Dr Sarah McKay

a. A two-week intensive online course in Applied Neuroscience & Brain Health. 8th-19th June or 17th-28th August, 2026 ICF & NBHWC CE accredited. a.A practical introduction to applied neuroscience and brain health for professionals The Brain Coach Bootcamp is an intensive two-week online training in applied neuroscience and brain health for professionals working in coaching, therapy, leadership an…

This week, I was stopped in my tracks (well, to be honest, it stopped my scroll!) by a finding about babies’ brains and Alzheimer’s disease. It turns out, healthy newborns appear to begin life with surprisingly high levels of the same toxic protein buildup linked to Alzheimer’s, only for those levels to fall rapidly in early infancy. Maybe one clue about brain ageing might eventually come from st…

Practical neuroscience training for coaches, therapists & educators The Neuroscience Academy brings professional development and training in applied neuroscience and brain health to a global audience. - Designed for leaders, coaches, therapists, educators, mental health and wellbeing practitioners. - Students work towards a certificate in Applied Neuroscience and Brain Health, equivalent to 40 ho…

It’s easy to talk about midlife or menopausal brain fog as if there must be one clear cause and one clear fix, but the brain rarely works that way. Hormones, sleep disruption, autonomic nervous system activation, energy metabolism, mood, and attention may all interact. If you’d like a quick explanation of how I’m thinking about all these puzzle pieces, you can see my latest Instagram post here. A…

a. Online training in women’s neurobiology and brain health: From biology to biography to brain plasticity! Next 5-day trainings: 4th-8th May and 27th-31st July 2026. Deepen your expertise in women's brain health and neurobiology. IHH is a continuing professional development training created for coaches, therapists, educators, mental health and well-being practitioners who work with girls and wom…

This week, I spoke at an International Women’s Day event about women’s brain health. I began by pointing out that women have been in neuroscience for generations. More than half of my undergraduate neuroscience class were women. But we haven’t always been inside the data. We’ve run labs, taught students and published research for decades. Yet our own biology, from puberty to pregnancy to menopaus…

If you follow me on social media, you’ll see I’ve been proudly part of a new global campaign to raise awareness of the word matrescence and get it added to the dictionary. The process of becoming a mother was coined as matrescence back in the ‘70s. Like adolescence, matrescence describes the social, psychological, and neurological transition into a new life stage: motherhood. But type “matrescenc…

This week, I was once again caught up in a news storm over the latest misleading headlines following work was published in Psychological Medicine. While some headlines were claiming “menopause shrinks women’s brains”, I was asked if the research was junk science (neither is the case). As always with TV news appearances, my thoughts were cut to a super short soundbite, which I expand on in this In…

10 bite-sized lessons in brain health, delivered daily to your inbox in simple, practical language. My sense is that everyone is too busy and burned out for extensive (and expensive) courses. This free micro-training in applied neuroscience is quick, entertaining, and packed with valuable insights. Over ten tiny email-based lessons, you’ll learn the following neuroscience concepts: - The interpla…

This year, I’ve shared 43 editions of my neuroscience and women’s brain health micro-briefings with you all. These updates, carefully curated by my talented PhD neuroscience team (lead by Lily at Pitch Science), identify science news stories, break down complex research into simple, actionable takeaways (proudly AI-free!). We’ve covered a range of topics, from aging and dementia to mental health …

e. We bring neuroscience and coaching together. Our next NCN intake commences 14th September 2026. Professional training in applied neuroscience for coaching and leadership. - Created for new, experienced and certified coaches with a genuine interest in exploring how to apply brain science to their practice: Build something real! - Designed to encourage conversations and collaboration between the…

a. An on-demand course in applied neuroscience for professionals in human behaviour, mental health & wellbeing. Comprehensive & up-to-date curriculum. a. Study online at your own pace from anywhere in the world. On-demand access to The Neuroscience Academy online content, including: 17 lecture-based lessons + summary notes + worksheets + hand-picked resource library. Comprehensive and up-to-date …

Sign up for email micro-briefings in women’s brain health and neuroscience ➡️ Get Email Briefings 🧬 🄧🄧 Why are women more vulnerable to some neurological conditions, like Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis? Well, a new study in mice has identified a gene on the X chromosome that enhances brain inflammation. As women have two X chromosomes, compared to men who only have one, it’s theorised…

What you'll learn from 'Baby Brain' - What happens to the brain during the journey through matrescence. - How pregnancy prepares the mind for motherhood. - Cuteness and crying babies: how our brains respond. - Nesting, maternal instinct, and the 'Mama Bear' — patriarchal myths or Mother Nature's mandates? - Is parenting hardwired or learned? Instinctive or experiential? Biological or cultural? - …

Sign up for weekly email micro-briefings in women’s brain health and neuroscience: Get Briefings 🌏 Yes. Women’s health has been ignored for too long, but I’m an optimist and I see that tide is finally turning, with serious funding flowing in. One example is the Wellcome Leap Foundation’s CARE (Cutting Alzheimer’s Risk through Endocrinology) initiative, led by neuroscientist Lisa Mosconi. CARE is …

Whether you're a coach, health professional, educator, therapist or simply curious about how the brain works, our science-backed neuroscience courses offer clear, practical, and accessible training in applied neuroscience and brain health. Our online neuroscience training programs are designed to help professionals understand brain science and apply it in real-world settings including coaching, t…

a. TV Appearances and Interviews In Australia, one in 40 of us born today will live until we are 100, yet many of us will live our later years in poor health. In my ABC Catalyst documentary, I explore the extraordinary new science about how to keep our brains healthy into old age. Click here to watch >> ‘Staying Longer for Longer: Brain' Australians catch up via ABC iView. Outside Australia? You …

I explain brain science in a straightforward, relevant and engaging way, weaving in stories and strategies that promote peak performance, women's health, brain health, and well-being. For professionals, I distil neuroscience, health psychology and principles of coaching into practical tools and strategies for use in the clinic, classroom or corporation. For general audiences, I share my neuro-kno…

This is the complete list of references cited in the fully updated and revised second edition of The Women’s Brain Book (2025). We’re gradually adding hyperlinks where available for further reading and exploration. For those interested in learning more, we offer a professional development training course in women’s brain health and neurobiology across the lifespan, based on the book. Learn more h…

Imagine this: thinking about exercise strengthens your muscles, even if you don’t move an inch. Mental imagery not only activates the same brain regions as the actual movement but also can speed up the learning of a new skill. Mental imagery and sports performance Mental imagery, mental practice, or visualisation is a technique that has been used by sports psychologists for years to improve athle…