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Dan joined Momma on February 2, 2026 for a live Q&A via Twitch and YouTube to talk about Traumatic Brain Injuries, Gamification & Rebuilding
About Dan
At 28, Dan was leading a healthy, active life. After an optometrist appointment to identify the cause of his persistent headaches was cut short, he was handed a sealed envelope and told to go directly to the hospital. What followed, was emergency brain surgery. On June 21, 2014, Dan's reality was shattered by a devastating brain hemorrhage. With no map to guide him on the grueling path to recovery, Dan had to rely on his grit, perseverance, and resilience to relearn everything he once knew: how to walk, talk and even smile.
Dan has survived two emergency brain surgeries, weeks in a coma, and months in a rehab hospital. What he found out along the way might surprise you: there is nothing like a brain injury to refocus the mind! Driven by a positive mindset, Dan battled through excruciating rehab exercises to rebuild his life and return to a job he loved.
He’s grateful for the doctors who saved him and the friends and family who supported him. Now he wants to pay it forward. The tools Dan used to build back his life can be used by anyone facing challenges. He reveals strategies to help folks be #BetterThanYesterday and achieve their goals, one step at a time. His action-oriented life hacks help others tackle anything they face.
Socials / Links for Guest Connection
Website - http://www.macqueendan.com/
Twitter / X - https://twitter.com/macqueendan
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/macqueendan/
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielmacqueen/
References / Things Mentioned During the Stream
Show Recommendation: Breaking Bad
Book Recommendations: Ryan Holiday on Stoicism
Confucius Quote - “We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.”
Favorite Poem - Invictus by William Ernest Henley
Invictus
William Ernest Henley
Out of the night that covers me
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance,
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate
I am the captain of my soul.