Self-Care Strategies for Healing Professionals

Dr. Amber Elizabeth L. Gray is a Dance/Movement Therapist, Human Rights Psychotherapist, and yoga teacher specializing in supporting survivors of war, torture, and human rights abuses. Her work spans active conflict zones, post-conflict areas, refugee camps, and disaster-stricken regions. An activist, artist, author, and therapist, she draws on a Polyvagal, Heart & Spirit-informed Right to Embody somatic human rights framework. With 25 years immersed in Polyvagal Theory, she developed survivor-centered, multicultural Somatic & Dance/Movement Therapy, shared globally through Body of Change eco-somatic retreats.

Deanna Jimenez is an Assistant Professor in the Somatic Psychology Department at California Institute of Integral Studies and a somatic/transpersonal psychotherapist in private practice. Her work explores the intersection of mental health, race, culture, and spirituality, with a focus on supporting individuals and couples engaged in transformative justice and social change. Drawing from transpersonal psychology and embodied practice, she supports clients in building grounded, spiritually rooted resilience while challenging systems of oppression.

Devon Christie, MD, is a family physician and therapeutic counsellor specializing in chronic pain, mental health, and psychedelic-assisted therapy. She is Co-Founder and Medical Director of the Centre for Medicine Assisted Therapy and has over a decade of experience as a clinician, researcher, and educator. A former Senior Lead at Numinus, Dr. Christie served as a Study Therapist on the MAPS Phase 3 MDMA-assisted therapy trial for PTSD and co-authored research on its impact on chronic pain. She co-directs the Somatic Psychedelic Facilitator Certificate with The Embody Lab.

Jessica Montgomery, MSW, Certified Hakomi Trainer, has been a somatic counselor and catalyst for over 30 years. Blending brain science with mindful experiential techniques, she facilitates individuals, couples, and communities toward greater wholeness. Her background spans community mental health, private practice, retreats, integrative medicine, and counselor education. A Trainer at the Hakomi Institute of the Pacific Northwest, she has served on faculty at the National University of Natural Medicine, META Institute, and as program director at Breitenbush Retreat Center. She is co-developer of the Primary Attachment model and lives in Portland, Oregon.

Rae Johnson, PhD, RSMT, BCC (they/them) is a board-certified coach, somatic movement therapist, and scholar/activist working at the intersections of embodiment and social justice. A professor of somatic psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies, Rae helped develop the first Embodied Social Justice Certificate, bringing together hundreds of practitioners to shape this emerging field. Rae is the author of several books, including Embodied Social Justice (Routledge, 2018) and Embodied Activism (North Atlantic Books, 2023).

Sergio Ocampo is a licensed psychotherapist, educator, and co-developer of Dynamic Somatic Touch (DST), an integrative trauma-resolution approach addressing emotional overwhelm, trauma, chronic pain, and illness. His work blends somatic and cognitive therapies including Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, family systems, generational trauma, and depth and spiritual psychology. An adjunct faculty member at Antioch University and contributor to The Embody Lab, Sergio holds leadership roles within Somatic Experiencing communities and teaches internationally, emphasizing that trauma is temporary and resolvable.

Deb Dana, LCSW, is an author, clinician, and consultant using Polyvagal Theory to understand and resolve trauma while honoring the autonomic nervous system. She developed the Rhythm of Regulation Clinical Training Series and lectures internationally. Deb is a founding member of the Polyvagal Institute, clinical advisor to Khiron Clinics, and advisor to Unyte. Her clinical works with W.W. Norton include The Polyvagal Theory in Therapy, Polyvagal Exercises for Safety and Connection, and the Polyvagal Flip Chart. With Sounds True, she released Befriending Your Nervous System and the book Anchored.

Dr. Dan Siegel is a New York Times Bestselling Author of Aware: The science and practice of presence; and Mind: A journey to the heart of being human. He is a Clinical Professor at the UCLA School of Medicine and Executive Director of Mindsight Institute