Donalee Markus is a life saver. I found her from the book, Ghost in my Brain and was also referred to her by Dr. Zelinsky. I have been suffering from a concussion for 12 months where I could not do math, tell time, spell, dizzy, majorly tired etc. Due to COVID we could not meet in person so I sent her my lengthy 40 page neurological test results. She not only read them, but she read them twice and immediately identified another aspect of my TBI which was not diagnosed. Over the phone she reassured me that I was going to be OK and she referred me to an additional specialist who could help me with that issue. Donalee is so kind and caring. Before we got off the phone, she helped me order an IPad online so I could download some of her brain games. The second phone call she sent me packets of work to do via the mail. Donalee identifies the areas which are not working for you and gives you the appropriate puzzles to help redirect and reorganize how your brain works. Within 4 months she had me doing logic puzzles. It is amazing to feel sharp again, my husband has most definitely seen the difference. Donalee is one of those rare individuals who truly cares that you get better.

I was referred to Donalee after my students vision was addressed by Dr. Zelinsky. She was a 12 year old struggling student. We did a telephone consultation with Donalee (this was still before the Covid-19 pandemic!) and followed up with all of her recommendations. We did the paper exercises and some games on a tablet. Her focusing, ability to pay attention to details, processing speed, organization and thinking improved quite a bit. Shes doing so much better; shes a different kid!

Donalee is simply amazing. Her drive and compassion for improvement is incredible. Her ability to diagnose and provide areas for long term improvement without on going consultation is great as I live overseas. Would highly recommend Donalee

My daughter was having issues with her peer interactions and she was not able to keep up in certain school subjects like math. Donalee told us that she knew exactly what was wrong with our daughter, and gave us a long and confusing explanation of how she was going to fix it.The more the questions I asked Dr. Markus the more convoluted and unbelievable her answers became. Despite the initial warning signs my husband and I decided to give Donalee and her team a chance.The initial consultation was $1000.00 and was supposed to last 2 hours however it lasted no more than an hour and fifteen minutes. Already my husband and I were becoming concerned.On our third my daughter came to our car crying because Donalee had yelled at her! When I confronted Donalee she was totally dismissive cavalierly blaming my daughter behavior while while my daughter sat in the car crying and shaking.Honestly this was one of the worst experiences my daughter has had and I feel so guilty for exposing her to Donalee. We are currently in the process of working with an attorney to explore how we can get our money back.

Throughout all my schooling, I was labeled “Learning Disabled”. I always struggled with academics and figured – it’s just the way it is. I first met Donalee in 1993. Within five minutes she asked where if my contact lenses were bothering me; I said, “I don’t wear contacts”. She asked where my glasses were? I said, “I don’t wear glasses – I have 20/20 vision” Donalee implored me to go see Dr. Zelinsky; an eye function specialist. While I always tested 20/20 on the eye charts, one eye was stronger than the other. My brain was working so hard to balance my eyes that I would become fatigued after 10 minutes of reading or concentrating on anything. This was my entire life; always disorganized and unfocused. The glasses fixed that problem. I then began to work with Donalee on puzzles which retrained my brain to think in a focused and more organized way. This process completely changed my new, fledgling business and my entire life. I have referred more people to Donalee than I can count. The work she is doing is groundbreaking and life altering. I only wish I had found her 30 years earlier. Steve C.

I have a daughter who suffers from post-concussion syndrome and her relief began with Donalee. Donalee was able to pinpoint the issues and tailor her treatment to meet my daughter’s changing needs. She listened to my daughter, did not dismiss her symptoms and helped her to heal. I brought another daughter to see Donalee as she was having issues with test-taking. Donalee immediately saw that her eyes were not in sync, which made the words jump off the page as she became fatigued - something that her ophthalmologist did not pick up. She was able to get lenses to fix the problem. Donalee is passionate about her clients and always made us feel welcomed. I would highly recommend Donalee to anyone who has cognitive brain issues.

My wife was in a car accident and had significant issues with cognitive function impairment from post-concussive syndrome. We are now about a year out and she has been seeing Donalee for about 8 months. The puzzles and exercises are very helpful for training the brain to use new neuro-pathways. The analysis that Donalee offers and her observations of how the brain is functioning or not functioning, as you do the puzzles is remarkable. Her personalized insights for Deb, have made coping with the post-concussive symptoms more bearable. We are glad to have had the excellent thoughtful care of this innovative forward thinking brain analysis professional.

I was referred to Dr. Donalee Markus as part of my overall treatment plan for recovery from a traumatic brain injury from a car accident in 2018.I found her to be extremely helpful and experienced in the methods for using puzzles to help regain cognitive abilities lost from injury. She has a deep understanding and unique background in helping people that were high functioning before injury. This has been critical to me and it was such a relief to be understood and to have someone explain so well what was happening and the pathway for treatment.She has created thousands of puzzles and I was impressed by her ability to detect my deficits and guide me to the puzzles I needed next. Recovering from a brain injury often feels like trying to climb Mt. Everest. It’s not easy to do and you need knowledgable and caring people on your team. I found her to be all of those things and very dedicated to helping people with brain injuries, often working 6 days a week to fit everyone in.She is a gem in this world and I highly recommend Donalee. I am certainly grateful for all she has done for me.

I had a concussion injury in a car accident in April of 2015. After 3 years of OT, PT, ST, and so many other attempts to recover, I was suffering depression, and my motor function was extremely compromised. I suffered from vertigo, was constantly exhausted by almost any stimulation, my vision was impaired, and I required sunglasses in any but very dim light. Before the accident, I was a high functioning PhD, in private practice in Colorado. After the accident, I felt like an Alzheimer patient. Quality of life was horrible.In order to fly to Chicago and be capable of seeing Dr. Markus, my sister flew in from the East Coast to assist me(due to my obvious disability).Dr Markus was immediately warm, engaging, and compassionate. She was more insightful in assessing my condition within the first 10 minutes of our initial session, then my neurologist had been for the previous 3 years! She assessed me and offered clear, achievable direction for treatment, sending me home with a pile of puzzles.I have been doing pencil on paper puzzles from her, since. Due to the visual issues, I am not yet able to do any of her apps (which i have recommended to several friends and clients). It has been a year and three quarters, and several visits from my home in Colorado to Chicago to see Dr. Markus (as well as Dr Deborah Zelinsky of the Mind Eye Institute for vision therapy). I have slowly begun seeing clients, recovered most of my physical balance, have few motor function symptoms, only need sunglasses outside, can balance my checkbook again, and am reclaiming my life.If you choose to see Dr Markus, be prepared to feel embraced by her enthusiasm and warmth. Do not underestimate her brilliantly disarming capacity to assess your situation. Apply yourself to the puzzles and enjoy tangible results.Her job is to give you what you need. Your job is to do it and discover the unfolding results.Thank you, Donnalee Markus, for helping me to reclaim and embrace life.

Donalee Markus is a real character and I dont mean that in a good way. I dont think I have ever met someone who has immediately made me feel as uncomfortable as Donalee. I felt like I was in the presence of evil. The feeling she gives is of a hungry predator...and your her meal.

I am not sure about some of the reviews Ive read. I saw Dr. Donna Lee for 3 months in the fall 1997 after suffering a concussion. I remember she kept telling me and my husband things that seemed off. She would tell us all these stories of how many famous people and institutions she worled for and how many people she saved and seemed not to care about me at all. My husband who only met her twice felt there was something insincere about her confirming how I felt too. She never helped me after my concussion and offerend no refund for her serivices.

Saw her when I was young, she charged my parents a boatload of money for an initial consultation, which was pleasant and full of (in retrospect) outlandish promises. Gave us the impression that shed be working closely with me to improve how my brain worked in some vague and vacuous way.The reality was much different. Once or twice a week, my parents paid copious amounts of money so I could have the privilege of sitting in her basement with a bunch of other kids and working on worthless puzzles. That was really it. I would interact with her from time to time, and it was always unpleasant at best and unprofessional at worst.She claims that shes worked with NASA -- I certainly hope that claim is as baseless as some of the other ones she makes, or else our space program is in deep peril.

My son was referred to Donalee for treatment in the Fall of 2018. Donalee promised me and my wife that she could help our son David improve his thinking and planning skills. My son, who is disabled went to see Donalee for an evaluation. My son came out crying saying she yelled at him. When I asked what happened she was rude to me and my wife too and said David was being uncooperative and needed to learn to behave himself. Terrible.

She creeped me out.