Picture this: Husband and wife stumbling through the front door after another 12-hour day. That was Hamilton and me a few years back. We excelled at taking care of everyone else and at building companies to help others heal. But by evening? We barely had energy left for ourselves.

Hamilton's a psychiatrist, neuroscientist, and serial entrepreneur whose brain doesn't come with an off switch. He saw thousands of patients as a clinician, co-founded a mental health clinic with me, and led a venture-backed AI company, and his mind would keep spinning with new ideas. Meanwhile, I spent my days as a nutritionist helping patients rebuild their relationship with food, only to come home too depleted to practice what I preached.

Our solution started simple, like a grandmother’s recipe. We'd retreat to our kitchen and make mugs of homemade cocoa. Not the sugary stuff commonly found in grocery stores, but something we'd been quietly experimenting with: real cocoa infused with adaptogens Hamilton had been researching.

This became our signal to shift gears. From doing to being. From solving the world's problems to simply being present with each other.

Hamilton brought the brain science (and yes, the inability to stop optimizing everything). I brought the curation of nutrient-rich ingredients, the flavor obsession and the gentle reminder that not everything needs to be disrupted. Some things just need to be savored.

Together, we discovered something beautiful: nourishment doesn't have to choose between being good for you and feeling good.

Every evening, as we sipped our creation, something magical happened. Hamilton's entrepreneurial brain would finally quiet. Our nervous systems would exhale. Sleep came easier. Mornings felt clearer. Even our daughter Stella noticed we were more present, and Hamilton stopped answering emails during bedtime stories.

What started in our kitchen moved to the lab. And after countless iterations, Brainoa was born. We named it after the brain it nourishes and the "oa" that feels like a gentle exhale.

As healthcare professionals who've built companies in the mental health space, we've seen what happens when people run on empty for too long. The brain fog that no amount of coffee can clear. The 3 AM wake-ups with racing thoughts. The feeling that calm is always just one more milestone away.

We've also witnessed the profound shifts that happen when people find simple, sustainable ways to care for their brains and minds, not through complicated protocols or expensive supplements, but through a simple ritual of something delicious.

Today, our evening routine looks much the same, just with prettier packaging. After dinner, we dim the lights. After tucking Stella in, we prepare our Brainoa. Hamilton has learned to close his laptop first (mostly). He adds a splash of whole milk to his mug; I keep mine simple with just hot water. No phones. No screens. Just us, our mugs, and whatever book we're getting lost in that week.

This is what we want to share with you. Whether you're juggling work and family, building something new, or simply trying to remember what rest feels like, you deserve this moment of calm.

In a world that profits from your exhaustion, choosing rest is revolutionary. Let's make brain health feel less like another item on your to-do list and more like the cozy ritual your body has been craving.

Come join us for a cup?

With warmth,
Cleo & Dr. Hamilton
Founders @ Brainoa

P.S. Hamilton wants you to know he still has ten new ideas a day. But now he writes them down and returns to his cocoa. Progress, not perfection.