Advisory Board

Chris Aiken, MD, is a psychiatrist and psychotherapist whose work focuses on natural and lifestyle approaches to mood disorders. He is the director of the Mood Treatment Center, Editor-in-Chief of The Carlat Psychiatry Report, the bipolar Section Editor for Psychiatric Times, and an instructor at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine. He hosts the weekly Carlat Psychiatry Podcast with Kellie Newsome, PMH-NP.

Dr. Aiken’s interest in mood disorders came from experience with close friends who suffered from depression. He began his career as a research assistant at the National Institute of Mental Health and went on to complete medical school at Yale and residency at Cornell and Duke Medical Centers. He remains active in research, and his work has appeared in peer-reviewed journals and books. He lives in North Carolina with his wife Lisa and twin children, David and Eleanor.

Sherrie All, PhD, is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist specializing in neuropsychology, cognitive rehabilitation and brain health. She owns and directs the Chicago Center for Cognitive Wellness (CCCW), a group neuropsychology practice offering assessment and treatment services in cognitive rehabilitation and psychotherapy to people affected by cognitive decline.

As a leader in the field of brain health, Dr. All works to educate the public on brain-healthy behaviors and innovating brain health coaching. Her work in this area earned her the 2010 Sharpbrains Innovation Award for Most Innovative Mental Health Program as well as the attention of media outlets such as The New Yorker and Crain’s Chicago Business.Dr. All trains other professionals in how to implement cognitive rehabilitation interventions into their practice, through continuing education programs, supervision and individual consultations.

Dr. All’s forthcoming book and current keynote address, Brain Destiny: Everyday Choices to Lower Your Risk for Dementia and Change Your Life, offers an entertaining way of promoting a popular understanding of the scientific theory of cognitive reserve to empower people to effectively care for their brains. She has been an invited speaker by the Lifetime Education and Renewal Network (LEARN) of the American Society on Aging (ASA) and speaks regularly on the topics of brain health, cognitive rehabilitation and interventions for early-stage dementia. Dr. All’s research includes examination of functional MRI (fMRI) and electrophysiological (EEG) biomarkers of cognitive deficits.

As a naturopathic physician, national speaker, and pioneering advocate for the use of whole foods nutrition in the treatment of mental health disorders and addictions, Dr. Allott is passionate about achievable results. With more than fifteen years of clinical experience, she has refined her expertise on how to promote increased mental, emotional and physical functioning by treating the physical causes of mental health, fatigue, and sugar cravings. Dr. Allott is the co-author of Fuel Your Brain, Not Your Anxiety: Stop the Cycle of Worry, Fatigue, and Sugar Cravings with Simple Protein-Rich Foods (February 2021).

Dr. Allott has worked as a residential counselor for adolescents in mental health crises and advocated for the educational rights for individuals with learning disabilities. She is currently on the academic faculty at Bastyr University and serves as a guest lecturer for a variety of groups. As a physician and acupuncturist, she enjoys studying how daily life affects the biochemistry, physiology, and qi (energy) of the body. As a black belt in Aikido, she has studied the intimate connections between the mind, emotions and body.

Debra Alvis, PhD is a licensed psychologist, private practitioner, and yoga therapist with over twenty-five years of clinical experience in supporting clients’ recovery from shame, trauma, anxiety, depression, and relational concerns. She retired as faculty from the University of Georgia where she developed and led the Mind/Body Program, created a clinician training program integrating contemplative approaches into psychotherapy, and taught health psychology graduate students to apply neuroscientific and somatic approaches.

Debra’s interest in the treatment of shame began in the early 1990’s while exploring self-psychology and neuroanatomy. Her curiosity about how psychotherapeutic interventions could best engage the brain’s capacity to grow and change led her to study with leading experts Dan Siegel, Rick Hanson, and Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen. She combined this neuroscientific/somatic foundation with attachment, contemplative, and cognitive approaches. She discovered that wedding brain-based principals and body-oriented approaches with traditional psychotherapeutic orientations helped clients to recover more quickly from shame. As the shame lessened, clients’ co-morbid anxiety, depression, and addictions resolved more easefully. Debra has refined the application of her integrative shame treatment model through her work in private practice and as a clinical supervisor, educator, and consultant.

Frank Guastella Anderson, MD, completed his residency and was a clinical instructor in psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He is both a psychiatrist and psychotherapist. He specializes in the treatment of trauma and dissociation and is passionate about teaching brain-based psychotherapy and integrating current neuroscience knowledge with the IFS model of therapy.

Dr. Anderson is the Vice Chair, Director, trainer for the Center for Self Leadership with Richard Schwartz, PhD, and maintains a long affiliation with, and trains for, Bessel van der Kolk’s Trauma Center.

Dr. Anderson has lectured extensively on the Neurobiology of PTSD and Dissociation and wrote the chapter “Who’s Taking What” Connecting Neuroscience, Psychopharmacology and Internal Family Systems for Trauma in Internal Family Systems Therapy- New Dimensions. He co-authored a chapter on “What IFS Brings to Trauma Treatment in Innovations and Elaborations in Internal Family Systems Therapy" and recently coauthored the Internal Family Systems Skills Training Manual.

Patti Ashley, PhD, licensed professional counselor has integrated 40 years of experience in special education, child development, and psychology into her wholehearted work as a psychotherapist, author, international speaker, and authenticity architect coach. She brings unique insights into the identification and treatment of shame, trauma, grief and dysfunctional family patterns.

Dr. Ashley owns and operates Authenticity Architects in Boulder, Colorado. Her inimitable Authenticity Architecture model facilitates long-term changes in the brain and nervous system, helping clients break through unconscious barriers and rediscover a sense of self-love, belonging, and connection. As a licensed professional counselor since 2000, Dr. Ashley has counseled a myriad of individuals, couples, families and groups in mental health agencies, psychiatric hospitals, and private practice settings. She also has many years of experience developing continuing education courses for physicians, hospital wellness programs, universities and other organizations.

Dr. Ashley holds a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in psychology from the Union Institute and University, a Master of Education Degree in early childhood from Old Dominion University, and a Bachelor of Science Degree in special education from James Madison University. She is the author of Living in the Shadow of the Too-Good Mother Archetype (2014), Letters to Freedom (2019), and Shame-Informed Therapy: Treatment Strategies to Overcome Core Shame and Reconstruct the Authentic Self (2020). For more information, please visit www.pattiashley.com.

Mary B. Asper, MS, CCC-SLP, has over 40 years experience working with children, adults, families and educators from all walks of life in many different capacities. For the last 10 years, Mary’s focus has been on developing and implementing effective techniques and strategies to help students with language learning disabilities succeed in school. She is involved in all areas of treatment for dyslexia, including diagnosis, program development and implementation, therapeutic intervention and professional development for SLPs and educators. Mary has developed strategies to address linguistic, cognitive and social concerns based on best-practice recommendations and current neuro-scientific findings, through her work with students from the early grades through high school. Mary is the president and speech-language pathologist for her company, Codding Hollow Associates, Inc. and coordinates a team of related professionals who serve students with severe language learning disabilities and communication disorders. She holds certification from the American Speech-Language Association, is a former board member for the Vermont Speech-Language Association and an instructor in Special Topics: Language Disorder for Lyndon State College in Vermont.

Steven Atkinson, PA-C, MS, is a Board-Certified Physician Assistant specializing in Geriatric Internal Medicine. He practices medicine in the greater Minneapolis area. In addition to his private practice, he has been on the faculty at the University of Utah since 1994 and has been involved in medicine for over 30 years. Steven is the co-founder of Twin Cities Physicians, which serves older adults in nearly all levels of their care. He has presented nationally for over 15 years, primarily speaking bout geriatric-related syndromes. Steven is a published author and also sits on several boards whose purpose is to elevate the level of care in medicine for the patients they serve.