Catessa Barnes

Tessa Barnes is a freelance writer, public speaker, and survivor of a massive stroke. Tessa graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Louisville with a B.S.W. in Social Work in 2014 and went on to get her license in Social Work in 2015. After graduation Tessa began working with the Crimes Against Children Unit for DCBS. At the age of 22 she suffered a massive stroke in the left temporal lobe of her brain. After spending 18 days in the hospital, she started her journey to recovery, spending the following 12 weeks in outpatient rehabilitation at Frazier Rehabilitation Institute. Tessa’s speaking  engagements include the American Heart Association, JCPS, Kentucky Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Task Force, as well as for the Stroke Care Network.