Meet Your Instructor:
Lauren Ziaks, PT, DPT, ATC, NCS has over 10 years of experience treating individuals with complex medical conditions including concussion, Long-COVID, and dysautonomia. She has helped >2000 patients improve their quality of life. Through this growing and evolving practice, she has developed new treatment protocols to help close the intervention gap in knowledge that exists in concussion management today.
She is a graduate of Northeastern University with both a Bachelor of Athletic Training and a Doctor of Physical Therapy. To further her research and future impact, Lauren started her journey as a PhD in Health Sciences student at Nova Southeastern University. Lauren was proud to accept the Academy of Neurologic Physical Therapy’s Clinical Excellence Award in 2026.
She was previously certified in vestibular rehabilitation therapy with the American Institute of Balance but earned her vestibular competency through Duke University in 2021. She is a Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy (NCS). Lauren has advanced training in vision therapy and operates her practice under the direction of a FCOVD neuro-optometrist. These advanced trainings have allowed her to develop integrated vision and vestibular therapy protocols – treating the brain the way the brain is used in real life vs in specialty silos.
After years of experience in helping patients with chronic concussion symptoms, Lauren became an integral part of developing new protocols for patients with autonomic disorders (dysautonomia). These conditions can occur due to illness or injury however, the COVID-19 pandemic rapidly expanded this patient population. Lauren had the opportunity to co-author the Utah Autonomic Disorders adaptive Physical Therapy (ADaPT) protocol, increasing her clinical impact.
Following her own traumatic brain injury and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) diagnoses, Lauren has dedicated her practice to helping others Return to Life and Sport. She created Phoenix Concussion Recovery to provide educational resources to patients and providers alike.
Lauren has published her novel evaluation and treatment protocols in peer-reviewed journals and presents at universities, local, state, and national conferences. Two of her presentations have been selected as Hot Topics for CSM – the physical therapy annual conference. Her goal is to train as many providers as possible to improve patient outcomes across the United States.