About The Founder
Sharni Maree
SCIENTIST - EDUCATOR- CHRONIC ILLNESS SURVIVOR
Sharni Maree is the founder of Smart Bear Health, with a background in health sciences, functional medicine, rehabilitation, neuroscience, education, and research.
Her work is informed by both professional training and lived experience navigating her own complex chronic illness, including cancer, endometriosis, and autoimmunity.
Through her personal recovery and clinical training across hospital and rehabilitation settings, she observed a consistent gap in patient education - particularly for people experiencing chronic pain and fatigue - where time constraints often leave patients without the structure or support needed to fully understand their condition or navigate their options.
Smart Bear Health was created to address this gap by publishing accessible, evidence-informed education programs and patient resources that support informed, patient-centred care and meaningful progress towards recovery.
The Foundations of Smart Bear Health
Sharni Maree is the founder of Smart Bear Health, with a background in health sciences, functional medicine, rehabilitation, neuroscience, education, and research. Her work is shaped by both professional training and lived experience navigating her own complex chronic illness, including cancer, endometriosis, and autoimmune disease.
Her early experiences with chronic illness began in her teens, when endometriosis led to persistent pain, fatigue, and significant disruption to daily life. As symptoms progressed, she encountered a challenge that many people know all too well - limited explanations, narrow treatment options, and little structured guidance to understand what was happening or how to move forward.
This led her to begin independently researching, testing, and gradually building her own approach to managing symptoms and restoring function. Over time, she was able to stabilise her health and return to study and work - but the process was fragmented, time-consuming, and often overwhelming to navigate alone.
While working in natural health and clinical environments, she recognised the same pattern repeatedly: people navigating complex symptoms were often left to piece together their own understanding of their condition, with limited access to credible education or a pathway forward.
At 21, her health journey took a significant turn when she was diagnosed with cancer following a prolonged period of unexplained symptoms and clinical uncertainty. Treatment involved multiple surgeries, chemotherapy, radiation, and intensive care support. What followed was an extended recovery period focused on rebuilding energy, function, and capacity from a baseline of significant disability.
Returning to clinical training after treatment, Sharni brought a different perspective to her work - one shaped not only by theory, but by lived experience of navigating complex illness, recovery, and the healthcare system itself.
Her formal research training and Honours thesis further highlighted the significance of the gap in patient education and health literacy. Her research in pain neurophysiology and education explored how patient understanding influences recovery, finding that individuals with a clearer understanding of their condition and options demonstrated stronger self-efficacy - a factor consistently associated with improved outcomes across chronic illness.
During clinical placements across hospital and rehabilitation settings, she observed this same gap in patient education - particularly for individuals experiencing chronic pain and fatigue - where time constraints often limit the ability to provide clear, structured explanation and guidance.
This gap - between what patients need and what the clinical system can realistically provide - became impossible for her to ignore.
These clinical and research insights, combined with her personal experience and professional training, formed the foundation for Smart Bear Health.
Smart Bear Health was created to address the gap between patient needs and clinical capacity by publishing structured, evidence-informed health education programs and accessible patient resources. These programs are designed to help patients understand their physiology, navigate diagnostic pathways, evaluate management options, and participate more effectively in their healthcare.
In parallel, Smart Bear Health contributes to ongoing research initiatives through the responsible collection of de-identified, real-world data. By combining lived experience with structured frameworks and clinical insight, this work aims to generate meaningful data that can inform future research, clinical practice, and the development of better patient resources.
Recovery doesn't tend to unfold in a straight line, but it is a journey worth taking
Contact Us To Find Out More
When you are ready to start moving forward, the conversation starts here.
©Smart Bear® 2026. All Rights Reserved.
©Smart Bear Health® 2026. All Rights Reserved.
By visiting this Website or engaging with our Content, you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
This Website, Content and Services are provided for educational and informational purposes only. We do not provide medical, psychological or therapeutic advice nor do we offer clinical assessment, diagnosis, or treatment. Use of this Website, Content or Services (including our Programs) does not establish a practitioner–patient relationship, nor should you use it to diagnose or treat any health problems or illnesses without consulting your own medical practitioner. All health-related decisions should be made in consultation with a qualified healthcare professional. All Content, including text, images, videos, frameworks, and educational programs, is proprietary and protected. Unauthorised reproduction, adaptation, or commercial use of any materials is not permitted.