The Brain God Designed
A neuroscientist on brain health, aging, and writing on hope
For more than 20 years, I’ve studied the brain across the lifespan.
What I’ve learned has changed how I think about aging and disease.
Welcome- I’m so glad you’re here.
I’m Robyn Honea Dickinson, PhD (you may know my work under Robyn Honea), a neuroscientist whose work has focused on what protects (and sometimes threatens) brain health across life- from development to midlife to aging. My research has examined how factors like hormone exposure, metabolism, genetics, exercise, and mental health shape brain structure, function, and risk for Alzheimer’s disease.
My work has been published in journals like Brain, Neurobiology of Aging, and Neurology, with over 70 publications and 7,500 citations. I’ve had the privilege of mentoring students and trainees, directing neuroimaging programs to study brain health, collaborating with researchers across institutions, speaking all over the country, and I have learned so much in the process.
Over the years, one thing has become increasingly clear:
The brain is far more dynamic, adaptable, and resilient than we often believe.
It is shaped across a lifetime- by biology, behavior, environment, and experience.
But there’s another part of this story that I haven’t shared publicly until now.
I’m also a committed follower of Jesus Christ.
For much of my career, I kept my faith separate from my professional life. But over time, I’ve come to believe that the same God who knit us together in the womb (Psalm 139) is the One who sustains and renews us day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16).
In many ways, my faith has shaped not only my perspective, but also how I interpret what I see in my scientific research.
We are not only shaped by biology and experience, we are shaped by the God who made us, and made us wonderfully.
Neuroscience reveals something powerful:
The brain can change. It can adapt. It can heal in ways we are still discovering.
God designed our brains with resilience, strength, and the capacity for regeneration.
Scripture reveals something even deeper:
We were not designed for decline alone, but for renewal.
In a culture filled with biohacking, fear of death, and self-optimization, I want you to have something deeper:
Hope- a renewed sense of the beauty and purpose in how you were created.
This newsletter is where I bring those two perspectives together.
Here’s what you can expect:
- Insights from neuroscience on brain health, development, and aging
- Practical ways to care for your brain across the lifespan
- Reflections on mental health, resilience, and identity
- Biblical encouragement for seasons of change, fear, and uncertainty
- A deeper look at what it means to steward the mind we’ve been given
I write this as both a scientist and a believer- hoping to encourage you to think differently about your brain, your health, and your life from a Biblical perspective.
If you’re navigating midlife changes, supporting someone with cognitive decline, raising children, facing mental health challenges, or simply wanting to care for your mind more intentionally, you are in the right place.
For more of my writings, please visit: https://substack.com/@thebraingoddesigned
