysiology in preclinical models. This is an exciting season! In total, we have 11 new interviews for your from across the spectrum. The Blinded Veterans...

In this episode of the Vets First Podcast, Levi and Brandon interview Dr. Alejandro Pezzulo, a pulmonologist, and Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Iowa. This episode was recording back in August of 2021 during the height of the Delta wave. We think this is an interesting look into COVID-19 with a critical care provider.  Dr. Pezzulo was born in Caracas, Venezuela where...

In this episode, podcast hosts Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea dive into Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation ( TMS ), a treatment for depression, PTSD, and headache, with expert Dr. Erik Won .  Dr. Won, a Californian native, trained at the Naval Hospital in Portsmouth, Virginia and completed his General Medical Officer (GMO) tour as a flight surgeon in Pensacola, Florida at the Navy Aerospace Medicine I...

In the beginning of episode seven, Levi and Brandon speak with Dr. Carolyn Turvey to discuss her studies on functional impairment and depression in Veterans. Dr. Turvey grew up in the suburbs of New York City. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Connecticut and received her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Yale. From there, Dr. Turvey became a Professor at the University of I...

In this first part of the episode, podcast hosts, Levi and Brandon, interview army Veteran, Trever Siver. Trever candidly discusses trauma, mental health, and substance use. Trever recounts his childhood, time in the army as a cook, and his battle with addiction and journey to sobriety. Trever was born and raised in Iowa. While in high school, Trever decided to join the army and served from 1999 t...

In the first episode of the second season, podcast hosts, Levi Sowers and Brandon Rea overview the guests and topics featured in the seasons and offer some of their retrospective thoughts. The season will interview doctors, experts, private organizations, and Veterans covering topics regarding blind Veterans, PTSD, addiction, and mental health. Some guests include Veteran Trever Siver, Dr. Erik Wo...

In the opening of season two interviews of Vets First Podcast, Levi and Brandon welcome Marine Veteran, Dan Standage . In this podcast, listeners will hear from the Arizona native, starting with a brief overview of his childhood and career in the Marines, his emotional and physical journey after becoming legally blind during his station in Japan, and finally his contributions and career in blind r...

In this episode, hosts Levi and Brandon welcome Jim Ravella, Vice President of Programs at the Gary Sinise Foundation . They discuss the mission, programs and initiatives offered at the Gary Sinise Foundation to support our nation’s defenders and their families.   Jim Ravella grew up in a family that served in the military – his father served as a pilot during WW2, the Korean War, and the Vietnam...

In episode six, Levi and Brandon interview Army Veteran, Josh Marino to discuss the traumatic brain injuries (TBI) and internal injuries sustained during his service. Listeners will hear about Josh’s early life, his time in the army, sustaining a head injury, and his life experiences managing the injury. Josh discusses the mental health struggles following his injury, social stigma surrounding int...

In the first half of episode five, Levi and Brandon interview Dr. Anthony Miller .  The episode focuses on opiate use disorder. Levi, Brandon, and Dr. Miller discuss the risks of sustained opiate consumption, causes and treatment options for opiate use disorder, relapsing, and societal views on addiction.  Dr. Miller received a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Goshen College and a Medical degree...

            In this episode Levi and Brandon interview Keith Queen , Visual Impairments coordinator at the Iowa City VA. Listeners will hear how Keith navigated his life with his own visual impairment and his career with the VA, the blind rehabilitation services the VA offers, and expectations for Veterans beginning to lose their eye sight.              Keith Queen struggled with his vision, begin...