BESSEL A. VAN DER KOLK, MD
Bessel A. Van der Kolk, M.D., is a clinician, researcher and teacher in the area of post-traumatic stress. His work integrates developmental, neurobiological, psychodynamic and interpersonal aspects of the impact of trauma and its treatment.
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, memory, and the psychobiology of trauma. He has published over 150 peer reviewed scientific articles on such diverse topics as neuroimaging, self-injury, memory, neurofeedback, Developmental Trauma, yoga, theater and EMDR.
He is founder of the Trauma Center in Brookline, Massachusetts and president of the Trauma Research Foundation, which promotes clinical, scientific and educational projects.
His 2014 #1
New York Times best seller,
The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Treatment of Trauma, 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, somatically based therapies, EMDR, psychodrama, play, yoga, and other therapies.
Dr. van der Kolk is the past president of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, and professor of psychiatry at Boston University Medical School. He regularly teaches at conferences, universities, and hospitals around the world.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Bessel van der Kolk is a professor at Boston University School of Medicine, the Director of the Trauma Center, and the National Complex Trauma Network. He receives royalties as a published author. Dr. van der Kolk receives a speaking honorarium, recording royalties, and book royalties from PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. Bessel van der Kolk has no relevant non-financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
STEPHEN PORGES, PHD
Stephen W. Porges, PhD, is a distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University, where he is the founding director of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium within the Kinsey Institute. He holds the position of Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina and Professor Emeritus at the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Maryland, and is a founder of the Polyvagal Institute. Dr. Porges served as president of both the Society for Psychophysiological Research and the Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences and is a former recipient of a National Institute of Mental Health Research Scientist Development Award. He has published approximately 400 peer-reviewed scientific papers across several disciplines including anesthesiology, biomedical engineering, critical care medicine, ergonomics, exercise physiology, gerontology, neurology, neuroscience, obstetrics, pediatrics, psychiatry, psychology, psychometrics, space medicine, and substance abuse. His research has been cited in more than 50,000 peer-review publications. In 1994, Dr. Porges proposed the Polyvagal Theory, a theory that links the evolution of the mammalian autonomic nervous system to social behavior and emphasizes the importance of physiological state in the expression of behavioral problems and psychiatric disorders. The theory is leading to innovative treatments based on insights into the mechanisms mediating symptoms observed in several behavioral, psychiatric, and physical disorders.
He is the author of
The Polyvagal Theory: Neurophysiological foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-Regulation (Norton, 2011),
The Pocket Guide to the Polyvagal Theory: The Transformative Power of Feeling Safe (Norton, 2017),
Polyvagal Safety (Norton, 2021), co-author with Seth Porges of
Our Body Polyvagal World (Norton, 2023), and co-editor with Deb Dana of
Clinical Applications of the Polyvagal Theory: The Emergence of Polyvagal-Informed Therapies (Norton, 2018). Dr. Porges is also the creator of a music-based intervention, the Safe and Sound Protocol™, which currently is used by approximately 3,000 therapists to improve spontaneous social engagement, to reduce hearing sensitivities, and to improve language processing, state regulation, and spontaneous social engagement.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Stephen Porges has employment relationships with Indiana University Bloomington and the University of North Carolina. He receives royalties as a published author. Dr. Porges receives a speaking honorarium, book royalties, and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. He receives royalties from Integrated Learning Systems/Unyte. All relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations have been mitigated.
Non-financial: Dr. Stephen Porges is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Association for Psychological Science, and the Society for Psychophysiological Research. He holds a patent on Televagal equipment. Dr. Porges is co-owner of Polyvagal Music, LLC launching in 2024.
PETER A. LEVINE, PHD
Peter A. Levine, PhD, holds doctorates in both medical biophysics and psychology. The developer of Somatic Experiencing®, a body-awareness approach to healing trauma, and founder of the Somatic Experiencing Trauma Institute, which conducts trainings in this work throughout the world and in various indigenous cultures, with 26 faculty members and over five thousand students. Dr. Levine was a stress consultant for NASA on the development of the space shuttle project and was a member of the Institute of World Affairs Task Force of Psychologists for Social Responsibility in developing responses to large-scale disasters and ethnopolitical warfare. Levine’s international best seller,
Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma, has been translated into 22 languages. His recent interests include the prevention of trauma in children, and he has co-written two books, with Maggie Kline, in the area:
Trauma Through a Child’s Eyes and
Trauma-Proofing Your Kids. His most recent book:
Trauma and Memory: Brain and Body in a Search for the Living Past, was recently released to rave reviews. Levine’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). Levine was also honored as the recipient of the 2020 Psychotherapy Networker Lifetime Achievement Award.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. Peter Levine is the founder and president of the Ergos Institute of Somatic Education, the president and editorial director of Ergos Institute Press, and receives a consulting fee from the Meadows Addiction Center. He receives royalties as a published author. Dr. Levine receives a speaking honorarium, recording, and book royalties from Psychotherapy Networker and PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. Peter Levine is a senior clinical fellow and advisor to the Meadows Addiction Treatment Center. He is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Humanistic Psychological Association, and the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies.
STEVEN FRANKEL, PHD, JD, ABPP
Steven Frankel, Ph.D., J.D. is an ABPP certified clinical and forensic psychologist, as well as an attorney at law. Dr. Frankel has been on the faculty of the University of Southern California for over 35 years and is currently a Clinical Professor of Psychology. He served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at Loyola Law School (Los Angeles) and is now an Adjunct Professor at Golden Gate University School of Law. He has taught courses on healthcare policy, regulation of healthcare practice and mental disorder and the law. Author of more than 50 articles and book chapters, he won the USC Award for Teaching Excellence early in his academic career.
MAGGIE PHILLIPS, PHD
Maggie Phillips, Ph.D., lives and works as a clinical psychologist in the Oakland Hills above the San Francisco Bay. As the author of numerous papers and articles on trauma, dissociation, ego-state therapy, hypnosis, and mind-body healing, she specializes in the treatment of traumatic stress and pain disorders. Dr. Phillips is author of Reversing Chronic Pain, Finding the Energy to Heal, Healing the Divided Self, and Body-Focused Therapy Can Help Restore Mind-Body Health.
DAVID GRAND, PHD
David Grand, PhD, is the founder and developer of the groundbreaking brain-body based Brainspotting method. Through his Brainspotting Trainings, Inc., he has trained over 8,000 therapists internationally.
Dr. Grand is the author of the acclaimed book,
Brainspotting: The Revolutionary New Therapy for Rapid and Effective Change and the co-author of
This is Your Brain on Sports. Dr. Grand is in demand as a lecturer on a variety of topics. He has accomplished breakthroughs in performance and creativity with his Brainspotting sports work and Brainspotting acting and singing coaching.
Dr. Grand has been widely featured in the media including
The New York Times, NBC national news, The Discovery Channel, CNN, MSNBC,
Sports Illustrated and Sirius Radio.
Dr. Grand still finds time for a full-time private psychotherapy and performance practice in Manhattan, NY.
“Brainspotting is a remarkable, sophisticated, flexible addition to the therapeutic toolkit of any psychotherapist.”
Norman Doidge, MD, FRCPC,, Author of
The New York Times Bestseller,
The Brain That Changes Itself
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dr. David Grand maintains a private practice and is a developer for BioLateral Sound Recordings. He is the developer of the Brainspotting method and receives compensation as a national lecturer. Dr. Grand receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from Psychotherapy Networker and PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dr. David Grand has no relevant non-financial relationship to disclose.
FRANK OCHBERG, MD
Frank Ochberg, M.D. is a founding board member of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies and recipient of their highest honor, the Lifetime Achievement Award. He edited the first text on treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, and served on the committee that defined PTSD. He was associate director of the National Institute of Mental Health and director of the Michigan Mental Health Department. At Michigan State University, he is clinical professor of psychiatry, formerly adjunct professor of criminal justice, and adjunct professor of journalism. Ochberg developed, with colleagues, the Academy for Critical Incident Analysis at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Gift From Within (a charity for persons with PTSD), and the Committee for Community Awareness and Protection (responding to serial-killer threats). For the latter activity, he is the first physician to receive the Law Enforcement Medal of the Sons of the American Revolution. Ochberg founded the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, served as its first chairman and now helps journalists understand traumatic stress and traumatic stress experts understand journalists. As a Red Cross volunteer, Ochberg assisted families at sites of earthquakes, floods, fires and aircraft disasters. He represents the Dart Foundation and directs their support of victimization programs around the world.
DAWSON CHURCH, PHD
Dawson Church, PhD, is an award-winning author whose best-selling book,
The Genie In Your Genes, has been hailed as a breakthrough in the field of epigenetics. He also wrote the latest (third) edition of
The EFT Manual. He is a science blogger for
The Huffington Post, the editor of the peer-reviewed journal
Energy Psychology energypsychologyjournal.org, and has served as principal investigator for many clinical trials. He founded the non-profit veterans stress project to provide free PTSD counseling to returning war veterans
stressproject.org. He applies these breakthroughs to health and athletic performance through EFT Universe
EFTuniverse.com, one of the largest alternative medicine sites on the web. He has been quoted in many media including
NPR, BBC, O:The Oprah Magazine, and
Psychology Today.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Dawson Church is the founder of EFT Universe. He is the CEO of the Energy Psychology Group, Inc. Mr. Church is the executive director for the National Institute for Integrative Healthcare. He receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Dawson Church has no relevant non-financial relationship to disclose.
KATHY STEELE, MN, CS
Kathy Steele, MN, CS, is Clinical Director of Metropolitan Counseling Services, a psychotherapy and training center, and is in private practice in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a past President of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. She frequently teaches about trauma and dissociation around the world and has authored or co-authored numerous publications in the field. Kathy has received several awards for her work, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation. She is co-author of The Haunted Self: Structural Dissociation of the Personality and Treatment of Chronic Traumatization (2006) and Coping with Trauma-related Dissociation: Skills Training for Patients and Therapists. (2011) She is currently writing a practical clinical manual on treatment, resistance, and impasses in dissociative disorders with Suzette Boon, PhD and Onno van der Hart, PhD.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Kathy Steele maintains a private practice and has employment relationships with Emory University, Transformational Counselling Centre, and Hummingbird Centre for Psychotherapy. She receives royalties as a published author. Kathy Steele receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Kathy Steele is a member of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation.
DAVID FEINSTEIN, PH.D.
David Feinstein, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist and 9-time national award-winner for his books on consciousness and healing. He and his wife established the world’s largest organization teaching energy medicine, and their latest book, The Energies of Love, achieved best-seller status on the NY Times Relationship List. He has also written more than 100 articles in the professional literature.
Dr. Feinstein has served on the faculties of The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Antioch College, and the California School of Professional Psychology. In addition, he received the 2002 and 2012 “Outstanding Contribution” Award from the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology, the U.S. Book News Award for the Best Psychology/Mental Health Book of 2007, the 2015 “Outstanding Leadership” Award from the Canadian Association for Integrative and Energy Therapies, and the Infinity Foundation’s 2013 “Spirit Award” (with his wife) for their contribution to “the evolution of consciousness” and its “impact on society”.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: David Feinstein directs The Energy Medicine Institute. He is an author and receives royalties. Dr. Feinstein receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc. He has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: David Feinstein is a member of the American Psychological Association; and the Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology.