Faculty

Dr. Rhonda Adessky holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Concordia University in Canada, and completed her post-doctoral fellowship at Yale University. Dr Adessky is the director of training at the Center for Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) at Hadassah University Hospital in Jerusalem, Israel, where she conducts research in the prevention of PTSD. She has been on the International Faculty of CMBM since 2005, and currently serves as clinical director of the Training Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Israel. She has a private practice in Jerusalem specializing in CBT for the treatment of PTSD and other anxiety disorders.

Toni Q. Bankston, LCSW, psychotherapist and consultant, is the Executive Director of Mind-Body Center of Louisiana; Director of Behavioral Health Services, Baton Rouge OneStop Homeless Services Center, and Facilitator of Mind-Body Skills Groups for Teens and Adults. She has over 21 years experience as a child, adolescent and family psychotherapist, and now integrates mind-body skills, art and play therapy, movement and drama in her work with children and adults exposed to violence, trauma and disaster. She is skilled in curriculum and program development and worked with the Children’s Health Fund and LSU Health Sciences in co-authoring and implementing a mobile model of mental health care as part of a Medical Home for children in schools and FEMA villages in the aftermath of the Katrina Disaster.

Barbara Black is a nationally certified massage therapist and cancer guide in Washington DC and Seattle WA. Her private bodywork practice and cancer guides work with individuals and groups integrates mind-body skills. She is on the faculty of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine Professional Training Program and a senior staff member of the Cancer Help Program of Smith Farm Center for Healing and the Arts (the Washington DC sister program of Michael Lerner and Rachel Naomi Remen’s Commonweal in Bolinas, CA.) A cancer survivor herself, Barbara uses journaling, movement (Nia), and Soul Collage® with her clients for exploring self-awareness and healing.

As the Founder and Director of Blum Center for Health in Rye Brook, New York, Dr. Blum’s crusade for personalized medicine is paramount for treatment and prevention. A Preventive Medicine and Chronic Disease Specialist, Dr. Blum is a member of the Medical Advisory Board for The Dr. Oz Show. She has appeared on Fox 5 News, ABC Eyewitness News, and is regularly quoted in Real Simple, Harper’s Bazaar, Redbook. Dr. Blum’s mission for Blum Center for Health is to facilitate a personalized healing experience by creating a partnership with her patients while providing cutting-edge Functional Medicine and teaching self-care skills for changing health habits.

Dr. Blum completed her Internal Medicine training at St-Luke’s Roosevelt Hospital, her residency in Preventive Medicine at The Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, and is Board Certified in Preventive Medicine. She received her Masters in Public Health at Columbia University, and her training in Functional Medicine from The Institute for Functional Medicine, in Gig Harbor, Washington.

In addition to her role as Founder of Blum Center for Health, Dr. Blum is on staff at Greenwich Hospital as an Integrative Medicine Specialist in the Medicine Department. She is also a member of the Senior Teaching Faculty at the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, D.C. and teaches throughout the world in their training programs.

In her first book, The Immune System Recovery Plan, (April 2013) Dr. Blum offers her proven four-step program, which she has used to help thousands of patients reverse their symptoms and prevent future illness. Including 40 recipes and a workbook style approach to help readers design their own personal treatment plans based on their symptoms and individual lifestyle choices, The Immune System Recovery Plan is a groundbreaking, revolutionary program that shows how anyone can cure the causes of autoimmune disease, strengthen their immune systems, and bolster their overall health.

Bob Buckley, LCSW, was Director of Consultation, Education and Training for Community Mental Health in Alexandria, Virginia for 21 years. In this role, Bob planned, administered, implemented and evaluated prevention, early intervention and training programs in the community. He provided clinical supervision for staff as well as graduate interns and facilitated workshops for both the public and private sectors. Organizations have hired Bob to present on such topics as Stress Management, Coping with Change in the Workplace and the Aftermath of Violence. He was one of the first mental health professionals in Virginia trained in Critical Incident Stress Management and worked alongside police, fire and rescue and emergency services staff. Bob is a recipient of the Alexandria, Virginia Mental Health Association’s Award for Outstanding Leadership in the field of Mental Health and Training. Since 1996, Bob has been a Senior Faculty Member and Clinical Supervisor with The Center for Mind-Body Medicine, facilitating mind-body medicine groups for health and mental health professionals. He served on the US team that responded to the New York Fire Department’s personnel and families after 9-11 and in Kosovo. Bob provides long-distance clinical supervision for candidates enrolled in The Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s Certification Program. In addition Bob provides “one-on one” Mind-Body- Spirit Coaching services on-line and via the telephone.

José Calderón-Abbo, MD, is a native of Mexico City. He is dually boarded in psychiatry and addiction medicine. He is particularly interested in integrating mind-body medicine and participatory models of care in clinical, administrative, corporate and educational settings. He has directed his efforts towards the study and treatment of trauma, addictions, and health promotion models, including the rebuilding of healthcare services in New Orleans post-hurricane Katrina. He has trained with James Gordon of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine, Herbert Benson and, Jon Kabat-Zinn in mind-body approaches including MBSR. Dr. Calderón is currently faculty with the Louisiana State University Department of Psychiatry and Associate Medical Director of the Co-Occurring Disorders Program at the Medical Center of Louisiana, New Orleans at DePaul Hospital. As director and founder of the Mindful Living Program© he offers mind body approaches for individual and corporate wellness, and training of healthcare professionals both in the US and abroad. He is also co-founder of the Mind-Body Center of Louisiana; a non-profit organization dedicated to the dissemination mind-body models in the Gulf Coast. He also has a private practice where he uses mindfulness and other integrative mind-body approaches in the treatment of addictions. Dr. Calderón lives with his family in New Orleans.

Monique Class, MS, APRN, BC, is a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Holistic Health and a Certified Family Nurse Practitioner. She is Director of Nursing at the Center for Women’s Health in Stamford, CT, where she integrates allopathic and alternative medicine for women throughout the life span. Monique teaches as a Clinical Instructor at Yale University School of Nursing and as an adjunct professor at The College of New Rochelle School of Nursing. Monique received her degree as a Clinical Nurse Specialist and her post-masters as a Family Nurse Practitioner at the College of New Rochelle where she received the Charles Allen Vaughn Award for excellence. Her BS in Nursing was from The University of Virginia. Monique is certified by the Psychosynthesis Institute in Imagery and Visualization and is currently enrolled in the Foundations in Herbal Medicines Certification program. In addition to her work at the Center for Women’s Health, Monique is a faculty member of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine and facilitates Mind-Body Skills Groups at the Center’s annual professional and advanced training programs.

Chad is a licensed clinical social worker that specializes in medical and radiation oncology. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois where his training included psychopathology, psychodiagnostics and school based mental health. Following graduation, Chad relocated to South Carolina where he worked extensively with psychiatric and substance abuse patients in an inpatient hospital setting. There, he was the lead therapist providing individual, family and marital therapy for both adults and adolescents. In 2003, Chad transitioned to the field of oncology. He is an oncology certified social worker at the Gibbs Cancer Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina and primarily works with individuals and families who are struggling with a cancer diagnosis. He has a special interest in guided imagery and meditation for patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments. Chad is also the manager for psychosocial oncology services at the Gibbs Center. Currently, Chad facilitates Mind-Body skills groups through the newly developed Center for Health and Healing at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. Chad is an avid triathlete and enjoys traveling with his family.

Matt Erb, PT, is a physical therapist with an integrative approach to patient care. He currently specializes in working with headache, migraine, and other types of chronic pain. He also has extensive experience in the evaluation and treatment of dizziness, vertigo and vestibular disorders. He incorporates biofeedback, therapeutic exercise, yoga, self-care training, cranial-sacral and other manual therapies alongside mind-body integration. He currently leads mind-body skills groups at Park Nicollet Clinics in the Minneapolis area. He has an interest in expanding the role of integrative physiotherapy in mental health and trauma care.

Joel M. Evans, M.D., a board certified OB/GYN, is the Founder and Director of The Center for Women’s Health, where he practices Integrative Obstetrics and Gynecology. He is also the Chief Medical Officer of LiivMD.com, a start-up technology company funded by Eric Schmidt and Jim Held designed to provide the latest health information to health care consumers, physician offices and the enterprise market. Dr. Evans’ most recent honor was speaking in March 2013 at the United Nations on the topic of Prenatal Origins of Violence. His book on the holistic approach to pregnancy, The Whole Pregnancy Handbook (Gotham, 2005), has received widespread critical acclaim and media attention.

A frequent lecturer on Holistic Health Care, Dr. Evans is an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He is a Founding Diplomate of the American Board of Holistic Medicine and recognized as the first physician in Connecticut to be Board Certified in both Holistic Medicine and Obstetrics and Gynecology. He has a special interest in Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer, and as a National Speaker for Myriad Genetics brings the latest information on cancer screening to his patients. Dr. Evans serves on the editorial advisory board of Bottom Line/Women’s Health and as a peer reviewer for the journals Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine and Global Advances in Health and Medicine.

He is a member of the senior faculty of two of the most recognized and prestigious teaching institutions in integrative medicine: The Center for Mind-Body Medicine and the Institute for Functional Medicine. In 2011 he was the external lead physician in the creation of the IFM Advanced Practice Module in Hormone Health. He is a former Director of two nationally known organizations focused on pregnancy, Childbirth Connection and the Association for Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Health. Dr. Evans also helped create a clinical study at Columbia University Medical Center on the use of the herb black cohosh in breast cancer, which was presented at the 2001 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncologists and later published in their journal. He recently authored a chapter in the textbook Integrative Gastroenterology. Having pursued studies in spirituality, metaphysics, and personal transformation for many years, Dr. Evans has recently created a core curriculum designed to share ancient spiritual wisdom with others in order to help bring health and happiness into their lives.

Kathleen Farah, MD, has been practicing family medicine in western Wisconsin for about 25 years, currently with Mayo Health Systems, Red Cedar. Kathy received her medical training at the University of Minnesota and completed her family practice residency at St. Paul Ramsey Medical Center. Kathy a Senior Faculty Member of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s Initial and Advanced Mind-Body Medicine Training, CancerGuides®, Children’s Training and Global Trauma Relief programs. She has led mind-body skills groups in her practice and community, and at the Integrative Medicine Clinic at Children’s Hospitals and Clinic in Minneapolis. She is board certified in both family practice and holistic medicine. She has an interest in functional medicine and has received training from the Institute for Functional Medicine, Gig Harbor, WA. Kathy also completed extensive training in Craniosacral therapy through Upledger Institute and uses it in her practice.

Ellen Fein, LCSW, RYT-500, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a yoga teacher /therapist. She works primarily with people whose lives are touched by cancer. As a Cancer Coach, she supports individuals and their loved ones on the cancer journey. As a yoga teacher and therapist, she assists those with serious illness, injury and chronic disease to establish a sense of well-being. Ellen also runs workshops and groups for patients and health care providers about healing and mind-body techniques such as imagery and meditation. Ellen is a published author, her most recent work Not Just a Patient, How to Have a Life When You Have a Life-Threatening Illness and her healing CD are valuable tools for individuals to use as they become active in their own healing.

Naftali Halberstadt, PhD is the Director of the Training Center for Mind-Body Skills, Israel. After completing his Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Naftali pursued his interest in the development and research of information technologies to improve the lives of various at-risk populations (e.g., abused children and their families; clients in psychiatric rehabilitation; the elderly) at the American Joint Jewish Distribution Committee (JDC) in Israel. His ongoing experience as a cognitive-behavioral psychotherapist-supervisor and previously as a Mental Health Officer in the Israel Defense Forces, where he focused on the research and treatment of combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder, facilitated the development of JDC’s Psycho-Trauma Response Program which he directed from 2002-2008. In 2005, he was part of an Israeli team of trauma experts sent to train professionals in Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the Tsunami disaster. He has provided consultation to professionals working with children and families in the aftermath of the Katrina hurricane disaster. His association with CMBM began in 2004 at the time of their first Israel-based training cycle and continues to date. In 2008, Naftali assumed the position of Director of the Training Center for Mind-Body Skills in Israel.

Dr. Tom Hudson was born and raised in the Washington, D.C. area. He attended medical school at the University of Maryland in Baltimore, and completed a diagnostic radiology residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. After his time in the Army, which included a tour in Germany, Dr. Hudson resettled with his family in Naples, FL, where he served as the Director of Women´s Imaging at the Naples Diagnostic Imaging Centers between 1992 and 2005.

He is presently on staff as a breast imaging specialist at the Women´s Center for Radiology(WCR) in Orlando, FL. He maintains a home in Naples, commuting weekly to his work in Orlando. Dr. Hudson authored Journey to Hope, on the subject of self-care and prevention as they relate to breast cancer. He leads mind-body skills groups at WCR in the evenings, as well as counsels patients on matters of overall health and wellness, including how the mind-body connection impacts the cancer journey.

Carol Jacobs, LCSW, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with 28 years of experience as a psychotherapist. As a faculty member Carol has taught in the Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s trainings both nationally and internationally, including: Global Trauma Relief (Healing the Wounds of War in Macedonia and Kosovo); working with the firefighters and their families following 9/11; CancerGuides® program; and The Mind-Body Medicine Professional Training Programs. In her private practice in Ashland, Virginia, Carol works with individuals as they move toward the integration of mind, body, and soul. Through the experiential opportunities of body movement, dreamwork, writing, meditation, and visualization, she helps individuals gain access to a deeper understanding of themselves and their place in the world, thus providing access to heightened meaning and creativity. Carol also leads Mind-Body groups as well as dream groups; and offers various retreats that provide a broader container for personal growth. Carol is also very active as a trustee with the Marion Woodman Foundation, whose work is informed by Carl Jung and Jungian Analyst, Marion Woodman.

Debra Lewis Kaplan, LCSW, LMFT, FAPA, BCPC is a lecturer on Mind-Body Medicine and spiritual psychology. She is a Senior faculty member of The Center For Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, D.C. and her international work for the Center has included training health and mental health professionals in Mind-Body Medicine, trauma relief, and integrative cancer care. She recently co-authored and implemented the Center’s Mind-Body Skills Professional Training Program for Children and Teenagers. She teaches in the Center’s CancerGuides®, Healing The Wounds Of War, and Mind-Body Medicine Professional Training Programs.

Debra is also an integrative psychotherapist with a private practice in Dallas, Texas. She has worked for over 30 years as a child, adult, marriage, and family therapist and her techniques combine many holistic healing practices along with traditional approaches to psychotherapy. Her specialties include stress reduction, spiritual growth and intuition development, grief and crisis counseling, regression therapy, and Mind-Body-Spirit Medicine. She also runs Mind-Body Skills Groups for children, teens, and adults. Debra has developed a Mind-Body-Spirit Program that focuses on the potential of the mind to affect the quality of life and teaches workshops on how to utilize the power of thought to enhance healing on all levels. She also offers Spirituality Intensive weekend retreats.

Debra is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She is a Board
Certified Professional Counselor and holds Fellowship status with the American Psychotherapy Association. She is a Diplomat of the College of Mental Health with the American Association of Integrative Medicine. She has served on the Alternative Medicine Research Foundation Board of Directors, the Advisory Board of Directors for Aids Arms, and as a Trustee for the Callier Center for Communication Disorders. She is currently on the Advisory Board for the CMBM CancerGuides® training program and the Amuta for Israel CMBM.

Jerrol Kimmel, RN, MA began her career in community mental health and the healing arts in 1975 with a BA in psychology from UC Berkeley. In 1983 she completed a nursing program to integrate Western Medicine with holistic practices. She received her Master’s degree in Integrative Health Studies from the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco, CA. She is a faculty member of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s professional training programs and is also part of the Center’s Global Trauma Relief team providing training for health and mental professionals in Israel, Gaza and Haiti. She also serves as faculty mentor for Saybrook University’s School of Mind-Body Medicine Master’s students. Ms. Kimmel has maintained a private practice since 1980 integrating massage therapy, mind-body techniques and other holistic modalities in assisting her clients in attaining physical, emotional and spiritual health with a specific interest in working with clients around the country in her program Filling Up On Wholeness, a personal inquiry into emotional eating. She currently works as an integrative nurse navigator at Gibbs Cancer Center and Research Institute in Spartanburg, South Carolina in women’s health.

Thomas Kuciejczyk-Kernan, MD is a family physician integrating mind-body medicine with family practice in inner-city St. Louis. A graduate of St. Louis University School of Medicine and Cook County Hospital (Chicago) Family Practice Residency, he is board-certified in family medicine and has served as volunteer faculty in Internal Medicine at Washington University School of Medicine. Tom has completed the Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s Certification Program. Working with Grace Hill Neighborhood Health Centers, Tom provides integrative primary care in English and Spanish to uninsured and low-income people of St. Louis. In this setting, Tom facilitates mind-body skills groups for adults with chronic illness and integrates mind-body skills training in the clinic’s Centering Pregnancy prenatal care groups. He developed for Grace Hill a Holistic Health Program of staff trainings and patient classes in stress reduction, yoga, and healthful eating.

Lilita Matison, LCSW, specializes in integrative counseling with children, women, and families. Lilita’s therapeutic approach includes supporting and encouraging clients to find insights that expand their self-awareness and problem solving skill set through art, creativity, imagery, present moment awareness, and mind-body skills. After completing graduate studies at the University of Michigan School of Social Work, Lilita acted as the Administrator of the Complementary and Alternative Research Center, where she worked to develop clinical & educational programming within the University of Michigan Integrative Medicine program. Later, as the Co-Director of Stress Management Services at the University of Michigan, Lilita counseled individuals, facilitated mind-body skills groups and trained graduate students in stress management and mind-body medicine. Since 2008, Lilita has served as the school counselor at the Lycée Français, the French International school of Chicago. Lilita has developed and teaches bi-weekly social-emotional programming, consults & collaborates with teachers & parents, and offers individual and small group consultations to students in grades K-5. She also works with clients in her private practice (www.lilitamatison.com). Lilita is a former Fulbright scholar & adjunct lecturer at the University of Latvia in Riga.

Lora Matz, MS, LICSW, is a psychotherapist, lecturer and writer who has worked for many years in the areas of mind-body Medicine and transpersonal development. Lora is a Senior Faculty Member of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine and teaches in the Professional Training Programs, CancerGuides® and the Global Trauma Relief program. Lora has extensive history working with children of all ages as well as adults. Lora has her own practice and is the co-founder of Transformative Practices in Minneapolis. She has post-graduate training in transpersonal development, clinical hypnosis, guided imagery, and several other healing modalities. Lora incorporates imagery, breath work, meditation, and transpersonal development into her work as well as the Center’s model of working with groups. Lora is skilled in curriculum and program development. She created a pilot curriculum teaching inner city pre-school teachers and their small students stress reduction techniques and the principals of emotional intelligence. She worked for a year co-leading a team of facilitators working with the children who were on the bus when the I 35 W bridge collapsed in Minneapolis. Lora works part time at Prairie Care in MN and she is an adjunct faculty member with the University of Minnesota’s Center for Spirituality and Healing; Health Coaching Program. Lora has extensive experience in the area of death and dying, as well as integrative cancer care and has conducted trainings for health care professionals in the area of midwifing of death and integrative practices for the dying and their loved ones.

Kelsey Menehan, LCSW-C, is a psychotherapist who integrates her knowledge and training in competency-based family therapy, play and art therapy, as well as mind-body-spirit techniques, including guided imagery, meditation, sound and music in her work with individuals, families and groups. She has been deeply informed by years of work with people with cancer and other chronic and life-threatening illnesses and their loved ones. Most recently, she has provided trauma relief training for health and mental health professionals in Kosovo and Israel and Gaza as part of CMBM’s international team. She is also a professional writer on health and mental health topics and has created multimedia patient and professional education products on mind-body medicine, cancer care and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Mindy Milam, LCSW, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Certified Mind-Body Medicine Practitioner with over 25 years experience as a psychotherapist. In her private practice, Mindy combines traditional psychotherapy with mind-body techniques while working with individuals, couples and families. She facilitates mind-body skills groups, and presents workshops for the public and for businesses in mind-body skills. Mindy has extensive experience in leading groups, including groups for women whose mothers have died and for people who have survived the suicide of a loved one. Mindy is a life-long resident of New Orleans, where her home and business are located. She became passionate about using and teaching mind-body skills after she attended her first Center for Mind-Body Medicine training. She used mind-body skills throughout the rebuilding of her home and private practice, which were both destroyed following Hurricane Katrina, and experienced first-hand the benefits of using these skills to sustain her during that difficult period.

Sabrina is currently pursuing a PhD in Mind-Body Medicine from Saybrook University, where she is exploring the connection between mental, physical, and spiritual health. Her current research is on the embodiment of shame in African-American women with chronic STDs.

Sabrina is a highly-respected member of the treatment community, and frequently lectures on Cultural Diversity, Spirituality and Psychotherapy, Stress Management, Couples Work, Self-Care for Healers, and Addictions. She mentors young therapists, and runs regular retreats for women healers.

She is a wife, mother, and lifelong learner, who remains humbled by the healing power of compassion, love and forgiveness.

Gjorgji (Goce) Nikoloski, MD, graduated as a medical doctor in Skopje, Macedonia in 1982 and trained in Psychiatry from 1989-1992 in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. He worked in the psychiatric department of a regional hospital in Serbia from 1984-1992. After the civil war in the former Yugoslavia in 1992, he had to move back to Skopje. At that time he became involved with the International Red Cross and other international organizations in Macedonia as a mental health professional, where he worked with refugees and internally displaced persons from 1992 – 1999. During the spring of 1999 when Macedonia received over 200,000 Albanian refugees from Kosovo, Goce met with Dr. Jim Gordon and set up an collaboration between the Center for Mind-Body Medicine and his local NGO, the Center for Psychosocial Support and Mental Health Care, which was established in 1998. Goce assisted in organizing and served on faculty for a series of mind-body medicine trainings the Center offered for health professionals between 1998 and 2001. At the end of 1999, Goce moved with his family to Canada. In 2002, he began working with the Community Mental Health Clinic in Guelph, Ontario, where he has found mind-body techniques to be very useful in his everyday work with 6 – 18 year-old children and their families, with mental health problems. Goce also runs a private clinic in Guelph, Ontario utilizing mind body medicine techniques and psychotherapy. Goce runs Mind-Body Skills Groups open to everyone.

Associate Professor, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Kentucky College of Medicine. Owner of Mind Body Studio in Lexington, KY. Comments: John is board-certified in both Family Practice and Holistic Medicine, integrating conventional medicine with safe and effective complementary and alternative approaches. His primary care practice seeks to minimize the use of medications and emphasizes lifestyle behaviors that help manage stress, enhance well-being and restore a sense of personal control and empowerment. In an academic medical center, he runs Mind-Body Skills groups for medical students and other health professionals, emphasizing physical activity, health-supportive nutrition, yoga, meditation, mindfulness and dance. He also works as a faculty member for the Center’s Mind-Body Medicine professional trainings in the United States and in our Global Trauma Relief trainings in Gaza and Israel.

Judith Pedersen-Benn, MS, CADC, CHT, currently has a private practice centered on integrative and holistic counseling, organizational change, and trauma resolution services. She works with individuals, groups and organizations as they explore how to make positive changes, overcome self-defeating patterns, and integrate practices that encourage balance and wellness. Judith has pursued post-graduate training in clinical hypnosis, art and movement therapy, Jungian dream analysis, somatic experiencing (SA), and emotional freedom techniques (EFT). For the past twenty years she has worked as a counselor, teacher, and organizational consultant. She incorporates her understanding of the reciprocal and relational nature of life into her professional practice and her work for peace and justice.

As a long-time faculty member for the Center for Mind-Body Medicine (CMBM), Judith participates in the Professional Training programs; Healing the wounds of War; Native American workshops; Global Trauma Relief in Haiti, New Orleans and Cedar Rapids. In addition, she provides Clinical Supervision for the Center’s Certification program and she is an Adjunct Faculty member for Saybrook University.

Carrie has recently co-founded a wellness consulting firm called Intrinsic Connection, LLC (www.intrinsic-connection.com) that is dedicated to building a bridge between leading-edge wellness strategy and real-world execution for successful results. For the past 10 years, Carrie served as a consultant and provided leadership for the development and implementation of national wellness initiatives that involved YMCAs throughout the US. Formally trained in the Institute for Healthcare Improvement Breakthrough Collaborative organizational change methodology, Carrie consulted YMCAs across the country on how to make and sustain wellness-related organizational and program improvements in the areas of participant engagement, programming, staffing practices, environmental standards, outcome measurements, and leadership.

Along with her extensive experience and expertise in leading national wellness initiatives, Carrie is completing her PhD in Mind-Body Medicine (with a specialization in healthcare and organizational systems) at Saybrook University’s School of Mind-Body Medicine (the first accredited PhD program in Mind-Body Medicine). She is also a Teaching Fellow at Saybrook University where she teaches, helps design academic curriculum, and develops advanced coaching certification programs. Carrie specializes in integrative healthcare—fostering the next evolution of medicine and health promotion that inspires well-being and serves the whole person. Her research interest includes the study of the lived experience of individuals with type 2 diabetes who have sustained successful lifestyle change and achieved long-term positive health outcomes.

Carrie currently serves on faculty for the Center for Mind-Body Medicine where she trains healthcare professionals in scientifically-proven mind-body medicine approaches to health and healing. Additionally, she is a board certified coach with a specialization in wellness and life coaching. She is also a coach trainer and conducts coaching certification courses throughout the US.

As a well-regarded leader in the wellness field, Carrie is a frequent presenter at national conferences such as the National Wellness Conference. She also serves on national wellness committees such as the National Wellness Institute Council for Wellness Accreditation and Education (CWAE).

Currently, Carrie provides contracted technical assistance in Health and Well-Being to YMCA of the USA—helping Y-USA serve local YMCAs across the country in a broad range of youth, adult, and family wellness programs. In the past Carrie worked as the Senior Director of Strategic Initiatives and National Consultant for Activate America where her responsibilities included strategic planning, project management, project impact analysis, executive coaching, and leading organizational change initiatives. She also served as the Director of Integrative Medicine: Institute of Healing Arts (YMCA/Saint Thomas Hospital Partnership) where she established a comprehensive approach to total health. Programs and services included group self-care programs, movement/exercise programs, clinical services, integrative medicine services, and community education. Additionally, she worked with the YMCA of Middle Tennessee serving as the Vice President Membership and Program. In this position she led association teams in developing and implementing innovative programs that enhance membership growth, membership retention, and mission delivery.

Jane Elizabeth Reilly, MS, LICSW is a psychotherapist and teacher of the culinary arts. She received her M.S. in Social Work from Columbia University, New York, NY, The Grand Diplome de Cuisine from La Varenne Ecole de Cuisine, Paris, France and certification in Food & Healing from The Natural Gourmet, New York, NY. She specializes in working with individuals of all ages and communities that have experienced severe trauma (including war trauma, working with refugee children & adults), as well as individuals with chronic health problems – integrating mind-body and nutritional approaches into her psychotherapy practice in the treatment of trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) anxiety and depression – often using the kitchen as the arena for healing. Jane created and directed a program for refugees and asylum seekers in New York City that focused on the preservation of cultural cuisine, strengthening/healing the individual and community as well as teaching cooking skills and sound nutrition. Recently, Jane co-directed a year-long program, Minimizing Trauma and Building Resiliency using a mind-body skills model specifically developed for children who have experienced a traumatic event. The recipients of this work were the children, ranging in age from 5-16, who were on the school bus returning from an outing, August 1, 2007, when the I35W Bridge collapsed in Minneapolis. Currently, Jane coordinates the Center for Victims of Torture school-based mental health project for refugee children who have experienced war trauma and sees clients in her private practice. Jane has worked in the Democratic Republic of the Congo with refugees and internally displaced persons who experienced war.

Lynda Richtsmeier Cyr, PhD, LP, is an Integrative Clinical Psychologist and Consultant in Private Practice. She is a Senior Faculty Member for the Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s professional training programs, both nationally and internationally. Lynda also provides clinical supervision for candidates enrolled in the Center’s Certification Program and she is the Coordinator for Mind-Body Medicine Internship Program for Certification Graduates. Lynda participates as adjunct faculty at Saybrook University and the University of Minnesota Medical School. Lynda maintains a private practice in Minneapolis, MN where she incorporates mind-body medicine, including biofeedback, guided imagery, and meditation, into her holistic psychotherapy practice with children, adolescents, adults, and families. Lynda facilitates regular mind-body skills groups, workshops and provides clinical consultation. Lynda was the lead psychologist and program manager for the Integrative Medicine Department at Children’s Hospitals & Clinics of Minnesota from 2001-2010. Lynda has taught nationally in the area of pediatric self-regulation, biofeedback, hypnosis, Integrative Medicine, and Holistic Mental Health. Lynda has also completed advanced, post-graduate training in biofeedback, clinical hypnosis, EMDR, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, Resiliency Training, and several other healing modalities.

Robert Rothstein, MS, LP, is a Licensed Psychologist practicing in the Allina Medical Clinic in Woodbury MN. Robert has been on the faculty for the Center for Mind-Body Medicine’s professional training program in Mind-Body Medicine since 2007. Robert has a Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family therapy, and an interest in systems which informs his work. Robert has a strong interest in spirituality as a fundamental aspect of all areas of life. “The most satisfying aspect of my practice is helping my patients to connect more deeply with themselves; increasing their awareness of themselves, their thoughts and their emotions. Through that process they learn to use their natural abilities to help themselves and influence their physical and emotional healing.” In the words of Hippocrates; “The natural healing force within each one of us is the greatest force in getting well.”

Dr. Neha Sangwanis an Internal Medicine physician passionate about wellness and communication. As a pioneer in corporate wellness, Dr. Sangwan has developed and delivered a comprehensive health and leadership program for physicians, managers, nurses and staff. In addition, she customizes personal development, teambuilding and communication workshops for corporate and individual clients. Dr. Sangwan earned her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering from Michigan State University. She worked as a manufacturing engineer for Motorola and transitioned into medical school at State University of New York at Buffalo (SUNY at Buffalo). Her Internal Medicine residency training was completed at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia. Dr. Sangwan is certified by the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington D.C. She has been practicing in the Bay area for the past seven years. In her free time, Dr. Sangwan enjoys hiking and yoga. She expresses her creativity through making jewelry. Her adventurous side explores various cultures through food and travel.

Beret Anne Skroch, Psy.D., LP is a clinical psychologist for the VA Health Care System in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a Joint Commission accredited tertiary care and Clinical Referral Level I Facility that provides comprehensive health care services to nearly 90,000 veterans. She is the Program Manager for the Primary Care-Mental Health Integration Team assisting primary care providers in the recognition, treatment, and management of mental health problems within the primary care population. She is actively involved in training pre- and post-doctoral psychology trainees. Beret is a member of the center’s integrated care committee, dedicated to honoring America’s veterans and VA staff by promoting and facilitating the incorporation of integrative care through education, service, and research. She has been facilitating weekly Mind Body Skills Groups for veterans since 2008. Prior to joining the VA Health Care System, Beret served nine years as a Naval Officer and psychologist in the United States Navy. She has worked closely with CMBM to bring their “Healing the Wounds of War” program into the VA Midwest Healthcare Network.

Cherie Snyder, MSS, MA holds the rank of Professor at Allegany College of Maryland (ACM) in Cumberland, Maryland where she has taught since 1987. Prior to assuming her faculty position at ACM, Ms. Snyder directed a large multi-service program for the elderly in Philadelphia (1975- 1984). Her program was recognized by foundations and government funding agencies as an exemplary model for community-based services to older people. Ms. Snyder currently is the Director of the Human Service Associate curriculum and the Integrative Health program. As Chair of the Integrative Health Team, she has spearheaded an effort to create a national model for allied health education based on a whole person, integrative approach to care. Included in her leadership positions at ACM have been service as the Co-chair for the College’s Middle States Accreditation (1992-1994), Chair of the Learning Community Project (1995-2000) and Chair of the Vision/Mission Task Force which oversaw the college-wide process of developing a new mission statement (2001-2003). A social worker since 1974, Cherie received her BA from Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pa (1972), her MSS from the Bryn Mawr School of Social Work and Social Research (1974), and an MA in Social Gerontology from the University of Pennsylvania (1984). Ms. Snyder is committed to building a deep sense of community where peace, social justice, and healing are powerful forces for change.

Jusuf Ulaj, MD, Neuropsychiatrist, Head of Department of Psychiatry, University Clinical Center of Kosova. Faculty member, University School of Prishtina, teaching subjects of neurology and psychiatry. Co-founder of Institute for Mental Health and Recovery of Kosova, leading national NGO in fields of Mental Health. Country co-director of national project of Mind-Body Medicine. Engaged in M-B medicine since 1999. National faculty of M-B Medicine since 2001. International faculty of CMBM-Washington DC since June 2005. Trained on positive psychotherapy. Co-owner of very successful neurology and psychiatry private practice in Prishtina, Kosovo.

Patricia A. Van Kley, PhD, is owner and supervising psychologist of a private practice in a northwestern Ohio. She is a licensed psychologist with over 23 year of experience in residential, community, private and academic settings. She has done extensive post-doctoral study in Relational/Cultural therapy at the Stone Center at Wellesley College and for the past ten years has pursued the study of samatha and vipassana meditation. In her work at a residential facility for adolescent boys she developed and implemented a family therapy program and established exercise and nutrition programs as an integral part of the treatment.

Dr. Van Kley incorporates mind, body, spirit medicine into her practice with individuals, couples and families as well as conducting MBS groups. She conducts mind, body, spirit weekend retreats and facilitates book study groups focusing on the works of Pema Chodron and Jack Kornfield.

Claire Wheeler, MD, PhD, is a physician and psychologist living in Portland, Oregon. After practicing Emergency Medicine for several years, she was the Primary Investigator in a 4-year study of the emotional, social, and psychological effects of traumatic injury and stress at the University of Michigan and the Legacy Health System in Portland. She went on to found MindBody Medicine of Portland, providing integrative medical services, including Mind-Body Skills groups, to the public and other health professionals in the Portland area. Claire served as key personnel for a grant from NCCAM to Oregon Health & Science University to integrate mind-body medicine and other integrative practices into the curriculum of the medical and nursing schools. She is now a faculty member at the School of Community Health at Portland State University, where she teaches graduate and undergraduate classes in health behaviors, integrative medicine, and stress. She is the author of 10 Simple Solutions to Stress, and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Belly Fat Weight Loss as well as the “Head-to-Toe Happiness” blog on psychologytoday.com. Claire has three children who live with her half time, and her favorite stress reliever is dancing around the living room to whatever comes up on her iPod.

Stephanie Misaki Whiting, MS is a licensed professional counselor in private practice. She has a masters degree in counseling psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as well as a masters degree in communication. She leads mind body skills groups, while also integrating mind body skills into individual counseling. Group members deal with concerns such as panic and phobias, depression, disordered eating, social anxiety, chronic illness, grief and caregiver stress. Her most recent groups have been in the jail setting. As a former campus wellness educator and board member of the National Wellness Institute, Stephanie taught mind body techniques for stress reduction for many years. She brings a wellness philosophy into her counseling practice. Stephanie has recently moved to Kauai and will be establishing mind body skills groups there. Faculty member, Center for Mind-Body Medicine.