Program testimonials

Real people.In their own words.

Get to know the learning experience at IPI through the people who have been part of it. Hear their perspectives on the training, the community, and what they took into their work.

Psychedelic Therapy Certification Integrative Psychiatry Certificate Program

01 / Student experiences

Psychedelic Therapy Certification

Hear participants reflect on their experience learning about psychedelic therapy with IPI.

Marton Manyai

Student testimonial

Laura Haberer, LCSW

Student testimonial

Susan Frederick, MD

Student testimonial

Marat Shpolyansky, NP

Student testimonial

Karen Schanche, LCSW

Student testimonial

Lynn Knight, MA, LCMHC, RPT

Student testimonial

Lorna Benton, LCSW

Student testimonial

Ektha Aggarwal, LCSW

Student testimonial

Mindy Tockman, MA, LPC

Student testimonial

Explore the curriculum and find out more about the program.

Explore Psychedelic Therapy Certification

02 / Student experiences

Integrative Psychiatry Program

Hear participants share their experience studying integrative psychiatry with IPI.

Shannon Darling, PMHNP

Student testimonial

Antonia Regojo, MD

Student testimonial

Elizabeth Faust, MD

Student testimonial

Laila Contractor, MD

Student testimonial

Katie Kern, ARNP, PMHNP

Student testimonial

Rozina Lakhani, MD

Student testimonial

Dipali Desai, MD

Student testimonial

Patrick Ellis, DO

Student testimonial

Explore the curriculum and find out more about the program.

Explore Integrative Psychiatry Certificate Program

Find the next step in your learning.

Our team can help you explore which IPI program fits your goals.

Connect with our team

Barbara Olasov Rothbaum Headshot

Barbara Olasov Rothbaum, PhD

Barbara Olasov Rothbaum, PhD, is a Professor of Psychiatry and Associate Vice Chair of Clinical Research at the Emory University School of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. She is the Executive Director of the Emory Healthcare Veterans Program and Trauma and Anxiety Recovery Program. She holds the Paul A. Janssen Chair in Neuropsychopharmacology.

Dr. Rothbaum specializes in research on the treatment of individuals with anxiety disorders, particularly focusing on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) as well as pioneering the application of virtual reality to the treatment of psychological disorders. She has authored over 300 scientific papers and chapters, including five published books on the treatment of PTSD. She has edited three other books on anxiety.

Dr. Rothbaum received the Diplomate in Behavioral Psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology. She is a former President of the International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS), and received the Robert S. Laufer Award for Outstanding Scientific Achievement from ISTSS. Currently, Dr. Rothbaum is on the Scientific Advisory Boards for the Anxiety Disorders Association of America (ADAA), the National Center for PTSD (NCPTSD), and McLean Hospital, as well as serving on the Executive Committee of the Warrior Care Network. She is a fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP), the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), and American Psychological Association’s Division 56 (Division of Trauma Psychology). In 2010, Dr. Rothbaum, along with her collaborating team, was honored by Division 56 with the “Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Practice of Trauma Psychology.” She served as a member of the Institute of Medicine’s Study on Assessment of Ongoing Efforts in the Treatment of PTSD.

Dr. Rothbaum’s outreach efforts include training community clinicians in evidence-based treatment for PTSD. The Emory Healthcare Veterans Program is a member of the Warrior Care Network, funded by the Wounded Warrior Project, and is able to provide world class treatment to post 9/11 Veterans from around the country at no cost to the Veteran.

Kelly Thooft

Kelly Thooft’s journey exemplifies the seamless blend of professional excellence, academic achievement, and athletic discipline. A former Division I volleyball athlete at George Mason University, Kelly honed her competitive spirit and leadership skills while earning her Bachelor of Science in Economics. She further advanced her expertise with a Master of Business Administration from the University of Maryland, College Park, and completed the Venture Capital Executive Education Program at the University of California, Berkeley, deepening her insights into innovation-driven growth. Kelly was recently named one of the Top 50 Women Leaders in Healthcare by Women We Admire magazine.

Currently, Kelly serves as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer at the Integrative Psychiatry Institute (IPI), where she plays a pivotal role in advancing the organization's mission to transform mental health care. She leads strategic initiatives, optimizes operations, and ensures financial excellence to support IPI’s innovative educational programs and evidence-based approaches to mental health treatment. Kelly’s leadership is central to IPI’s focus on integrative psychiatry, psychedelic-assisted therapy, and functional medicine, empowering practitioners to address the root causes of mental health challenges while fostering resilience and well-being.

With over 15 years of experience driving transformative growth in industries such as wellness, human performance, and technology, Kelly is renowned for her dynamic leadership style. She excels at understanding and harnessing individual and team motivations, creating environments that foster trust, loyalty, and shared purpose. Her strategic, hands-on approach focuses on reducing turnover, building cohesive teams, and cultivating a culture of high performance to achieve sustained growth and operational excellence.

Beyond her professional endeavors, Kelly enjoys an active lifestyle, including hiking with her husband and their two Bernese Mountain Dogs, skiing, and swimming. A certified Lagree Pilates instructor, she is passionate about fitness, practicing both Lagree and hot yoga. An avid reader, she finds inspiration in memoirs and books on human performance, reflecting her curiosity about personal growth and resilience. Kelly’s multifaceted journey underscores her dedication to unlocking human potential, making her an impactful leader at IPI and beyond

Rakesh Jain, MD, MPH, is a Clinical Professor at the department of Psychiatry, at the Texas Tech University School of Medicine in Midland, Texas and in private practice in Austin, Texas.

Dr. Jain attended medical school at the University of Calcutta in India. He then attended graduate school at the University of Texas School of Public Health in Houston, where he was awarded a “National Institute/Center for Disease Control Competitive Traineeship”. His research thesis focused on impact of substance abuse. He graduated from the School of Public Health in 1987 with a Masters of Public Health (MPH) degree.

He served a three-year residency in Psychiatry at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. He followed that by obtaining further specialty training, by undergoing a two-year fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. In addition, Dr. Jain completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Research Psychiatry at the University of Texas Mental Sciences Institute, in Houston. He was awarded the “National Research Service Award” for the support of this postdoctoral fellowship.

Dr. Jain has been involved in well over a hundred research projects studying the effects of medications on short-term and long-term treatment of depression, anxiety, pain/mood overlap disorders, ADHD, and psychosis in adult and child/adolescent populations. He has presented at the World Psychiatric Congress held in Prague, and at the Depression and Pain Forum meetings in Costa Rica, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Greece, Brazil, Portugal, United Kingdom, and Argentina. He is the author of fifty-five articles published in various journals and magazines, such as Journal of Psychiatric Research, Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, among others, and has presented over twenty five original research posters at various meetings such as the APA, ACNP, AACAP, US Psychiatric Congress, etc. He has co-authored six books that range from patient education, to cutting edge neurobiologic findings in psychiatry and mental health.

He serves on several Advisory Boards focusing on drug development and disease state education. He was also recently the Chair of the US Psychiatric Congress, held in Las Vegas, and for several years has served as a member of the Steering Committee for US Psychiatric Annual Congress. He is a recipient of “Public Citizen of the Year” award from the National Association of Social Workers, Gulf Coast Chapter, in recognition of his community and peer education, and championing of mental health issues. He was also recently awarded the “Extra Mile Award” by the school district, in recognition of the service to the children of the school district, and consultation to the teachers and counselors. At a U.S. Psychiatric Congress, held in San Diego, California, he was the recipient of “Teacher of the Year Award.”

Dr. Tusek is a board-certified family physician who also has experience as an emergency room doctor. He is a member of the Academy of Sports Medicine, the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine, and the Institute of Functional Medicine.

Dr. Tusek relishes the close connectivity with his Cloud DPC patients, whether they are training for the Olympics, dealing with an illness, or simply trying to lose a few pounds. He believes that enhancing your quality of life is just as important as extending the quantity of your years.Dr. Tusek combines expertise in advanced diagnostics and optimization of brain and body function using a broad-based approach, blending cutting edge technologies with a natural orientation. He uses a wide variety of gentle, needle-based therapies to treat musculoskeletal and neuromuscular conditions and injuries. He performs various office-based surgeries, cryosurgeries, and treatments of minor trauma. In 2004, he became one of the first practitioners in Colorado to offer bio-identical hormone implants, and has been working closely with compounding pharmacies (those pharmacies that prepare personalized medications for patients), to provide the purest, most effective forms of natural therapies.

In 2009, Dr. Tusek co-founded one of the nation’s first DPC programs, which he sold in 2016. He then went on to launch Cloud Medical DPC, and currently oversees several other healthcare ventures including Cloud Collective.
As a previous member of the steering committee of the Direct Primary Care Coalition based in Washington, DC, Dr. Tusek is a recognized leader in healthcare transformation, and was invited to the White House to discuss the future of American medicine. He was named among the “Top Doctors in Concierge Medicine” and is a former qualifier for the Ironman Triathlon World Championships in Kona, Hawaii. He enjoys skiing, cycling, and spending time with his wife and two daughters in the playground that is Colorado.

Dr. Lisa Mosconi, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Neuroscience in Neurology and Radiology, and director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Program at Weill Cornell Medicine (WCM)/NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. The program includes the NIH-funded Women’s Brain Initiative, the award-winning Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic, and the newly launched Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinical Trials Unit.

Dr. Mosconi holds a PhD degree in Neuroscience and Nuclear Medicine from the University of Florence, Italy. She ranks in the top 1% of scientists of the past 20 years by official metrics. Recognized by The Times as one of the 17 most influential living female scientists and honored in ELLE 100: Women That Are Changing The World, Dr. Mosconi has been portrayed as “the Mona Lisa of Neuroscience” by ELLE International.

Dr. Mosconi’s NIH-funded research is focused on the early detection and prevention of cognitive aging and Alzheimer’s disease in at-risk individuals, especially women, using brain imaging techniques such as positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. Dr. Mosconi is passionately interested in how risk of memory loss and dementia can be prevented through the combination of appropriate medical care and lifestyle modifications involving diet, physical and intellectual fitness.

She is the author of the New York Times, USA Today, Canada #1 Health & Fitness, and The Sunday Times bestselling THE MENOPAUSE BRAIN (2024); of the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, and Der Spiegel bestselling THE XX BRAIN (2020); and of the Amazon bestselling BRAIN FOOD (2018), which have been translated into more than 15 languages each. Dr. Mosconi’s popular TED talk “How menopause affects the brain” has been viewed over 4 million times since its release.

Dr. Mosconi has published over 150 peer-reviewed papers in prestigious medical journals, including Nature Medicine, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, the Journal of the Medical Association and the British Medical Journal (Online); several book chapters in scientific books including Imaging the Aging Brain (Oxford University Press), Brain Imaging: Translational tools for CNS drug discovery, development and treatment (Elsevier) and the New Encyclopedia of Neuroscience (Elsevier).

Dr. Mosconi’s work has been presented at many international conferences leading to press releases involving TV and radio networks world-wide (CNN, CBS, NBC, the Today Show, the Doctors show, etc.), and major print media including Associated Press, Reuters, the New York Times, the Washington Post, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, ELLE International, and several international outlets.

Dr. Toups shifted her clinical practice and research interests into Precision Medicine/Functional Medicine after becoming ill and developing dementia at the age of 50 in 2009. She was running a successful clinical trials research center, where she was the Principal Investigator on over 100 clinical trials.

She gradually came to realize she was becoming as demented as her patients in the dementia clinical trials! She moved her clinical trials to another research center, and embarked on the study of Functional Medicine to save her own brain. Once her brain came back “online“, Dr. Toups was able to appreciate the utility of using these “root cause medicine” approaches for not only dementia, but other psychiatric and medical illnesses as well.

Dr. Toups now practices Functional Medicine Psychiatry, which seeks to discover the underlying causes of inflammation (like diet/nutrition, lifestyle, genetics including MTHF/Methylation/Sulfation/Detoxigenomic genetic polymorphisms, GI health including food allergies and dysbiosis, toxin exposure, chronic infections, and biochemical abnormalities) that can all be contributors to problems with Psychiatric symptoms and/or cognition difficulties. Detection and correction of these problems can result in the resolution of the Psychiatric symptoms, rather than just providing a band-aid by only prescribing Psychiatric medications without addressing the underlying causes of the Psychiatric problem.

Psychiatry is at a crossroads, and after more than 25 years as a Psychopharmacologist, I came to realize that our medications can help reduce some suffering, but we are not helping people to truly get well. In the artificial dichotomy that psychiatry has created to separate the brain from the body, we seem to have thrown the baby out with the bathwater.

The inflammation that affects your gut (diarrhea, bloating, constipation, acid reflux, etc.) or your thyroid (hypothyroidism, Hashimoto's) or your pancreas (diabetes, metabolic syndrome) or your joints (arthritis) can also affect your brain. Inflammation in the brain can manifest as all of the psychiatric disorders (Depression, Anxiety, ADHD, OCD, Bipolar, PTSD, Psychosis) and also the Neurodegenerative Disorders (Alzheimer's, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's, ALS, etc.).

The road to wellness then starts with the search for what is driving the inflammation, and putting out the source of that fire, rather than simply covering up one manifestation of the inflammation (like Depression or ADHD) without addressing it's root cause.

Orlando Zuniga, LMFT

Orlando Zuniga is a bilingual and bicultural licensed mental health clinician practicing since 2013. Prior to 2013, Orlando was a healthcare administrator. Orlando is a firm believer that one must integrate healing by looking at a person whole. To facilitate healing and change, Orlando observes the relationship between multiple variables that include body, mind, emotions, spirit, environment, and culture. Orlando supports patients and clients by utilizing a treatment orientation suitable for each unique person, group or circumstance. Orlando works with individuals, couples, families, children and people of all ages, cultures, and sexual orientations. Orlando operates as a neutral and objective witness to each individual experience.

Before beginning his clinical experience, Orlando spent a year traveling in Latin America to personally learn and work with psychedelics. Since his initial trip to Latin America, Orlando has made multiple visits to the Amazonian Rainforest and the Central American jungle to continue his personal understanding of plant medicines and the indigenous cultures that have been the guardians of these medicines. Through out his clinical journey, Orlando has been a part of various multi-disciplinary teams for HIV/AIDS, LGBTQ, and BIPOC communities providing culturally sensitive care in both English and Spanish. Orlando has helped co-create a triage program within Kaiser Permanente’s primary care unit in San Francisco, CA. While living in San Francisco, Orlando was also working with immigration law as a forensic mental health expert for foreign national clients seeking political asylum, and other forms of protection. Orlando also worked with Kaiser Permanente's large groups in Los Angeles, CA to support Anxiety, Depression and Anger Management. Most recently Orlando has been working with Field Trip Health, a Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy clinic in Los Angeles, CA. Finally, Orlando is the founder of Transforma Therapy where he provides counseling, coaching and consulting.

George M. Slavich, PhD

Dr. Slavich is a leading expert in the conceptualization, assessment, and management of life stress, and in psychological and biological mechanisms linking stress with poor mental and physical health. He developed the first online system for assessing lifetime stress exposure; formulated the first fully integrated, multi-level theory of depression; and is helping pioneer a new field of research called human social genomics, which is revealing how social experiences reach deep inside the body to affect the human genome. His most recent research focuses on Social Safety Theory, which describes how experiences of social safety and threat influence the brain and immune system to affect human health and behavior. This translational work on the psychoneuroimmunology of stress, health, and behavior has been published in several leading journals including Nature Medicine, Nature Communications, JAMA Psychiatry, PNAS, Psychological Bulletin, Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, and the Annual Review of Clinical Psychology.

In addition to these research efforts, Dr. Slavich is deeply devoted to teaching and mentoring and to helping develop the next generation of leaders in psychiatry and psychology. In addition to having mentored more than 175 pre- and post-doctoral trainees, early in his career Dr. Slavich founded the Stanford Undergraduate Psychology Conference, Western Psychological Association Student Council, and Society of Clinical Psychology’s Section on Graduate Students and Early Career Psychologists. More recently, he has developed a new approach to classroom instruction called transformational teaching and has written numerous articles on professional development issues in science. He has received 18 awards for these contributions since 2009, including the Neal E. Miller New Investigator Award from the Academy of Behavioral Medicine Research, Herbert Weiner Early Career Award from the American Psychosomatic Society, Susan Nolen-Hoeksema Early Career Research Award from the Society for a Science of Clinical Psychology, and Raymond D. Fowler Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Professional Development of Graduate Students from the American Psychological Association.

David Perlmutter, MD

Dr. Perlmutter is a Board-Certified Neurologist and five-time New York Times bestselling author. He serves on the Board of Directors and is a Fellow of the American College of Nutrition.

Dr. Perlmutter received his M.D. degree from the University of Miami School of Medicine where he was awarded the Leonard G. Rowntree Research Award. He serves as a member of the Editorial Board for the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease and has published extensively in peer-reviewed scientific journals including Archives of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and The Journal of Applied Nutrition. In addition, he is a frequent lecturer at symposia sponsored by institutions such as the World Bank and IMF, Columbia University, Scripps Institute, New York University, and Harvard University, and serves as an Associate Professor at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

His books have been published in 32 languages and include the #1 New York Times bestseller Grain Brain, The Surprising Truth About Wheat, Carbs and Sugar, with over 1 million copies in print. Other New York Times bestsellers include Brain Maker, The Grain Brain Cookbook, The Grain Brain Whole Life Plan, and Brain Wash, co-written with Austin Perlmutter, M.D. He is the editor of The Microbiome and the Brain authored by top experts in the field and published in December 2019 by CRC Press. His latest book, Drop Acid, focuses on the pivotal role of uric acid in metabolic diseases, and will be published in February 2022.

Dr. Perlmutter has been interviewed on many nationally syndicated television programs including 20/20, Larry King Live, CNN, Fox News, Fox and Friends, The Today Show, Oprah, The Dr. Oz Show, The CBS Early Show, and CBS This Morning.

Dr. Perlmutter is also the recipient of numerous awards, including: the Linus Pauling Award for his innovative approaches to neurological disorders; the National Nutritional Foods Association Clinician of the Year Award, the Humanitarian of the Year Award from the American College of Nutrition, and most recently the 2019 Global Leadership Award from the Integrative Healthcare Symposium.

Mark Hyman, MD

Mark Hyman, MD, has devoted his life to helping others discover optimal health and address the root causes of chronic disease through the power of Functional Medicine. Dr. Hyman is an internationally recognized leader, speaker, educator, and advocate in the fields of Functional Medicine and nutrition. He is the founder and director of The UltraWellness Center, the Head of Strategy and Innovation of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine, a fourteen-time New York Times best-selling author, and Board President for Clinical Affairs for The Institute for Functional Medicine. He is the host of one of the leading health podcasts, The Doctor’s Farmacy. Dr. Hyman is a regular medical contributor to several television shows and networks, including CBS This Morning, Today, Good Morning America, The View, and CNN. He is also an advisor and guest co-host on The Dr. Oz Show. Through his work to change policy for the betterment of public health, Dr. Hyman has testified before the Senate Working Group on Health Care Reform on Functional Medicine. He has consulted with the surgeon general on diabetes prevention and participated in the 2009 White House Forum on Prevention and Wellness. Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa nominated Dr. Hyman for the President’s Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health.

Additionally, Dr. Hyman has presented at the Clinton Foundation’s Health Matters, Achieving Wellness in Every Generation conference and the Clinton Global Initiative, as well as with the World Economic Forum on global health issues, TEDMED and TEDx. He is the winner of the Linus Pauling Award and the Nantucket Project Award. Dr. Hyman received the Christian Book of the Year Award for his work on The Daniel Plan, a faith-based initiative that helped the Saddleback Church collectively lose 250,000 pounds that he created with Rick Warren, Dr. Mehmet Oz, and Dr. Daniel Amen. He was inducted into the Books for Better Life Hall of Fame. With Dr. Dean Ornish and Dr. Michael Roizen, Dr. Hyman crafted and helped introduce the Take Back Your Health Act of 2009 to the United States Senate, which promotes reimbursement for lifestyle treatment of chronic disease. With Tim Ryan in 2015, he helped introduce the ENRICH Act into Congress to fund nutrition in medical education. Dr. Hyman plays a substantial role in the major 2014 film Fed Up, produced by Laurie David and Katie Couric, which addresses childhood obesity. Please join him in celebrating the power of food as medicine at www.drhyman.com, follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, and listen to his podcast The Doctor’s Farmacy for conversations that matter around health, wellness, food, and politics.

Jeffrey Bland, PhD, FACN, FACB, CNS

Dr. Jeffrey Bland is a personable and highly respected thought leader who has spent more than five decades focused on the improvement of human health. He is known worldwide as the founder of the Functional Medicine movement, which represents his vision for a care model that is grounded in systems biology and informed by research that he has a unique ability to synthesize. His pioneering work has created the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute, as well as the Institute for Functional Medicine, the global leader in Functional Medicine education. Since 1991, hundreds of thousands of healthcare practitioners have participated in PLMI and IFM programs, and this collective knowledge has positively impacted the lives of patients all over the world.

Dr. Bland began his career as a Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Puget Sound. He is a natural educator and became involved with numerous academic institutions during the years he spent teaching. This includes the significant contributions he made to the founding of Bastyr University, the first federally accredited university offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in natural medicine in the US. In the early 1980s, Dr. Bland was hand-selected by two-time Nobel Laureate Dr. Linus Pauling to serve as Director of Nutritional Research at the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine.

Dr. Bland is the author of best-selling books and over 120 peer-reviewed research publications. He speaks extensively, and his engaging style makes him popular with both professional and consumer audiences. Dr. Bland’s latest project is Big Bold Health, where he’s on a mission to transform the way people think about one of nature’s greatest innovations—the immune system. Through Big Bold Health, Dr. Bland is advocating for the power of immuno-rejuvenation to enhance immunity at a global level. It’s an ambitious and purpose-driven effort that encompasses his active stance on regenerative agriculture, environmental stewardship, and planetary health.

Shane earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado in Boulder, CO, completed extensive coursework towards a Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Performance Psychology at the University of Denver, and earned his Master of Arts Degree in Sport & Exercise Psychology from Argosy University. Shane is Nationally Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC) and a Licensed Mental Health Clinician in the State of Colorado. Having worked in community non-profit mental health since 2008, Shane has gained experience working with the entire spectrum of mental disorders and with all populations and age groups. Shane is attending a Ph.D. program in Social Work at Colorado State University where his interest in the potential that psychedelics hold for healing human consciousness can be explored and further developed. Shane is actively involved in the Colorado and National psychedelics communities where he strives to provide evidence-based education, harm-reduction strategies, therapeutic integration, and healthy non-violent ways of working with individuals and communities engaged in altered states work. He is a life-long athlete having competed at various levels in more than a dozen different sports and currently competes as a Professional Athlete in the sport of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Submission Grappling and teaches these martial arts in his local community. Because of his passion for warrior cultures of past and present, Shane has been ardently developing his own “Warriorship,” training in various forms of Martial Arts for 30 years. Shane feels that the self-discipline, the philosophy of non-violence, the innumerable mental and physical benefits, and the enjoyment that he gains from the Martial Arts is what helped drive his passion in the field of Psychology. His personal interest in Eastern Philosophy stems from his adoption of a Buddhist lifestyle and blends well with his training in Western Psychological Science. Shane operates a podcast called “Conversations With The Mind” in which he explores all facets of the human experiences of consciousness.

For more than thirty years, Michael Pollan has been writing books and articles about the places where the human and natural worlds intersect: on our plates, in our farms and gardens, and in our minds. Pollan is the author of eight books, six of which have been New York Times bestsellers; three of them (including his latest, How to Change Your Mind) were immediate #1 New York Times bestsellers. Previous books include Cooked (2013), Food Rules (2009), In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto (2008) and The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (2006), which was named one of the ten best books of 2006 by both the New York Times and the Washington Post. It also won the California Book Award, the Northern California Book Award, the James Beard Award for best food writing, and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. A revised, young readers’ edition of Omnivore’s Dilemma was published in 2015. Pollan’s 2001 book, The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s-Eye View of the World, also a New York Times bestseller was recognized as a best book of the year by the American Booksellers Association and Amazon.com. Pollan is also the author of A Place of My Own (1997) and Second Nature (1991). An expanded edition of Food Rules, with original illustrations by Maira Kalman, was published in 2011. How to Change Your Mind was named one of the New York Times’ 10 Best Books of 2018. In 2020 he published a new audio book titled Caffeine, available from Audible. In 2021, he will publish a book titled This is Your Mind on Plants.

A four-hour Netflix miniseries based on Cooked premiered in February 2016. PBS presented a two-hour special documentary based on The Botany of Desire in fall 2009 and a two-hour documentary based on In Defense of Food was broadcast nationally in December 2015 and was nominated for an Emmy. Pollan also appeared in the Oscar-nominated 2008 documentary Food Inc., which was partly based on The Omnivore’s Dilemma. He is currently working on a four-part Netflix series based on How To Change Your Mind as well as a sequel to Food Inc.

Shannon Carlin, MA, LMFT, is the Director and Head of Training and Supervision at the MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS PBC), a 501(c)(3) non-profit. As the Director of Training and Supervision, Shannon oversees the development and implementation of the programs that provide training and supervision to prepare mental health and medical professionals to deliver MDMA-assisted therapy in approved clinical settings. Shannon started working with MAPS PBC in 2011 before joining MAPS PBC in 2016.
In her dedication to supporting people through growth and healing, Shannon has served as a co-therapist on MAPS PBC-sponsored Phase 2 trials researching MDMA-assisted therapy for anxiety associated with life-threatening illness and MDMA-assisted therapy for severe PTSD. Shannon’s direct clinical work continues to inform the development and implementation of the training programs she oversees.
Shannon’s previous professional experience includes the development of community programs delivering resources, services, training, and support for healthy living, life skills, employment, and positive youth development. Her work has served adults with schizophrenia, bipolar, and substance use disorder, families and youth in a low-income residential setting, and high school students learning about moderation management of drug and alcohol use. In her lifelong commitment to address homelessness, Shannon volunteers with housing projects and shelters and completed a farm internship with the Homeless Garden Project.
Shannon received her master’s degree in Integral Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies and a bachelor’s degree in Cultural Anthropology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. An adventurer at heart, Shannon can be found in nature, backpacking, running, and dancing. She celebrates and cultivates relationship and community and is passionate about life, love, and thriving.

Berra Yazar-Klosinski, PhD, is a Deputy Director of the 501(c)(3) non-profit Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). She also serves as the Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) for the MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC) where she drives scientific strategy and directs all facets of pre-market regulatory activities to create psychedelic medicines.

Dr. Yazar-Klosinski has worked on every MAPS-sponsored study to date and has contributed significantly to the foundation of MAPS PBC. She has actively contributed to the nonclinical and clinical development of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy and other psychedelic compounds.

As the CSO of MAPS PBC, Dr. Yazar-Klosinski provides leadership, scientific strategy, direction, and execution for global clinical development plans to bring products to target markets, utilizing deep scientific understanding of the disease process, mechanism of action of psychedelic compounds, and understanding of design and execution of clinical trials to nurture ideas from proof of concept to patient care. She also provides executive oversight for the Data Management & Services (including Biostatistics), Chemistry, Manufacturing & Controls, and Regulatory Affairs Departments.

After gaining experience in clinical research laboratories with Geron Corporation and Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Yazar-Klosinski joined MAPS in 2009 to work with an organization where profit does not dictate the agenda of scientific research. Dr. Yazar-Klosinski has supported MAPS clinical research and regulatory affairs through all stages of growth, and she has developed a strong track record of success with FDA, state regulatory agencies and multiple international regulatory agencies.

Dr. Yazar-Klosinski earned her B.S. in Biology with a minor in Drama from Stanford University and her Ph.D. in Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is a Turkish hunter-gatherer who is supporting the growth of her family and pets in harmony with the natural world as she works tirelessly to transform the future."

Elizabeth Willis RN, MS, PMHNP(c) is a co-founder of the Organization for Psychedelic and Entheogenic Nurses (OPENurses) and has practiced as an emergency department registered nurse (ED RN) in critical care settings for a decade. Passionate about disaster response and humanitarian work, her nursing path has taken her as far as Bolivia, Ecuador, Cambodia, Laos, and Zimbabwe. She currently works as a front-line provider ED RN at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). A 2017 graduate of the second cohort of the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) Certificate in Psychedelic Therapies and Research (CPTR) program, she next earned a Master of Science (MS) degree from UCSF’s Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) program.

Psychedelics, peer-support, harm reduction, and nursing are areas where she has received advanced training and cultivated deep experiences. In west Sonoma County, CA, Liz has volunteered or worked for organizations as diverse as the Humane Society, Planned Parenthood, Red Cross, and Sutter VNA Hospice. Since 2013, as a volunteer with the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) for ZENDO Project, she has participated in all roles including medical lead and supervisor, training others in psychedelic harm reduction and holding space safely at numerous events and festivals in the United States, Costa Rica, and South Africa. In 2021, she was honored to serve as a supervisor for the launch of the pioneering psychedelic peer-support line — Fireside Project.

Her own personal healing journey began in Peru working within Shipibo traditions and ultimately led her to Teotihuacán, where her path as a Moondancer and as a Pipe Carrier walking in the Nahuatl lineage was initiated.
Liz is looking forward to her future role as a PMHNP where she will continue to fulfill her mission:

To honorably bring psychedelic medicines and plant entheogens to the western medical model by elevating the art, science, and spirituality of nursing in the fields of psychedelic-assisted therapies and research.

Stan Tatkin, PsyD, MFT, is a clinician, researcher, teacher, and developer of A Psychobiological Approach to Couple Therapy® (PACT). He has a clinical practice in Calabasas, CA, and developed the PACT Institute for the purpose of training other psychotherapists to use this method in their clinical practice.

In addition, Dr. Tatkin teaches and supervises family medicine residents at Kaiser Permanente, Woodland Hills, CA, and is an assistant clinical professor at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine. Dr. Tatkin is on the board of directors of Lifespan Learning Institute and serves as a member on Relationships First Counsel, a nonprofit organization founded by Harville Hendrix and Helen LaKelly Hunt.

Books/CDs by Dr. Tatkin includes:

We Do: Saying Yes to a Relationship of Depth, True Connection, and Enduring Love, published by Sounds True

Your Brain on Love: The Neurobiology of Healthy Relationships, 6 CD set published by Sounds True

Wired for Love: How Understanding Your Partner’s Brain and Attachment Style Can Help You Defuse Conflict and Build a Secure Relationship, published by New Harbinger

Your Brain on Love: The Neurobiology of Healthy Relationships, published by Sounds True

Wired for Love: How Understanding Your Partner’s Brain and Attachment Style Can Help You Defuse Conflict and Build a Secure Relationship, published by New Harbinger

Love and War in Intimate Relationships: Connection, Disconnection, and Mutual Regulation in Couple Therapy, with coauthor Marion Solomon, available through W. W. Norton’s Interpersonal Neurobiology Series

Dr. Tatkin received his early training in developmental self and object relations (Masterson Institute), Gestalt, psychodrama, and family systems theory. His private practice specialized for some time in treating adolescents and adults with personality disorders. More recently, his interests turned to psycho-neurobiological theories of human relationship and applying principles of early mother-infant attachment to adult romantic relationships.

Dr. Tatkin was a primary inpatient group therapist at the John Bradshaw Center, where among other things, he taught mindfulness to patients and staff. He was trained in Vipassana meditation by Shinzen Young and was an experienced facilitator in Vipassana. He was also trained by David Reynolds in two Japanese forms of psychotherapy, Morita and Naikan. Dr. Tatkin was clinical director of Charter Hospital’s intensive outpatient drug and alcohol program and is a former president of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, Ventura County chapter. He is a veteran member of Allan N. Schore’s study group. He also trained in the Adult Attachment Interview by way of Mary Main and Erik Hesse’s program through UC Berkeley.

Anu French, MD is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a Member of the AAP’s Pediatric Integrative Medicine Leadership Initiative. She is double board-certified in Pediatrics and Integrative Medicine and has completed a pediatric residency at The Children’s Hospital of Michigan, a fellowship in Integrative Medicine through Dr. Andrew Weil's Center for Integrative Medicine, is an alumnus of the IPI Integrative Psychistry fellowship and has Advanced Pediatric Training through the IFM (Institute for Functional Medicine).

She has a special interest in PANS/PANDAS and is on the Professional Advisory board of ASPIRE the Alliance to Solve PANS & Immune-Related Encephalopathies. https://aspire.care/about/mission-goals-vision/

Dr French is a member of Integrative Medicine for the Underserved for health care equity https://im4us.org/ and attended the 2018 Integrative Health & Wellness Congressional Caucus hearings on Capitol Hill. She is on the core committee of Let’s Integrate, a national community network dedicated to reversingACES http://www.letsintegrate.org/our-impact. She was an AAP Section on Integrative Medicine 2017 grant recipient and her research “A pilot study on ‘The Magic Mirror' harp music as a cost-effective biofeedback/neurofeedback tool to build intergenerational resilience.” was presented at the AAP’s 2018 National Conference. https://www.amycamie.com/pediatricpilotstudy.html

A yoga student for 20 years, Anu has completed Kids Yoga Teacher Training through the Yoyoyoga School in St Louis. She coauthored and published a review on Yoga in Children included in the AAP’s 2016 Clinical Policy Statement on the use of Mind-Body Therapies in Children and Youth. “Complementary, Holistic, and Integrative Medicine: Yoga. https://doi.org/10.1542/pir.36-10-468

Dr French has been in pediatric practice for 26 years with SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital St Louis MO and opened her SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Pediatrics and Integrative Medicine office in 2019.

She precepted dietetic interns from St Louis Fontbonne University, co-facilitating a group integrative nutrition visit model which was published in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 2019 Special Focus Issue on Innovation in Group-Delivered Services. “Collaboration Between a Dietetics Program and Pediatric Medical Office to Provide Nutrition Education Group Visits" https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/acm.2019.0055

Anu is passionate about creating resources through her public Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ANewWellnessAnuFrench

which are available on her website A New Wellness www.anufrench.com These include her children’s book, ‘I Am You, You Are Me’ an anti-bullying book about unity and inclusivity. Her CD ‘Wake Up My Divinity’ is filled with music she created as she made sound healing a part of her own journey to wellness and streams on Pandora, Spotify, Amazon and iTunes. She paints for mind body spirit balance and offers her healing acrylic artwork the ‘I Am’ series for sale on commission, and her ‘I Am Vida’ line of accessories to support global Literacy for Life programs. https://tinyurl.com/ye28rv5p

She teaches resilience building, sound healing, art therapy and mindfulness workshops locally. Her choice of meditation is walking her backyard labyrinth and trying to be a mindful partner to her beloved and a mindful parent to her two precious daughters and her two wayward dogs.

Amelia Villagomez, MD

Dr. Villagomez is board certified in Child/Adolescent and General Psychiatry. She completed residency at Yale-New Haven Hospital and fellowship at Boston Children's Hospital/Harvard program. Dr.Villagomez then completed the 1000-hour integrative medicine fellowship through the University of Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine. She has also been certified in leading Mind-Body skills Groups through the Center for Mind-Body Medicine. One area of focus has been working with patients with a history of trauma using an evidence-based trauma therapy called Accelerated Resolution Therapy.

She co-directors an Integrative Psychiatry elective program for residents and fellows at the University of Arizona and works in a group practice, Progressive Psychiatry, in Fort Worth, Texas using an integrative approach for children, adolescents, and adults.

Peer-reviewed Journal Articles

Ranjbar N., Villagomez A., Brooks A., Ricker M., Lebensohn P., & Maizes V., “Assessing Integrative Psychiatry Curriculum Needs,” Global Advances in Health and Medicine (2019). https://doi.org/10.1177/2164956118821585

Villagomez A, Ramtekkar U. “Iron, Magnesium, Vitamin D, and Zinc Deficiencies in Children Presenting with Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.” Children, October 2014.

Brooks, A. J., Ranjbar, N., Villagomez, A., Ricker, M., Lebensohn, P., Maizes, V., & Erb, M. (2016, June). Effect of an Integrative Medicine Curriculum with Mind-Body Skills Training on Resident Wellbeing. In American Journal on Addictions (Vol. 25, No. 4, pp. 311-311). 111 River St, Hoboken 07030-5774, NJ USA: Wiley-Blackwell.

Book Chapters

Villagomez, Amelia. “Examination and Diagnosis,” First Aid for Psychiatry. Ed. Jason Yanofski.

McGraw-Hill, 2010.

Villagomez A, Ranjbar N. “Integrative Approaches for Adolescent Depression,” Integrative

Therapies for Depression: Redefining Models for Assessment, Treatment, and Prevention, CRC Press, December 2015.

Posters

Ranjbar N, Murzl C, and Villagomez A. “Evaluation of a Blended-Learning Elective Curriculum in Integrative Psychiatry,” American Academy of the Directors Psychiatry Residency Training, Poster Presentation, February 2018, New Orleans, Louisiana.

Brooks A, Ranjbar N, Erb M, Villagomez A, Lebensohn P, Ricker M, Maizes V, “Designing an Integrative Medicine Curriculum with Mind-Body Skills Training to Impact Wellbeing in Psychiatry Residents.” Annual meeting of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry, December 2015, Huntington Beach, California.

Diaz E, Hafler J, Aggarwal N, Armah T, Villagomez A, Knudson-Gonzalez D. “Designing and Implementing a Curriculum on Cultural Sensitivity.”Accepted for presentation at the Annual meeting of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatry Residency Training, March 2011, Austin, Texas.

Keith Kurlander, MA, LPC

Keith Kurlander, MA, LPC is the Co-founder of the Integrative Psychiatry Institute (IPI) and the Integrative Psychiatry Centers (IPC) along with Will Van Derveer, MD. He brings a professional and personal passion toward the innovation and evolution of the field of psychiatry, psychedelic medicine and psychotherapy.

The Integrative Psychiatry Institute is an educational platform that is advancing the field of mental health care with provider training focused on integrative medicine, functional medicine, lifestyle medicine, and psychedelic-assisted therapy.

The Integrative Psychiatry Centers serve patients with integrative psychiatry services as well as psychedelic-assisted therapy currently in form of IV and IM KAP.

He graduated Naropa University in 2005 with a master’s degree in Transpersonal Counseling Psychology. As a Partner of Boulder Psychotherapy Services, he has practiced integrative psychotherapy for over a decade. After years of treating highly complex patients, as well as a personal journey of overcoming complex trauma and mood-related issues, he turned toward integrative psychiatric practices as a key component to achieving mental health and understanding the healing process.

In 2014 he founded Higher Practice, an online company with the mission to empower therapists to achieve their highest potential in private practice. Keith believes mental health professionals are catalysts for positive social change and, therefore, are key influencers in uplifting consciousness and alleviating unnecessary suffering. With this in mind, he designed Higher Practice to provide mental health professionals with innovative clinical trainings for continuing education, as well as the most comprehensive business course available for those pursuing private practice.

He also co-hosts The Higher Practice Podcast for Optimal Mental Health. This weekly podcast interviews experts in the fields of neuroscience, psychotherapy, psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, developmental psychology, human behavior, psychiatry, clinical psychology, and nutrition. The Higher Practice Podcast is dedicated to bringing mental health clinicians the most current and innovative methods for transforming clients’ lives, as well as their own.

Nancy is a family doctor whose practice of medicine has evolved considerably over the 30-plus years of her career. After deciding that interacting with people would be much more fun and interesting than interacting with distillation towers, she left her job as a chemical engineer and went to medical school in Boston where, unbeknownst to her, she was likely bitten by a Lyme-infected tick while exploring the New England countryside. Having occasionally severe but limited symptoms, she finished her training, and went on to practice Family Medicine in Denver for several decades. Eventually, her frustration with the current pharmaceutically-centered paradigm of seeing patients every 15 minutes led her to Functional/Integrative Medicine. She now feels deep satisfaction when treating the root causes of illness, and finds that this approach is much more beneficial to her patients while also being much more aligned with her personal experience and values.

Nancy discovered in 2016 that chronic Lyme disease was responsible for the worsening psychiatric and physical symptoms she had faced ever since a back surgery two years prior. This discovery has revolutionized both her life and her practice. Having now pursued extensive training in both tick-borne infections and mold toxicity, she uses her many years of clinical experience, her pattern-recognition skills, and her commitment to finding the root causes of illness to diagnose and treat those with elusive, treatment-resistant, multisymptom, multisystem illnesses. Nancy is passionate about sharing her knowledge and experience with others, so that the true prevalence and impact of these conditions may be recognized within the medical community and beyond.

Nancy Brown holds an undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University, and received her MD from Harvard Medical School. She continues to work in private practice in Boulder County, CO, where her focus is increasingly on patients with Lyme and related conditions. Having successfully launched her daughter, she lives in Denver with her cat Pixie, and enjoys gardening, cooking, and meditation.

Will Van Derveer, MD is co-founder of Integrative Psychiatry Institute (IPI), along with friend and colleague Keith Kurlander, MA. He co-created IPI as an expression of what he stands for. First, that anyone can heal, and second that we medical providers must embrace our own healing journeys in order to fully command our potency as healers.

Dr. Van Derveer spent the last 20 years innovating and testing a comprehensive approach to addressing psychiatric challenges which transcends the conventional model he learned in medical school at Vanderbilt University and residency at University of Colorado, while deeply engaging his own healing path.

He founded the Integrative Psychiatric Healing Center in in 2001 in Boulder, CO, where he currently practices. Dr. Van Derveer regards unresolved emotional trauma as the most significant root cause of psychiatric symptoms in integrative psychiatry practice, along with gut issues, hormone imbalances, inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and other functional medicine challenges. He is trained in Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, Internal Family Systems, and other psychotherapy techniques. His current clinical passion is psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, which he mentors interested doctors in providing. An avid meditator, he has been a meditation instructor since 2004.

For the past several years Dr. Van Derveer has taught psychiatrists and other psychiatric providers integrative psychiatry in a number of settings, including course directing the CU psychiatry residents’ course as well as with Scott Shannon and Janet Settle at the Psychiatry MasterClass. In addition to his clinical work and teaching, he was co-investigator in 2016 a Phase II randomized clinical trial, sponsored by the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). He continues to support this protocol, now in a Phase III clinical trial under break-through designation by FDA.

Dr. Van Derveer is a diplomate of the American Board of Integrative and Holistic Medicine (ABoIHM) since 2013, and he was board certified in the first wave of diplomates of the new American Board of Integrative Medicine (ABIM) in 2016.

This distinguished pioneer in integrative medicine is a world-renowned expert in the mind/body connection. Her work has been foundational in an international health-care revolution that recognizes the role of meaning, and the spiritual dimensions of life, as an integral part of health and healing. Eloquent and inspiring in settings that range from hospitals to hospices, from theaters to conference venues, and from boardrooms to houses of worship, she is a credible bridge between faith and reason. Her brilliance, humor, and authenticity—in combination with the latest research—make her a compelling and inspiring speaker and writer.

After graduating magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr College in 1967, Dr. Borysenko earned her doctorate in Medical Sciences from the Harvard Medical School, where she completed post-doctoral training in cancer cell biology. Her first faculty position was at the Tufts University College of Medicine in Boston. But after the death of her father from cancer, she became more interested in the person with the illness than in the disease itself, and returned to Harvard Medical School to complete a second postdoctoral fellowship, this time in the new field of behavioral medicine. Under the tutelage of Herbert Benson, M.D., who first identified the relaxation response and brought meditation into medicine, she was awarded a Medical Foundation Fellowship and completed her third post-doctoral fellowship in psychoneuroimmunology.

In the early 1980’s Dr. Borysenko co-founded a Mind/Body clinic with Dr. Benson and Dr. Ilan Kutz, became licensed as a psychologist, and was appointed instructor in medicine at the Harvard Medical School. Her years of clinical experience and research culminated in the 1987 publication of the New York Times best seller, Minding the Body, Mending the Mind, which sold over 400,000 copies. The 20th anniversary edition, newly revised, was published in 2007. Author or co-author of 16 other books and numerous audio and video programs, including the Public Television special Inner Peace for Busy People, she is the Founding Partner of Mind/Body Health Sciences, LLC located in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Judith E. Pentz, MD, is a holistic, alternative and integrative psychiatrist with board certification in child, adolescent and adult psychiatry as well as integrative medicine. She seeks to combine the best of Western and integrative medicine for support of your mental well being. The goal is to be as gentle as possible and to stimulate the natural healing mechanisms that we all have in our body.

She has included orthomolecular medicine, nutritional options, homeopathy, targeted amino-acid therapy, breathing techniques and meditation in her practice. The integrative approach includes the spiritual and emotional part of our being, as well the mental and physical part of our being. She has studied various alternative healing methods including craniosacral therapy, EMDR, homeopathy, Chi Gung. She has studied with various healers exploring Chinese, Native American, Peruvian, Ayurvedic and Reiki healing traditions.

Currently, she is providing telehealth services to several sites for Indian Health Services through University of New Mexico contract. She is also program director at UNM for the psychiatry residents and child fellows as part of the pilot program for the on line integrative psychiatry program with University of Arizona.

She has contributed the Botanicals for Depression chapter in Integrative Therapies for Depression: Redefining Models for Assessment, Treatment and Prevention, lending her voice to the growing body of work that shows there is a world beyond prescribing drugs.

She has completed a book, Cleanse Your Body, Return to Your Soul about her trek to India for an ancient ayurvedic cleanse – panchakarma – that forged her path to her own healing. There is a prescriptive approach here and there is an increased awareness of the need of self care being a part of all of our daily lives.

Dr. Pentz attended the Medical College of Ohio at Toledo (MCOT) where she received her medical degree in 1985. The school’s name recently changed to the University of Toledo after a merging of resources. She completed her training at MCOT in child, adolescent, adult psychiatry in 1990.