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A New Approach to Stress Management | Ellyn Ito · Unfinished Business

• Ellyn Ito: we were not optimized to live and necessarily thrive in the modern environment. we evolved over millions of years outside in nature, eating clean whole foods, waking and sleeping with the sun, not having blue light and artificial light, not having the level of processed foods, toxins, And kind of the always on nature of the way we're living now. that being said, we're certainly living longer as humans now. but at the same time, we've not learned to deal with the constant cognitive overload. That many of us are experiencing. Kimberly Griggs: Well, welcome back you guys to Unfinished Business. Today's conversation is something that I think almost everyone can relate to, especially if you're an entrepreneur, feeling overwhelmed, feeling stressed, and like your mind never really slows down. today I am joined by Ellyn Ito, who is the CEO and co-founder of innerstill which produced the technology for a product called Mindvybe which we're going to have a very interesting conversation about. Ellyn has spent more than 25 years bringing innovative technologies to the market. But today she is leading a company that is trying to answer a much bigger question, which is how can technology actually help people reconnect with themselves instead of being so distracted in our in our ever changing world and chaotic world. So Ellyn I'm very excited to dig into all of this. welcome to to Unfinished Business. So had happy to have you. Ellyn Ito: Thank you so much. No, Kim, I'm I'm so I'm honored to be here. And I'm always excited to talk about how technologies can enhance that which is uniquely human. as you Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. Ellyn Ito: know, AI is taking on more of some of the things we're doing. And in that situation, it's creating some stress, but we also know that it is putting a premium. on those human qualities. And so being able to manage all of this in a way that keeps us sane is critically important. Kimberly Griggs: Mm-hmm. there's so much I want to dig into. We've we've had a side conversation, so I know a little bit about your story, but let's begin with the big announcement that you just shared with me backstage. Would you like to share with the rest of our viewers? Ellyn Ito: sure, yes. This is this is not out in the press just yet. They're doing a release at the end of this month, but I can share here that we are the recipient of the R&D Council of New Jersey, the Very Coveted Edison Award for innovative patent. And what makes me so excited about this is this is kind of a culmination of our inventor's life work. So Dr. Katz Nelson has been in bioelectric medicine. Since the 80s. He's one of the grandfathers of neuromodulation. And he is the most humble of all souls with the biggest heart. And it was him along with our co-inventor, he is a retired psychoanalyst, Hank Beckhoff, and an associate, Vladimir Chuv, who've really just perfected this technology that is so transformative in the lives of our users. So I'm just thrilled that they're being recognized for the work they've done and it's a very competitive process. so I'm just I'm just very thrilled that they're getting the recognition that they deserve. Kimberly Griggs: okay, so give us the background and then I would Ellyn Ito: Sure. Kimberly Griggs: like for you to share your story and how you ended up collaborating with these incredible inventors. Ellyn Ito: Sure. Yeah. So I've been involved in business my whole life. came out of college, got involved in an HR adjacent field, consulting, and through that process was really able to see the whole gamut of businesses and functions in a business. I ended up being involved with very entrepreneurial companies in 2004, started my own firm, focused on scaling companies, went into private equity. Eventually found my way to life sciences. Love this idea of life sciences helping people get better, feel better, improve health. And then I was introduced to a company that does not produce medicines, but produces devices that boost the body's ability to heal itself. In this case, this category of technologies is called neuromodulation. Neurome meaning brain, modulation meaning change. Kimberly Griggs: So yeah, define that for us. Okay. Ellyn Ito: And so I yes, Kimberly Griggs: So brain change. Ellyn Ito: brain-changing technologies are and so this first technology I was introduced to was a tongue stimulator that helps with gait imbalance disorder due to concussion or stroke or MS. by sending electrical signals to the body, because we run on electrical signals, and pairing that with physical therapy, it helps to connect Neurons for function. So I got way into the whole brain changing space using electricity. And and then during the pandemic, my 15 year old son became very distressed. like many young people, he was highly he was depressed, he was anxious, he would have these outbursts, and it would come to the point where he have a horrible outburst and then he'd say, I think you guys are better off without me. I don't know why I'm acting out in this way. he was seeing a wonderful therapist, but he wasn't able to access some of those behavioral techniques that help people calm down. box breathing, meditation. Kimberly Griggs: When you say when you say he wasn't able to access, what what do what do you mean by that? Ellyn Ito: He was so stressed out that if you suggested meditation like breathing exercises, he would just lash out. or we would often go for walks in the woods. And and before that used to be really settling for him. during that time we would go out and he would just he couldn't he couldn't be there. He would just get very frustrated and he he didn't want to do it. what I've learned since then is when people are in a fight, flight, or freeze state, it it becomes very constricting. It's very hard to think about doing anything that sometimes then retreat. And so I didn't want to put him on meds because I wasn't sure how long this would last. And I just didn't want to start that cycle yet. He was 15 and you know, wasn't sure when he'd be back in class because of the pandemic. And so I started trying stimulators. because I knew about the neuromodulation space, I knew that there were things out there that could help, and I started trying them. And they either created sensation, which was a no-go, like when you're stressed out, the last thing you want to feel is like you're having electricity. or they took too long. Kimberly Griggs: So they would people would physically feel the impact of the those devices. Okay. Ellyn Ito: Yes, that's right. most devices that are out there right now, you feel that sensation. And so Kimberly Griggs: Which causes more stress. Okay. Ellyn Ito: it creates a cortisol response. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. Ellyn Ito: And so that was kind of the opposite of what we wanted to do. And and the ones that were very mild took too long to have an effect. Like you'd have to use them thirty minutes a day, once or twice a day for thirty days before it would start to change things. And he couldn't stick with it. And then I had the opportunity to meet Hank and Jakov, the founders of this technology, the inventors of the technology. And and the first time my son went on on our vagus device, it was if he it was as if his whole body just kind of took a breath. And and it was such first time, 25 minute session. It was actually Kimberly Griggs: The first time. Wow. Ellyn Ito: 15 minutes into the session where he was on the machine and I looked over at him and he's like slumped on the couch looking at this fan as if i it actually looked like he was high, like he had smoked a joint. Kimberly Griggs: He was just relaxed. Ellyn Ito: And I even yeah, I even joked with him and I said, It looks like you're a little bit high. And he started laughing and I just I hadn't heard him giggle in forever. And it just was like I I got very emotional. I just had to look away, but it was like the universe tapped me on the shoulder and said, Pay attention. And and that was January of 2021. And then throughout the course of the next several months, I was doing diligence on the technology and really wanted to understand the intellectual property, had a freedom to operate done on it, which meant had a lawyer assess whether or not it was free and clear to to use, and it and it was. This was the initial underlying patent. And then I decided to invest and get involved with the get involved with the company. And so we formally launched the company in May of 2021 and had to go from prototype to a scalable product, which was the source of all my gray hair. we had to basically redesign the the motherboards because we couldn't get the components we needed. We ran into some hiccups, but ultimately came out with a better machine in that process. and that is the basis for the Edison Patton Award that has just happened. Kimberly Griggs: Well, so just to make everything a little bit more succinct so that somebody out there can understand Ellyn Ito: Right. Kimberly Griggs: a little bit more about this technology and also your device in comparison to others that are on the market, what problem are you actually trying to solve with Mindvybe? Not just the Ellyn Ito: Yeah. Kimberly Griggs: product, but like the human problem. Ellyn Ito: Yeah, thank you for that question. what we're resolving is nervous system dysregulation. So what our technology does is it uses electrical stimulation to help calm the body, to engage the rest, digest, and recover function of the nervous system. And if you think about the way we as humans are living today, we were not optimized to live and necessarily thrive in the modern environment. we evolved over millions of years outside in nature, eating clean whole foods, living in small group communities, waking and sleeping with the sun, not having blue light and artificial light, not having the level of processed foods, toxins, And kind of the always on nature of the way we're living now. that being said, we're certainly living longer as humans now. We're not getting mowed down by saber-toothed tigers or these other threats. but at the same time, we we've not learned to deal with the constant cognitive overload. That many of us are experiencing. And so that overload, that nervous system overload shows up as symptoms of chronic stress, so poor sleep, impatience, brain fog, compromised immune system And then as we treat some of those issues, mood dysregulation, as we go to treat some of these things. We use medications that help in the moment and are very helpful in an acute sense most times. The challenge is that the chronic use of these meds can sometimes throw us further off balance. And so Kimberly Griggs: Wow, I Yeah, I as you're talking, I'm I'm I'm trying to picture you in this story in your own life, a witness to all of these, I'll just call it overall pollutants that are happening to your son, but they're but recognizing they're in all of us. And Ellyn Ito: Yeah. Kimberly Griggs: as you were explaining this this device for the first first time seeing your son smile when he'd gone long periods, I'm sure as a mother, I I mean where it's sitting on my heart is just how desperate we feel when we can't fix the problem. And I think I'll speak for myself, but I know many others, you know, stand with me in that, especially with our children, the last thing that we want to do is go and add that one more piece, even though it acts as a band-aid, putting our children on a medication that their body gets acclimated to. For seemingly the rest of your life just doesn't sound like a resolution at all. to see something actually support a positive result in a quick amount of time had to have been tremendously mind-blowing. I don't even have all of the words to ar to be able to articulate if I'm putting myself in your shoes. you know, as you're as you're saying, and this affects so many people, not just you know, our own lives, but the ripple effect of others that were connected to this stress. what have you seen not only in your own son, but in other, you know, patients that are that are testing this right now? Ellyn Ito: yeah, so the caretakers who are caring for the ones that you love when they're struggling, you just want to fix. yeah, that was incredibly it was a relief, but it was also scary because I wasn't sure how long it would last. but what I've seen with those who have who've been able to come out of the stress. is that both stress and calm are contagious. And so, for example, when we were in Los Angeles, we were working with fire-impacted people in the Palisades, Malibu, Santa Monica, Pasadena. this idea came about from our Hawaii practitioner, Carmela Tefoya. what we found together is that When people were vibing, that's what we call people who use Mindvybe our technology, when they were vibing in a group, what we observed is that there they become that kind of feeling of relaxation became contagious. They were opening up to each other and and kind of sharing strategies around dealing with insurance companies. But beyond that, we heard that when they went home to their families. That they were much more relaxed in helping them to manage. They themselves were not so knee-jerky and impatient, and that had a ripple effect on the family. We saw something similar when we were working with an addiction recovery center in Ben Salem. One of the comments from the staff for the people for the residents that we were vibing was that it just seemed much more light. People were more pleasant towards each other, and the interactions were much more positive. And so one of the things we know is that when you are out of that fight, flight, or freeze state, you're much more open to others, you're less defensive. And so if someone says something that might normally have you call them a name, you know, that you might disagree with, Once you're in a more regulated state, you're much more open to saying, that's different than how I think. You know, tell me more about that, as opposed to saying, boy, you're an idiot. What are you thinking? And so we see just as we work with groups, just a more open, community-oriented nature as people come out of that stress state. Kimberly Griggs: It it sounds amazing, like just as an experience almost like a a mini retreat that you get to have in the privacy of your own home. I'm curious because there are I I think we are at a an interesting time in history where technology is converging with the wellness space in droves. And so I know that there's a lot of misinformation out there. It sounds to me like you yourself experienced products that on the market that we're just not the right fit. What is the biggest misconception as you encounter new people, when you're explaining this technology and why it's different? What's the biggest misconception that people have around this? Ellyn Ito: Well, there are two things. One is most people don't know about using bioelectric technologies to help the body heal. So that's one thing that we explained. For those who do know, there are a number of stimulators out there on the market to help reset the nervous system. there are YouTube videos helping people to turn their TENS stimulators, those are muscle stimulators. into vagal nerve stimulators. and so one of the biggest misconceptions is that noninvasive or transcutaneous stimulation is not dangerous right you can get one off of amazon well in fact you can over stimulate you can Find yourself in a situation where you're delivering too much electricity, and that can become very dangerous at high levels, where the body actually suffers nervous system burnout, or where the effect that you are getting initially, maybe you feel very calm, maybe you're starting to feel a little bit of balance. after you get too much, or what's called hyperpolarization, you can actually boomerang. And so it's very important for people to think about, just like anything, getting educated around the different technologies that exist. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. So what is it actually doing to the Ellyn Ito: Mm, yeah. Kimberly Griggs: brain to create that response? Ellyn Ito: Yeah, so bioelectric stimulators or neuromodulators deliver current, electrical current, through the skin to different parts of the body. And that, as people may not know, is that the body communicates through electricity. So you're nodding your head. That's an electrical signal among neurons that is telling you to nod your head. Of course it moves there very very quickly. And so some of these technologies, and again it's hard to lump them all, there are some that use vibration, so just vibration of of movement, others use sound, some use light, but those that use electrical stimulation, it delivers current to the skin, which then propagates to different nerves, in the case of the vagus nerve stimulators, Propagates to the vagus nerve that then inspires communication throughout the body. The vagus nerve, is the longest bundle of nerve fibers throughout the body. It spans from the brain through all the major organs, and it's like the superhighway of communication. when it Kimberly Griggs: And what what role does it play in everyday life? Ellyn Ito: Sure, yes, it's responsible for managing all of the automatic functions of the body. So the way your heart rate beats, the way you breathe, your immune function, and your mood. the way you digest. So everything that you don't think about is what the vagus nerve is responsible for managing. Kimberly Griggs: So essentially is it sending these signals to this mega highway to communicate the opposite of stress? Like I don't I don't know the word to call Ellyn Ito: Yes, so again. Kimberly Griggs: it, but that's what it that essentially that's what it's doing for the Ellyn Ito: Yeah. Kimberly Griggs: for the whole system. Ellyn Ito: Yes, so the nervous system, there's the fight, flight, or freeze function of the nervous system. That's known as the sympathetic, your fear response. And then there's the rest, digest, and recover. And what our technology does is it stimulates in the frequencies that engage the rest, digest, and recover function of the nervous system. So for example when somebody meditates that is engaging and it's sending signaling through the the vagus nerve that engages that rest, digest, and recover function. What our technology does is it gives a boost Kimberly Griggs: Okay. Now it's making more sense, yeah. Ellyn Ito: to engage that function without having the person manage it. It bypasses the it's a passive technology. So it engages that rest and recover without that person having to think about it. Kimberly Griggs: so if the body is able to read those signals through this device. in as little as twenty five minutes on the first time. What does over time using this device on a you know, some sort of recurring cadence do for your overall health and well being in all of the areas that you mentioned at the beginning? Ellyn Ito: Yes. So I will say that it is unusual to have the response that my son had or that others have had within the first session. Only about forty percent of people feel it. and it is typically young people who are medication naive who feel it very quickly, or women who are very dysregulated. But otherwise, our studies show that five fifty minute sessions Over a five to seven day time period yields 90% of people, 90.9% of the participants in our studies feel improved symptoms of wellness as measured by sleep, agitation, mood, and focus. And so five sessions that persist for two weeks. And so what we typically will see, and and again, it depends on the nature of the dysregulation. you know, somebody who has had a life of trauma and who's been trying to manage this this stress over the course of 15, 20 years, it may take more to maintain the benefits of of the stimulation than somebody who is fifteen years old who is very highly resilient anyway, nervous systems tend to be much more resilient as you're young, who tend to shift more quickly. Kimberly Griggs: Sure. And so for people that have experienced that two-week period, what do they share with you? What are the stories that you've heard so Ellyn Ito: Yeah. So Kimberly Griggs: far? Ellyn Ito: we've heard everything from my executive function, my name recall is improved. we've heard improved focus, we've heard improved sleep. we've been like one guy said he is so much more patient with his ex wife than he's ever been in his entire since since their separation. where he said, Yeah, that Kimberly Griggs: Mic drop. It's worth it right there. Yeah. Ellyn Ito: Exactly. And these are l or the other thing is that, you know, loosened stress in the neck and shoulders, improved libido, improved elimination, just all of these downstream symptoms that are related again to chronic stress. Kimberly Griggs: Do you find that there are are many people that fit into the category where they don't even realize that they're chronically stressed? Ellyn Ito: Yeah, it's what's most interesting is when we go into companies, high performing organizations, where we will offer Mindvybe sessions to help people just relax. And most people, the majority of people have just normalized stress, right? The poor sleep, where they take gummies every night to go to sleep, the aches and pains that they just manage. You know, it's just a f a fact of life. we often self soothe, you know, we have our glass of wine every night to wind down. so most people don't even realize high blood pressure, their sometimes their lack of willpower, where you know, they're trying to go on diets or eat healthy and it's just really hard. those are not just mindset issues. It's often where what we've seen, many of our docs have seen that after a number of mindvybe sessions, people are making smarter choices about their lives. They are going to the gym when before it took them, you know, they've been talking to them about exercise for for months. they are now on a more healthy food regimine because they're thinking more clearly. there are physiological reasons for this, so when you are in stress, many people have heard the term dopamine, right? Dopamine is that crave hormone that makes you want to, makes you want something, and then once you get it, you're satisfied. When you are in stress and you're agitated, many times this is because people are dopamine downregulated. Meaning, how do I say this more simply? I'm getting too sciencey. Basically, when you are stressed out, it is much easier to reach for something that is comfortable, right? That makes you Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. Ellyn Ito: feel good in the moment than it is for you to to kind of say, no, I can hold off on that. And that is because you are in deficit, right? You are stressed out. it's much more difficult to think with your whole brain about longer term decisions because you are in need right now. And so so stress kind of eclipses that longer term thinking because you are in a moment of need and deficit right then. And so by Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. I mean, well, we're the body's trying to get to homeostasis, right? It just wants to normalize what you Ellyn Ito: Yes, said Kimberly Griggs: or what you're deeming as normal. So it makes choices that make it feel good in the moment, but not necessarily Ellyn Ito: Yes. Kimberly Griggs: good for the long term. Is that right? Ellyn Ito: Correct, that kinda often further dysregulate. Right. It it compounds. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. It just creates this loop. This never yeah, absolutely. Ellyn Ito: Yeah. So think of think about it this way. we have learned that exercise in this modern age is really important to maintain physical health. Like we we didn't need to do that 300 years ago because we were very active. now we've learned that regular exercise is essential for physical health. What we are beginning to understand now is how essential stilling the mind. is for our neurological health. Like that space in our brain to to engage that rest and recover function is critical to mind and body health. And we're starting to understand that now. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. So it's just kind of the next evolution of health and wellness discovery. Ellyn Ito: Yeah, so and and that we're starting to see as we recognize again I mentioned earlier that as AI comes online, it is putting a premium on higher cognitive thinking and those skills that are uniquely human. And that includes those skills of being in community and sharing ideas. And expanding on those ideas. We can have AI take care of the a a lot of some of the other thinking and task work, but the higher cognitive abilities and that bringing working together to expand that mind space is something that we as humans will need to will need to continue to cultivate. And one of the ways that we need to be able to do that is to be able to come together, without without that that stress in the way that is eclipsing our higher thinking. Kimberly Griggs: Yes, yeah. Well yeah, to to your point earlier, when you're in fight or flight, it's very difficult to slow down enough to have a conversation and be engaged and Ellyn Ito: Yes. Kimberly Griggs: be open minded, very kind of task oriented and on to the next thing. Ellyn Ito: That's that's absolutely right. And and you know, the other thing that we in Western medicine haven't recognized, we're starting to recognize, is the integrative nature of the mind and the body. So there's a wonderful book that is called The Body Keeps the Score. And it's all about how stress and as as he talks about it through trauma, but how that stress manifests in the body. unless it's processed. And so we know that when you are in a state of fight, flight or freeze, it eclipses your immune function. because you're prioritizing kind of that quick muscle getaway or freeze state, right? And so we know there are studies that show how engaging that rest and recover function through any number of means, not just neuromodulation, really helps to improve overall immune function and health. Kimberly Griggs: Sounds like there's so much upside and and as a listener, just you know, hearing what you have to say and your perspectives on how this product could be a pivotal I look at it as kind of a jump start to create a cycle of better overall wellness, that has to be incredibly exciting from a from a mission standpoint. it leads me to being curious about the business itself. So let's shift gears a little bit about building Ellyn Ito: Sure. Kimberly Griggs: the business and what that experience has been like. You know, building a startup is hard enough, but this is kind of almost a an entirely new category, which has to be even much more complex. you know, in your opinion, what's been the biggest challenge for you personally, but also as a company getting the word out? Ellyn Ito: Yeah, so it is hard. and to talk about the biggest challenge is a challenge because there are so many challenges. it is disruptive to the way we provide care right now. devices, hardware is something that not many people want to invest in as as a as a startup company, and helping to educate people on ways to Integrate care, nervous system, body is something that is brand new. And and so it's it really is threefold. It's it's getting out there and educating people on integrative wellness, which is very different from pill culture to resolve one symptom, right? Or to mask a symptom. So so that education is something new. Two is raising the right sort of funding in the device space that is expansive. Like we want this available to everybody who needs it, not just to people who can shell out the big bucks. we don't want this to become something that only rich people can have. And and so that is that requires investors who share that vision. And and three startups, like you said, we're a very small team and we you know we are doing what we can with what we have, which is not always the same as doing what we can with what we need, right? It's it's a different conversation. And so personally for me, I'm used to having complete control, which is by the way, that is a fallacy. No one ever has complete control, but I'm really used to being able to manage exactly how I want to execute. There are so many things out of our control. And for me personally, it really is managing the little demons that come up, right? you must not be good enough because you haven't hit this one milestone yet. Or you're doing something terribly wrong because you, you know, you haven't been able to support your founders the way you said. and really kind of managing through the negative voices and being open to ideas and suggestions around, okay, so maybe I could have done this differently. Maybe I screwed up there. you know, but that doesn't mean I'm I'm you know, I I'm I'm chop liver, right? It's it's really kind of managing Kimberly Griggs: Right. Ellyn Ito: the voices in my head as much as it is really rising to the occasion and staying. focused on what it is that we are delivering to people. And and that's probably Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. Ellyn Ito: the challenges in a in a nutshell. Kimberly Griggs: I love that you said that because, you know, on in in these conversations I hear that a lot, that oftentimes, you know, I I think we think of progress or success as being, you know, a linear journey, and it is definitely not. It it is most often what I hear on this show is you know, founders or or entrepreneurs expressing the fact that it's a few steps forward with a setback and and that really over the course of time is where, you know, success. however you deem that or however you are personally measuring that gets created. So I'm curious, Ellyn, what is what currently is your secret sauce to keeping both the right mindset and also, you know, continuing to be driven by this, you know, impactful mission. Ellyn Ito: Yeah. I think my secret sauce is we cannot fail at this. When when I s when I say that, I mean that there's too much at stake for us to let this go quietly. And so I guess my secret sauce is just being very tenacious. Like I see the end goal. And for me to quit or stop is so like out of the question. And b because we're so close and we've been so close for the last five years, I should say, but no, really understanding that we're doing what we can with what we have to hit the milestones we can hit. And I will say that even though raising the right sort of capital has been very challenging. We've continued to impact lives. patient care and and taking care of the people who need us is always at the center of what it is we're doing. And we know we've impacted lives, and we're continuing to gather data, and we're continuing to form partnerships that are very valuable. And so I guess that secret sauce is just doing what we can with what we have to stay true to the vision and even in the most down of down times, we know that there are very high highs that we are hitting and that we will we will eventually get to. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. What is a if if you could give, you know, someone in your in your shoes that is essentially selling a product that requires a lot of education or a lot of you know prior knowledge before someone feels comfortable enough even exploring the next step, you know, what would your what what have you found to be successful in making that transition so that you have people that are raising their hands? Ellyn Ito: I'm probably the wrong person to ask because I'm I'm always I I tend to get very detailed, but one of the things that we've seen work the best is just the storytelling. When people go out and share their own experiences or or you know, we have a number of champions who are helping us with the business because they or their children have had success with with the technology. It is the storytelling that really helps people understand what it is we're doing. You know, science schmience. You know, people want to know that it that it works and there's evidence around it. More importantly, they want to know how it's going to help them. And so those stories are the ones that really matter. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. looking ahead, when I when you think about this product five years from now, you know, what is it that it what do you hope that people are saying about it? Ellyn Ito: Yeah, what I'm hoping that people are saying about it is that vibing becomes the verb for for that boost of wellness. So in the future, just like we see in little pockets here, we hear people talking about, yeah, I was so stressed out because that report didn't go well, but then I vibed and and I'm feeling much better about it. Or, you know, I haven't been able to meditate and so I went on on Mindvybe and I vibed and I'm kind of back into it now. I want vibing and our technology. So we also have a non-invasive deep brain stimulator for neurodegeneration like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. I want our machines in every house affordable so that they can use these technologies the way they you know for their brain health and nervous system health in the same way they might hop on a treadmill or on a Peloton to maintain physical health. Like I want people to understand that optimizing the nervous system and the brain health does not need to require surgery or drugs, that that there are tools that can be used to boost one's own practices to enhance that optimization of brain and nervous system health. Kimberly Griggs: Love that. That is one meaningful mission. what excites you most where you are right now in and what is left to be finished? Ellyn Ito: I guess what excites me most about where we are right at this very moment is that there is so much opportunity ahead for both our investor partners and the customers and partners that we have just started to get engaged with. We are right at the cusp of scaling. And so that's both daunting, but it's also super exciting because there are so many things that we're going to learn. Every time we get a device out to a practitioner, there is a new use case that is is learned about. And so there will just be an amplification of the effect that mind vibe is having on people. And and then as we perfect our non-invasive deep brain stimulator, that will be very meaningful for people who are managing neurodegenerative symptoms. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. Yeah. Well, Ellyn this has been a a great conversation and and thank you for helping us to understand or start our education process about how important this is and you know, the ripple effects that we stand to gain by integrating this into a wellness routine. we always end with a couple of final questions, so I wanna get to those now. But, you Ellyn Ito: So yeah. Kimberly Griggs: know, based off everything you said and and building the business, if you could eliminate one obstacle or one challenge really standing in the way right now between what you just shared, having this available and in homes everywhere, what would you make disappear right now? Ellyn Ito: the need for funding. I mean, that's such a huge thing, right? but you know, the I spend an incredible amount of time right now talking with investors. And once that is closed, we'll really be able to work on getting this out to the people who need it. so that that'll be that that work stream will be resolved at least for the next 12 to 18 months. very soon. but once that's done we'll be able to really unleash some of our plans and our technology to those in need. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah. For anyone who might be listening that might be connected to investors, who is the ideal investor for for you? Ellyn Ito: they're typically impact investors or family offices who are interested in brain health and nervous system health. They might be dealing with issues like suicide, like PTSD, like addiction, like neurodegeneration these are individuals who are passionate about expansive capital. So capital that does good and that is expansive for many, not just extractive for a few of the partners. So we're really looking for partners who want to be involved and who see the possibilities for human health and well-being across the board. It's not just about a quick 10x return. Kimberly Griggs: Yeah, yeah, I love that. Thank you for sharing that. all right, final question, Ellyn, And this is kind of a hypothetical scenario that we ask everyone, but let's say you, you come into a a great amount of financing and making that mission possible. And Mindvybe vibing actually becomes the Kleenex of tissue, right? in our homes and it's everywhere. You've accomplished everything you've set out to do. But you can't leave behind any record of that that process. You can't believe leave behind the podcast, the education, the social media, the books, the speeches. All of that goes away for whatever reason. But what you do get to leave behind are three lessons for the entrepreneur, the inventor, or just the dream catcher out there who is looking to, you know, fill your shoes. What would your three lessons to that person be? Ellyn Ito: Gosh, my my three lessons. One would be to trust your intuition. So trust your intuition on and what what it is you want your vision to do. Be open to feedback. Consider that feedback, but trust your intuition. That's one. Second, use what the naysayers say as fuel. There are always people who are saying, you should do it this way. you're not doing it right, blah, blah, blah. Use that as fuel because it means that people are taking notice. And the third thing is do what you can with what you have. Like find those things that you can do right now that move you forward. Don't sit back and say, woe is me. If you have a great idea that you are passionate about, do what you can with what you have. And just and don't give up on it. There's a reason why you've been given this inspiration. So honor it. Kimberly Griggs: Thanks for sharing all of those. I think those are important for for anyone looking to try to accomplish something big is to stay connected and doing, you know, being a good steward of the resources that you have in your hand at the moment. so thank you for sharing all that. again, I just want to acknowledge you. Thank you for being vulnerable and sharing the story about your son and thank you for living in a space of curiosity and and hope for, you know, transformation in a a healthier Ellyn Ito: Yeah. Kimberly Griggs: way of living. I I I can sense and feel your desire. in that and I know that that that comes from walking a hard road personally so I I just want to acknowledge you for that Ellyn, final words for our listeners and also share with us where we can learn more about Mindvybe and and connect with Ellyn Ito: Sure. Kimberly Griggs: you. Ellyn Ito: Yeah, so www.mindvybe.com We have a website. Feel free to reach out to me. I'm sure it'll be in the show notes if there are any questions that you might have. We also have a number of practitioners throughout the country that are on our Mindvybe website. If you want to use Mindvybe at those locations, that can happen. And we're always open to talking to new practitioners or providers. So if you're curious, reach out. Kimberly Griggs: Awesome. Well, thank you so much. Thank you guys for tuning in, and we will see you next time. Ellyn Ito: Yes, thank you, Kimberly. Thank you so much.