Currently the Director of the University of Adelaide Centre for Traumatic Stress Studies, Professor McFarlane's area of particular specialty has been the effects of traumatic stress and is an international expert in the field of the impact of disasters and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). His research has focused on the epidemiology and longitudinal course of PTSD as well as the neuroimaging of the cognitive deficits in this disorder. He has published over 250 articles and chapters in various refereed journals and has co-edited three books.

Dr. Allan Schore is on the clinical faculty of the Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, and at the UCLA Center for Culture, Brain, and Development. He is author of four seminal volumes, Affect Regulation and the Origin of the Self, Affect Dysregulation and Disorders of the Self, Affect Regulation and the Repair of the Self, and The Science of the Art of Psychotherapy, as well as numerous articles and chapters. His Regulation Theory, grounded in developmental neuroscience and developmental psychoanalysis, focuses on the origin, psychopathogenesis, and psychotherapeutic treatment of the early forming subjective implicit self.

His contributions appear in multiple disciplines, including developmental neuroscience, psychiatry, psychoanalysis, developmental psychology, attachment theory, trauma studies, behavioral biology, clinical psychology, and clinical social work. His groundbreaking integration of neuroscience with attachment theory has led to his description as "the American Bowlby," with emotional development as "the world’s leading authority on how our right hemisphere regulates emotion and processes our sense of self," and with psychoanalysis as "the world's leading expert in neuropsychoanalysis."

The American Psychoanalytic Association has described Dr. Schore as "a monumental figure in psychoanalytic and neuropsychoanalytic studies."

Bessel A. van der Kolk M.D. has been active as a clinician, researcher and teacher in the area of posttraumatic stress and related phenomena since the 1970s. His work integrates developmental, biological, psychodynamic and interpersonal aspects of the impact of trauma and its treatment. His book Psychological Trauma was the first integrative text on the subject, painting the far ranging impact of trauma on the entire person and the range of therapeutic issues which need to be addressed for recovery.

Dr. van der Kolk and his various collaborators have published extensively on the impact of trauma on development, such as dissociative problems, borderline personality and self-mutilation, cognitive development in traumatized children and adults, and the psychobiology of trauma. He was co-principal investigator of the DSM IV Field Trials for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. His current research is on how trauma affects memory processes and brain imaging studies of PTSD.

Dr. van der Kolk is past President of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Professor of Psychiatry at Boston University Medical School, and Medical Director of the Trauma Center at JRI in Brookline, Massachusetts. He has taught at universities and hospitals across the United States and around the world, including Europe, Africa, Russia, Australia, Israel, and China. His book, Traumatic Stress: The Effects of Overwhelming Experience on Mind, Body, and Society, co-edited with Alexander McFarlane and Lars Weisaeth, explores what we have learned in the past twenty years of the re-discovery of the role of trauma in psychiatric illness. In Dr. van der Kolk's most recent 2014 book, The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Treatment of Trauma, he transforms our understanding of traumatic stress, revealing how it literally rearranges the brain’s wiring—specifically areas dedicated to pleasure, engagement, control, and trust. He shows how these areas can be reactivated through innovative treatments including neurofeedback, mindfulness techniques, play, yoga, and other therapies. Based on Dr. van der Kolk’s own research and that of other leading specialists, The Body Keeps the Score offers proven alternatives to drugs and talk therapy—and a way to reclaim lives.

Bethany Brand, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist practicing in Towson, Maryland.  Regarded as an expert in trauma, she specializes in the assessment and treatment of trauma related disorders including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and dissociative disorders. 

Dr. Brand is a Professor of Psychology at Towson University and maintains an independent practice in clinical psychology in Towson, Maryland.  Additionally, she serves as an expert witness in criminal, civil, disability, and employment matters.  Dr. Brand conducts research on the assessment and treatment of trauma related disorders, including the assessment of feigned dissociative disorders.  

Dr. Brand also provides consultation and supervision of psychology students, postdoctoral fellows, and licensed mental health professionals.  She has presented research papers and clinical trainings around the world.

Dr. Perry is the Senior Fellow of The ChildTrauma Academy, a not-for-profit organization based in Houston, TX and adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago. He serves as the inaugural Senior Fellow of the Berry Street Childhood Institute, an Australian based center of excellence focusing on the translation of theory into practice to improve the lives of children. Dr. Perry is the author, with Maia Szalavitz, of The Boy Who Was Raised As A Dog, a bestselling book based on his work with maltreated children and Born For Love: Why Empathy is Essential and Endangered. 

Claudia Black Ph.D. is a renowned addiction author, speaker and trainer internationally recognized for her pioneering and contemporary work with family systems and addictive disorders.Claudia designs and presents training workshops and seminars to professional audiences in the field of family service, mental health, addiction and correctional services as well as speaking in public forums about addiction and recovery.

Christine A. Courtois PhD, ABPP specializes in the treatment of trauma, particularly for adults experiencing the effects of childhood incest and other forms of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. Dr. Courtois has worked with these issues for 30 years and has developed treatment approaches for complex posttraumatic and dissociative conditions for which she has received international recognition.

Dr. Courtois offers integrative and evidence-based relational treatments for clients and consultation for loved ones that involve respect, information, and hope to counter the effects of trauma and abuse. She offers individual and group treatments that use strategies and protocols, personalized to the clients' needs. 

Dr. Ross is an internationally renowned clinician, researcher, author and lecturer in the field of dissociation and trauma-related disorders. He is the founder and President of the Colin A. Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma. 

Dan Hughes is a clinical psychologist who resides in Lebanon, PA, with an office in nearby Annville.  After receiving his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Ohio University he fairly quickly began specializing in the treatment of children and youth who had experienced abuse and neglect and for the most part now manifested serious psychological problems secondary to childhood trauma and attachment disorganization.  Not having much success helping these children with traditional treatments, he developed an attachment-focused treatment that relied heavily on the theories and research of attachment and intersubjectivity to guide his model of treatment and parenting. 

Daniel J. Siegel received his medical degree from Harvard University and completed his postgraduate medical education at UCLA with training in pediatrics and child, adolescent and adult psychiatry.  He served as a National Institute of Mental Health Research Fellow at UCLA, studying family interactions with an emphasis on how attachment experiences influence emotions, behavior, autobiographical memory and narrative.

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Dr. Siegel is currently clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine where he is on the faculty of the Center for Culture, Brain, and Development and the founding co-director of theMindful Awareness Research Center. An award-winning educator, he is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and recipient of several honorary fellowships. Dr. Siegel is also the Executive Director of the Mindsight Institute, an educational organization, which offers online learning and in-person lectures that focus on how the development of mindsight in individuals, families and communities can be enhanced by examining the interface of human relationships and basic biological processes. His psychotherapy practice includes children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families. He serves as the Medical Director of the LifeSpan Learning Institute and on the Advisory Board of the Blue School in New York City, which has built its curriculum around Dr. Siegel’s Mindsight approach.

Dr. Siegel has published extensively for the professional audience.  He is the author of numerous articles, chapters, and the internationally acclaimed text, The Developing Mind: How Relationships and the Brain Interact to Shape Who We Are (Guilford, 1999).  This book introduces the field ofinterpersonal neurobiology, and has been utilized by a number of clinical and research organizations worldwide, including the U.S. Department of Justice, The Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family, Microsoft and Google. The Developing Mind, Second Edition was published in 2012.  Dr. Siegel serves as the Founding Editor for the Norton Professional Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology which contains over three dozen textbooks.  The Mindful Brain: Reflection and Attunement in the Cultivation of Well-Being (Norton, 2007) explores the nature of mindful awareness as a process that harnesses the social circuitry of the brain as it promotes mental, physical, and relational health. The Mindful Therapist: A Clinician's Guide to Mindsight and Neural Integration (Norton, 2010), explores the application of focusing techniques for the clinician’s own development, as well as their clients' development of mindsight and neural integration. Pocket Guide to Interpersonal Neurobiology: An Integrative Handbook of the Mind (Norton, 2012), explores how to apply the interpersonal neurobiology approach to developing a healthy mind, an integrated brain, and empathic relationships.

Dr. Siegel’s book, Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation (Bantam, 2010), offers the general reader an in-depth exploration of the power of the mind to integrate the brain and promote well-being. He has written three parenting books: Parenting from the Inside Out: How a Deeper Self-Understanding Can Help You Raise Children Who Thrive (Tarcher/Penguin, 2003) with Mary Hartzell, M.Ed., and the two The New York Times bestsellers The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind (Random House, 2011) and No-Drama Discipline: The Whole-Brain Way to Calm the Chaos and Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind (Bantam, 2014), with Tina Payne Bryson, Ph.D.  Dr. Siegel's The New York Times bestseller Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain (Tarcher, 2013), explores how brain development impacts teenagers’ behavior and relationships.

Dr. Siegel's unique ability to make complicated scientific concepts exciting has led him to be invited to address diverse local, national and international groups of mental health professionals, neuroscientists, corporate leaders, educators, parents, public administrators, healthcare providers, policy-makers, mediators, judges, and clergy. He has lectured for the King of Thailand, Pope John Paul II, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Google University, London's Royal Society of Arts (RSA), and TEDx. He lives in Southern California with his family.

David Wallin, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Albany and Mill Valley, CA.  A magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College who received his doctorate from the Wright Institute in Berkeley, he has been practicing, teaching and writing about psychotherapy for nearly three decades. His most recent book, Attachment in Psychotherapy (Guilford, 2007), is presently being translated into nine languages.  He is also co-author (with Stephen Goldbart) of Mapping the Terrain of the Heart: Passion, Tenderness, and the Capacity to Love (Jason Aronson, 1996). He has lectured on attachment and psychotherapy in Australia, Europe, Canada, and throughout the United States. 

Former trainer for Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute, also trained in Internal Family Systems Model, Schema Focused Therapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy, Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy.  Leads workshops for therapists throughout the US, Canada, Scotland and Ireland.  Developed training and manual for Becoming Safely Embodied course.

Edna B. Foa, Ph.D. is a Professor of Clinical Psychology in Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania and Director of the Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety. She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and Personality, from University of Missouri, Columbia, in 1970. Dr. Foa devoted her academic career to study the psychopathology and treatment of anxiety disorders, primarily obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and social phobia and is currently one of the world leading experts in these areas.

A psychologist, psychotherapist, and researcher. He received his with the highest honours at the Medical Department of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam for his book: Somatoform dissociation: Phenomena, measurement, and theoretical issues [reprint: W.W. Norton, New York/London]. In 1998 the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD) granted him the Morton Prince Award for Scientific Excellence for his scientific contributions; in 2000 the Pierre Janet Writing Award; in 2002 the status of Fellow for his outstanding contributions to the diagnosis, treatment, research, and education in dissociative disorders; and in 2005, together with several of his colleagues, the David Caul Memorial Award for a paper on an innovative PET study of dissociative identiy disorder.

Fran S. Waters is a licensed clinical social worker and marriage and family therapist in private practice in Marquette, MI.

She provides counseling and therapy for individuals, families, couples, children, adolescents, and adults.

Mrs. Waters offers compassionate and professional counseling with over 35 years of experience and knowledge to help clients work through adversity and trauma. 
 

She also provides training and consultation in the area of trauma, abuse and dissociation.  As an invited presenter, she has conducted extensive training programs nationally and internationally in Europe, Africa, South America, and North America.

Francine Shapiro, Ph.D., is the originator and developer of EMDR, which has been so well researched that it is now recommended as an effective treatment for trauma in the Practice Guidelines of the American Psychiatric Association, and those of the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Dr. Shapiro is a Senior Research Fellow Emeritus at the Mental Research Institute in Palo Alto, California, Executive Director of the EMDR Institute in Watsonville, CA, and founder and President Emeritus of the  Trauma Recovery EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Programs, a non-profit organization that coordinates disaster response and low fee trainings worldwide.

She is a recipient of the International Sigmund Freud Award for distinguished contribution to psychotherapy presented by the City of Vienna in conjunction with the World Council, the American Psychological Association Trauma Division Award for Outstanding Contributions to Practice in Trauma Psychology, and theDistinguished Scientific Achievement in Psychology Award presented by the California Psychological Association.

Dr. Shapiro was designated as one of the “Cadre of Experts” of the American Psychological Association & Canadian Psychological Association Joint Initiative on Ethnopolitical Warfare, and has served as advisor to a wide variety of trauma treatment and outreach organizations and journals. She has been an invited speaker at psychology conferences worldwide and has written and co-authored more than 60 articles, chapters, and books about EMDR, including Getting Past Your Past: Taking Control of Your Life with Self-Help Techniques from EMDR Therapy (Rodale),  EMDR: Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing: Basic Principles, Protocols and Procedures (Guilford Press), EMDR: The Breakthrough Therapy for Overcoming Anxiety, Stress and Trauma (Basic Books), EMDR as an Integrative Psychotherapy Approach: Experts of Diverse Orientations Explore the Paradigm Prism (American Psychological Association Books), and Handbook of EMDR and Family Therapy Processes(Wiley).

Dr. Gabbard has authored or edited 27 books and over 300 scientific papers and book chapters. Previous positions include Brown Foundation Chair of Psychoanalysis and Professor of Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston from 2001-2011 and Director of the Menninger Hospital in Topeka, Kansas from 1989-1994. He has received many honors and awards, including the American Psychiatric Association/NIMH Vestermark Award for Psychiatric Education in 2010 and the prestigious Mary Sigourney Award in 2000 for outstanding contributions to psychoanalysis. He was  Joint Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Psychoanalysis from 2001—2007, the first non-British analyst to hold that position,  and served as President of the American College of Psychiatrists from 2006 to 2007. Dr. Gabbard's textbooks have been translated into Italian, French, German, Portuguese, Korean, Japanese, Danish, Chinese, Greek, Romanian, and Spanish. He lectures throughout Europe, South America, and Australia, as well as in the United States and Canada.

Director of NYU Langone’s Child Study Center and developer of Trauma Systems Therapy, a model to teach mental healthcare professionals how to diagnose and treat children following traumatic events. The program addresses a child’s emotional needs and social environment and is being used to successfully treat children throughout the country and around the world.

Jamie Marich's friends and colleagues describe her as a renaissance woman. A dancer, musician, performer, writer, and clinical counselor, Marich unites these elements of her experience to achieve an ultimate mission: bringing the art and joy of healing to others. An outspoken, down-to-earth humanitarian, Marich is fast becoming respected as a voice to listen to in the mental health and addiction recovery communities because of her candidness. Says Marich, “I really just see myself as someone who is calling for a back to basics approach, which means carrying ourselves with person-centered common sense and not being afraid to help people work with their own sense of creativity.”

Janina Fisher, PhD is a licensed Clinical Psychologist and Instructor at the Trauma Center, an outpatient clinic and research center founded by Bessel van der Kolk. Known for her expertise as both a therapist and consultant, she is also past president of the New England Society for the Treatment of Trauma and Dissociation, an EMDR International Association Credit Provider, a faculty member of the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute, and a former Instructor, Harvard Medical School. Dr. Fisher has been an invited speaker at the Cape Cod Institute, Harvard Medical School Conference Series, the EMDR International Association Annual Conference, University of Wisconsin, University of Westminster in London, the Psychotraumatology Institute of Europe, and the Esalen Institute. Dr. Fisher lectures and teaches nationally and internationally on topics related to the integration of research and treatment and how to introduce these newer trauma treatment paradigms in traditional therapeutic approaches.

Clinical psychologist and independent consultant, Teaching Associate in Psychology, Harvard Medical School, and nationally recognized expert on psychological trauma.

John Briere, Ph.D. is Associate Professor in the departments of Psychiatry and Psychology at the Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, and Director of the Psychological Trauma Program at LAC+USC Medical Center. He is a past president of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS), and recipient of the Robert S. Laufer Memorial Award for Scientific Achievement from ISTSS and the Outstanding Professional Award from the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC). Designated as a "Highly Cited Researcher" by the Institute for Scientific Information, he is author or co-author of a number of books, articles, chapters, and psychological tests in the areas of trauma, child abuse, and interpersonal violence.

Judith Lewis Herman is a psychiatrist, researcher, teacher, and author who has focused on the understanding and treatment of incest and traumatic stress.

Herman is Professor of clinical psychiatry at Harvard University Medical School and Director of Training at the Victims of Violence Program in the Department of Psychiatry at theCambridge Health Alliance in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a founding member of theWomen’s Mental Health Collective.

She was the recipient of the 1996 Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies and the 2000 Woman in Science Award from the American Medical Women's Association. In 2003 she was named a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.

Dr. Julian Ford's research, clinical work, and teaching focuses on assessment and psychotherapy of posttraumatic stress disorder, emotion regulation, healthcare utilization, and ethnocultural factors.

Dr. Ford developed and conducts research on the TARGET psychosocial intervention model for adult, adolescent, and child traumatic stress disorders. Dr. Ford has prepared expert white papers on trauma and mental health for the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, the National Center for Mental Health and Juvenile Justice, and the Child Health and Development Institute, and provided expert consultation on traumatic stress research and treatment to the World Health Organization, the U. S. Public Health Service Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and committees of the American Psychological Association and the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (for which he serves on the Board of Directors).

Kathy Steele is a psychotherapist, consultant, trainer, and author. She practices in Atlanta, Georgia and focuses on complex psychological trauma, dissociation, attachment issues, therapeutic impasse, therapist self-care, and many other related topics in psychotherapy.

Linda Curran is a trauma specialist, veteran clinician, sought after national trainer, best-selling author on trauma and a film producer. Linda has trained thousands of mental health clinicians on trauma treatment across the country. She is President of Integrative Trauma, LLC, in Havertown, Pennsylvania and provides clients an integrative approach to trauma. As an individual and group psychotherapist, she treats simple and complex PTSD in adolescent and adult populations-including clients with co-occurring and eating disorders, sexual trauma, self injury, and Axis II diagnoses.

Passionate healer and trauma therapist.  Lisa has volunteered in Haiti, Kenya and Tibet, teaching simple and effective coping skills that help mitigate the effects of profound trauma. She has presented at conferences hosted by Harvard, the American Counseling Association, and the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD), among others.  She is an Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT) through Yoga Alliance and teaches on yoga for psychological trauma. 

Lisa Ferentz is a recognized expert in the strengths-based, de-pathologized treatment of trauma and has been in private practice for over 30 years.  She presents workshops and keynote addresses in the USA and internationally and is a clinical consultant to practitioners and mental health agencies in the United States and Canada.  She is the founder of The Institute for Advanced Psychotherapy Training and Education, now in its eighth year of providing trauma-informed training to mental health professionals.  Lisa is the author of "Treating Self-Destructive Behaviors in Traumatized Clients: A Clinician's Guide," now in its second edition, and "Letting Go of Self-Destructive Behaviors: A Workbook of Hope and Healing."

Maggie Phillips, Ph.D. is a licensed psychologist in full-time private practice in Oakland, California. She is director of the California Institute of Clinical Hypnosis and past-president of the Northern California Society of Clinical Hypnosis.

She has served on the faculties of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis (ASCH), American and European Congresses of Ericksonian Hypnosis and Psychotherapy, the Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing International Association (EMDRIA), the Esalen Institute, the European Society of Hypnosis in Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic Medicine, the International Society of Hypnosis (ISH), The Professional School of Psychology, the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis (SCEH), the International Society for the Study of Dissociation (ISSD), the International Transactional Analysis Association (ITAA), and the University of California at Santa Cruz, Extension.

Mary Sise, LCSW, DCEP, is an international speaker, teacher, counselor, and author known for her pioneering work in the field of energy psychology relating to the treatment of trauma, and her work in exploring the spiritual dimension of the soul and its integral relationship to authentic healing. Her warm, witty, and authentic approach makes her a frequently sought after speaker.

For over two decades, Mary has been at the forefront of developing, testing and teaching alternative treatment methods for trauma patients. She has trained hundreds of psychological clinicians in Energy Psychology methods, developed course work and taught for the National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine (NICABM). Mary is a consultant for the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology (ACEP) certification program. She actively supervises clinicians providing support, additional instruction, and guidance to those using her methods with their clients. Condensing years of work and innovations in the field, Mary co-authored the ground-breaking book The Energy of Belief: Psychology’s Power Tools to Focus Intention & Release Blocking Beliefs with psychologist Sheila Sidney Bender, PhD. She has developed several teaching and self-help tools.

In addition to Mary’s commitment to advancing safe, humane trauma treatment, her personal and professional journey is focusing more and more on the spiritual dimensions of healing and health, the spiritual implications of traumatic or overwhelming experiences, and how spiritual disconnection or soul loss results in dis-ease on a mental, emotional, physical and spiritual level.

In addition to teaching and speaking extensively and maintaining a private practice in upstate New York, Mary serves as the Program Director of the Transformational Healers Program for the spiritual master and global teacher Sai Maa.

Onno van der Hart offers, nationally and internationally, training and consultation on trauma-related dissociation, complex trauma-related disorders including the dissociative disorders. A psychologist, adult psychotherapist, trained family therapist and researcher, he is Emeritus Professor of Psychopathology of Chronic Traumatization at the Department of Clinical and Health Psychology at Utrecht University, the Netherlands, and, until January 1, 2013, a psychologist/ psychotherapist at the Sinai Center for Mental Health, Amstelveen. He is clinical consultant of the Center for Post-Trauma Therapy and Trauma Eduction, Helsinki and Oulu, Finland. He was Chief of Research at the Cats-Polm Institute—a research institute in the area of childhood abuse and neglect—in Zeist and a lead psychotherapist, specialized in the treatment of clients with complex trauma-related disorders, at the Mental Health Center Buitenamstel in Amsterdam.

Pat Ogden, PhD, is a pioneer in somatic psychology and both Founder and Education Director of Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute®, an internationally recognized school specializing in somatic–cognitive approaches for the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder and attachment disturbances. She is co-founder of the Hakomi Institute, a clinician, consultant, international lecturer and trainer, and first author of Trauma and the Body: A Sensorimotor Approach to Psychotherapy.  Her second book, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy: Interventions for Trauma and Attachment, , is a practical guide to integrate Sensorimotor Psychotherapy® interventions into the treatment of trauma and attachment issues.  Dr. Ogden is currently developing Sensorimotor Psychotherapy® for children, adolescents and families with colleagues.

An Assistant Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology of the University of Western Ontario.  Primary appointments are with the Neuropsychiatry Division (Psychiatry), the Personality & Measurement Area (Psychology). and the Graduate Program in Neuroscience.  Works closely with members of the PTSD Research Lab, directed by Dr. Ruth Lanius, in the Department of Psychiatry.

Dr. Peter A. Levine received his PhD in medical biophysics from the University of California in Berkeley and also holds a doctorate in psychology from International University. He has worked in the field of stress and trauma for over 40 years and is the developer of the Somatic Experiencing method. Peter’s original contribution to the field of Body-Psychotherapy was honored in 2010 when he received the Lifetime Achievement award from the United States Association for Body Psychotherapy (USABP). That same year he also received the honorary Reis Davis Chair in Child Psychiatry for his innovative contribution to therapy for children and adolescents.

Dr. Manfield has been licensed as a marriage and family therapist since 1975. He has authored or edited five books and numerous articles about psychotherapy and the use of EMDR. An international trainer, he has taught in the US, Canada, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and the Middle East. In January, 2001, he was honored to be featured in the book, "3 Minute Consultations with America's Greatest Psychotherapists." (Jason Aronson, Publishers) He is currently Northern California Regional Coordinator for the EMDR International Association.

Rachel Yehuda, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, is the Director of the Traumatic Stress Studies Division at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine which includes the PTSD clinical research program and the Neurochemistry and Neuroendocrinology laboratory at the James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Dr. Yehuda is a recognized leader in the field of traumatic stress studies. She has authored more than 250 published papers, chapters, and books in the field of traumatic stress and the neurobiology of PTSD.  Her current interests include the study of risk and resilience factors, psychological and biological predictors of treatment response in PTSD, genetic and epigenetic studies of PTSD and the intergenerational transmission of trauma and PTSD. She has an active federally-funded clinical and research program that welcomes local and international students and clinicians.

Richard Schwartz earned his Ph.D. in Marriage and Family Therapy from Purdue University, after which he began a long association with the Institute for Juvenile Research at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and more recently at The Family Institute at Northwestern University, attaining the status of Associate Professor at both institutions. He is coauthor, with Michael Nichols, of Family Therapy: Concepts and Methods, the most widely used family therapy text in the United States.

Dr. Schwartz developed Internal Family Systems in response to clients' descriptions of experiencing various parts–many extreme–within themselves. He noticed that when these parts felt safe and had their concerns addressed, they were less disruptive and would accede to the wise leadership of what Dr. Schwartz came to call the "Self." In developing IFS, he recognized that, as in systemic family theory, parts take on characteristic roles that help define the inner world of the client. The coordinating Self, which embodies qualities of confidence, openness, and compassion, acts as a center around which the various parts constellate. Because IFS locates the source of healing within the client, the therapist is freed to focus on guiding the client's access to his or her true Self and supporting the client in harnessing its wisdom. This approach makes IFS a non-pathologizing, hopeful framework within which to practice psychotherapy. It provides an alternative understanding of psychic functioning and healing that allows for innovative techniques in relieving clients' symptoms and suffering.

In 2000, Richard Schwartz founded The Center for Self Leadership in Oak Park, Illinois. CSL offers three levels of IFS training, national and international workshops for both professionals and the general public, an annual conference, publications, and video resources of Dr. Schwartz's work through its website at www.selfleadership.org. Dr. Schwartz is a featured speaker for many national psychotherapy organizations and a fellow of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and he serves on the editorial boards of four professional journals. He has published four books and over fifty articles about IFS. His books include Internal Family Systems Therapy, Introduction to the Internal Family Systems Model, and The Mosaic Mind (with Regina Goulding), as well as Metaframeworks (with Doug Breunlin and Betty Karrer). His most recent book is about using IFS with couples, titled You Are The One You've Been Waiting For, under the Trailheads imprint of The Center for Self Leadership. Dr. Schwartz lives and practices in Brookline, MA.

Robert T. Muller, Ph.D., C.Psych. completed his clinical fellowship at Harvard, was on faculty at the University of Massachussetts, and is currently Professor of Clinical Psychology at York University inToronto. Dr. Muller was recently honored as a Fellow of the International Society for the study of Trauma & Dissociation (ISSTD) for his work on trauma treatment. And his bestseller, Trauma and the Avoidant Client: Attachment-Based Strategies for Healing is in its third prining, has been translated, and won the 2011 ISSTD award for the year's best written work on trauma. As lead investigator on several multi-site programs to treat interpersonal trauma, Dr. Muller has lectured internationally (Australia, Europe, U.S.), and has been the keynote speaker at mental health conferences in New Zealand and Canada. He founded an online magazine, The Trauma & Mental Health Report, that is now visited by over 100,000 readers a year. With over 20 years in the field, he practices in downtown Toronto, working with adults, children, and families.

Robert Scaer, M.D. received his B.A. in Psychology, and his M.D. degree at the University of Rochester. He is Board Certified in Neurology, and has been in practice for 33 years, twenty of those as Medical Director of Rehabilitation Services at the Mapleton Center in Boulder, CO. His primary areas of interest and expertise have been in the fields of brain injury and chronic pain, and more recently in the study of traumatic stress and its role in physical symptoms and diseases.

He has lectured extensively nationally and internationally on these topics, and has published several articles on the whiplash syndrome and other somatic syndromes of traumatic stress. He has published a book in 2001, The Body Bears the Burden: Trauma, Dissociation and Disease, presenting a new theory of dissociation and its role in many diseases. A second edition of this book was released in October, 2007. A second book, The Trauma Spectrum: Hidden Wounds and Human Resiliency, released in July, 2005, explores the insidious spectrum of culturally-based trauma that shapes our lives, and how transformation and healing may still take place. He is currently retired from clinical medical practice, and continues to pursue a career in writing and lecturing.

Robyn is Director of TL Consultation Services and works at the National Center for PTSD as Associate Director of Dissemination and Training. As a licensed psychologist, she maintains an international training, consulting and therapy practice. She is an expert in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and has co-authored 3 books on ACT including a book on learning ACT. She also has expertise in traumatic stress and substance abuse and has authored a number of articles, chapters and books on these topics. Dr. Walser has been described as a “passionate, creative, and bold ACT trainer and therapist” and she is best known for her dynamic, warm and challenging workshops. She is often referred to as a clinician’s clinician. 

Ruth Lanius, MD, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry is the director of the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) research unit at the University of Western Ontario. She established the Traumatic Stress Service and the Traumatic Stress Service Workplace Program, services that specialize in the treatment and research of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and related comorbid disorders. She currently holds the Harris-Woodman Chair in Mind-Body Medicine at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at the University of Western Ontario.  Her research interests focus on studying the neurobiology of PTSD and treatment outcome research examining various pharmacological and psychotherapeutic methods. She has authored more than 100 published papers and chapters in the field of traumatic stress and is currently funded by several federal funding agencies.  She regularly lectures on the topic of PTSD nationally and internationally. She has recently published a book The Impact of Early Life Trauma on Health and Disease with Eric Vermetten and Clare Pain.

Sandra Paulsen, PhD, is a clinical and consulting psychologist who has accompanied many people on their extraordinary healing journeys for over two decades. She is a senior practitioner and instructor of advanced EMDR procedures and ego state therapy.  She received two years of training in somatic therapy.Sandra has published and spoken widely on the use of ego state therapy and EMDR to resolve complex and dissociative conditions.  Sandra is an EMDR Institute facilitator and EMDR International Association certified practitioner, consultant and advanced specialty workshop instructor.  She is a Fellow of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. She has trained hundreds of mental health professionals in these special procedures since 1993.   Dr. Paulsen consults extensively to senior executives, attorneys, physicians, dentists, performing artists and other professionals to assist in enhancing performance to the highest levels.

Sebern F. Fisher, MA,  is a psychotherapist and neurofeedback practitioner in private practice who specializes in attachment issues. She trains professionals nationally and internationally on neurofeedback, neurofeedback and attachment disorder, and the integration of neurofeedback with psychotherapy.

Dr. Shelley Uram is a Harvard trained, triple board-certified psychiatrist and a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. She speaks around the country about psychological trauma and how it often interferes with our ability to thrive in life. She is best known for communicating very complex information in an interesting and easy to understand way.  

Dr. Uram conducts patient lectures and provides ongoing training and consultation to the treatment staff at The Meadows, and is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at The University of Arizona College of Medicine.

Dr. Uram has written numerous articles about psychological trauma and the brain and is currently writing a book on the subject. 

Dr Porges developed the polyvagal theory of the nervous system.  He is a Research Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Additionally, he is a Visiting Research Professor in the Department of Psychology at Northeastern University.  He is Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago and Emeritus Professor of Human Development at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Dr. Ulrich F. Lanius is a Registered Psychologist who specializes in the treatment of traumatic stress and related problems. He works from a client-centered perspective, using eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) informed approach and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy.

Dr. Lanius is a Board Certified Expert in Traumatic Stress and a Diplomate of the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress. In addition to full assessment and treatment services, as a Facilitator for the EMDR Institute and an EMDR Approved Consultant he provides consultation and training in EMDR to other mental health professionals.