The 2021 Misophonia Convention will be held online October 14-16, 2021 (Link to convention and registration info)
CONVENTION SPEAKERS in alphabetical order (with more to come!):
Adeel Ahmad
Adeel Ahmad, host of the Misophonia Podcast, has Misophonia and interviews other “Misophones” from around the world. In his podcast you will hear candid conversations with people that have Misophonia. He is the creator of The Miso List, a directory of products and businesses by Misophones. Adeel also supports fellow misophones as the administrator for the Midwest Misophones Support Group. During the day Adeel is a software engineer and entrepreneur, currently an Engineering Manager at Caterpillar Digital Labs.
Danielle Benesch
Danielle Benesch completed her bachelor’s degree in cognitive science at Osnabrück University in 2019. In 2020, she started her research master’s at École de technologie supérieure. During her master’s, she has been working on the “Sensitive Ear” project under the supervision of Prof. Jérémie Voix and Dr. Rachel Bouserhal at the NSERC-EERS Industrial Research Chair in In-Ear Technologies (CRITIAS). Her research is centered around the development and evaluation of a wearable technology for managing decreased sound tolerance, spanning the fields of audio processing, affective computing, and assistive technology design.
Danielle is part of a student research team that will be presenting their findings at the convention.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-b-803a33145/
Sara Bidler
Sara Bidler is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Advanced Level Somatic Experiencing Trainee. She has a private therapy practice in Minnesota and also provides consultation for misophonia nationwide. Her approach is guided by her life experience as someone with misophonia, being the parent of a child with misophonia, work with over 70 youth/adults with misophonia and their families, training in systems theory and Somatic Experiencing (a nervous system based approach to releasing trauma and stress from the body) and engagement in misophonia-specific trainings and research.
Authentic Living Therapy Services
Dr. Ezra Cowan
Ezra Cowan holds a doctorate in psychology from Kean University in Union, NJ. He recently completed his postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy in New York City, NY and specializes in the treatment of misophonia, tinnitus, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and perfectionism.
Dr. Ezra Cowan Psychology Services
Tom Dozier
Tom Dozier is a behaviorist who has researched and provided treatment for misophonia for the past 8 years. He is author of Understanding and Overcoming Misophonia and 6 journal articles. Tom founded the non-profit Misophonia Institute in 2016 to promote misophonia awareness and research. He developed Relaxation and Counterconditioning Therapy as a behavioral treatment for misophonia and provides this treatment by video-chat.
Cris Edwards
Cris, MFA in Theater, is a Volunteer Researcher for the Misophonia Association and is the founder of soQuiet, a nonprofit misophonia advocacy organization. Cris has experienced misophonia for over 35 years and strives to help others live rewarding and serene lives with misophonia. Cris is especially interested in misophonia in the arts and misophonia in recovery. He earned his Master’s of Fine Arts in Directing from Texas Tech University. He lives with his wife, Michelle, and their one-eyed cat in St. Louis.
Dr. Marti Glenn
Marti Glenn, PhD, Clinical Director of Ryzio Institute, offers professional trainings and intensive retreats to help adults transform their lives. An award winning and pioneering psychotherapist and educator, Marti is founding president of Santa Barbara Graduate Institute. SBGI is known for its graduate degrees in prenatal and perinatal psychology, somatic psychology and clinical psychology. In her clinical work and trainings, Marti emphasizes the integration of the latest research in a number of fields such as: Epigenetics, Polyvagal Theory, neuroscience, attachment, pre- and perinatal psychology, and trauma.
She has produced a number of conferences relating to prenatal and birth issues. And, she co-produced the broadcast quality documentary, Trauma, Brain and Relationship: Helping Children Heal with Daniel Siegel and Bruce Perry. She has appeared in such documentary films as What Babies Want; What Babies Know; Reducing Infant Mortality and Improving the Health of Babies. She is a recipient of the Verny Lifetime Achievement Award in Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Health.
Marti is a frequent speaker at conferences worldwide. She lives in Santa Barbara, California and enjoys working with her husband Ken in their Ryzio Programs, both virtual and in-person. Outside of work, her greatest passion is being with her grandchildren.
Dr. Jaelline Jaffe
Jaelline Jaffe, PhD, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and Misophonia Association Board member who has been instrumental in each of the previous five conventions. She has over 40 years of experience in offering dialectical and cognitive therapy to families and individuals, and began to offer help to those who suffer from Misophonia in her California based clinic and online during the past ten years.
Sensitive to Sound Counseling/Coaching for Tinnitus & Misophonia
Dr. Marsha Johnson
Marsha Johnson, AuD, has been devoted to the care of patients with tinnitus, hyperacusis and misophonia for 21 years at her Oregon Audiology Clinic. Her clinical background includes the terminal degree of her field, the Doctorate of Audiology (AuD). She has served on many different nonprofit boards including the American Tinnitus Association, the Tinnitus Practitioners Association, the Misophonia Association, and others.
Oregon Tinnitus & Hyperacusis Treatment Clinic
Dr. Patty Kalmbach
With over 30 years experience in the field of Audiology, Dr. Kalmbach, Au.D., CCC-A, FAAA, has been specializing in the treatment of Misophonia, Tinnitus, Hyperacusis and Hearing Loss since 2006. Her approach for Misophonia is to complete an extensive diagnostic evaluation and Case History and she approaches each case uniquely based on the patient’s individual needs. She encourages a combination of Sound Therapy and counseling to retrain negative reactions associated to triggers. She strongly believes in a collaborative approach with other medical providers to assure that the patient receives a clear diagnosis and treatment plan. Her focus is to change the quality of your life so that you can live your best life with misophonia.
Colorado Tinnitus & Hearing Center
Dr. Craig Kasper
Craig Kasper, Au.D., CCC-A, FAAA, is a Vestibular Audiologist and Managing Director of New York Hearing Doctors | Institute for Hearing & Balance. He specializes in disorders of the vestibular system and balance optimization. A Distinguished Fellow of the National Academies of Practice, Dr. Kasper has been at the front lines of public education and hearing/balance healthcare service for over 25 years. He completed his Doctorate of Audiology at the University of Florida and earned his master’s degree with clinical honors from the State University of New York at Buffalo. Dr. Kasper completed his Clinical Fellowship and served as a clinician in the Department of Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery at New York-Presbyterian Medical Center. Dr. Kasper is a Fellow of the American Academy of Audiology (AAA) and holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association (ASHA). Dr. Kasper is a member of the American Balance Society and also earned certification in Performance Breathing from XPT.
He has contributed to scholarly articles that have been published in peer-reviewed journals, including Hearing Research and Laryngoscope. In addition to his professional publication history, he has written informative and educational health/scientific articles for the general public.
His experience has made him a resource for the media. He has appeared in print, on local and nationwide television, and online discussing topics related to hearing/balance health and wellness. Dr. Kasper has appeared multiple times on the Dr. Oz Show, with Katie Couric on her show Katie’s Take, on the ABC News Now show Parenting, Good Morning America, NY1 News, WNBC, WCBS News Radio, MSNBC, CBS News, WABC News, Bloomberg News, MTVu, Backstage Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, The Vancouver Sun, 1010WINS.com, Diabetes Health Magazine, New Jersey Star-Ledger, Men’s Journal, Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Cosmopolitan magazine, and many others.
Dr. Michael Mannino
Michael Mannino is currently Director of Programs at the Institute for Data Science and Computing at the University of Miami. He holds a PhD in neuroscience, having researched networks of the human brain involved in perception, learning and memory, attention, as well as embodied cognition.
Michael is also an amateur athlete, focusing on a variety of different movement modalities, and interested in peak performance, cognitive enhancement and neurotechnologies, and the intersection of neuroscience and fitness.
He also has a Masters degree in philosophy, specializing in philosophy of mind, consciousness, and science, and has been a professor of philosophy and critical thinking for 10 years, teaching ethics and moral reasoning, philosophy, logic, and comparative religion.
Michael is very passionate about science communication, transhumanism and exponential technologies, and space science. Michael has one peer-reviewed publication on Misophonia, was 1 of 40 researchers invited to the REAM Foundation Misophonia Science Retreat, was on the advisory board for the Misophonia International Research Network, as well as the 2nd International Symposium on Misophonia EU Hyperacusis network.
Chris Pearson & Morven Surmon
Chris Pearson and Morven Surmon are both well-respected and established figures in the world of misophonia and will present together at the convention.
Working together within a committed community of therapists they have worked with hundreds of individuals and families blighted by misophonia.
They have contributed, as well, to the development of effective, focused therapy for misophonia which now benefits so many.
Chris says, “I have been working with those having misophonia for more than 10 years now. It is just so important to ensure that we can genuinely help as many people as possible. To help them and their loved ones, together.”
Alongside development of the therapy known as Sequent Repatterning, Chris studied Neuropsychotherapy at post-graduate level in Queensland, Australia.
He has presented to Misophonia Association Conventions as well as presenting papers to the Misophonia Research Symposium. He has delivered formal presentations and practical workshops on treatment of misophonia to International Association of Neuropsychotherapy and International Association of Applied Neuroscience conferences.
He lives in the north-east of England with his family.
Morven, gained her first degree in 1998 from University of Dundee. After gaining DipC Hyp NLP, she trained in Sequent Repatterning Therapy for misophonia in 2016. She then specialised in working with those having misophonia, accruing thousands of hours in clinical practice with clients with the condition.
Morven says, “Having a family member with misophonia, my interest is very much personal as well as professional.
Understanding how destructive misophonia can be to sufferers and their families is fundamental. Myself, Chris and other Sequent Repatterning therapists are fully committed to providing effective therapy. It is our privilege, helping those we work with to achieve permanent relief from their symptoms.”
Morven is based in the North of Scotland, running a private practice, working both online and face- to- face. She lives with her family, their dog, 2 horses and 5 chickens.
https://www.chrispearson.co.uk/
Dr. Michael Robb
Michael J. A. Robb, M.D. is a nationally recognized oto-neurologist based in Phoenix, Arizona. He completed his fellowship-training in oto-neurology at the Barrow Neurological Institute, and is dedicated to caring for patients with diseases and disorders of the ear and the brain, including misophonia.
In addition to outpatient clinical care, Dr. Robb teaches audiology students and has clinical research interests in oto-neurology. His work has been presented at major medical meetings around the country. He aims to bridge the gap between basic science and patient care. Patients are routinely educated on the latest research applicable to their medical needs.
Morven Surmon (See Chris Pearson)
Dr. Jadon Webb
Dr. Jadon Webb M.D., Ph.D. is a psychiatrist Board Certified in both Adult and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and has been helping clients across Colorado since 2015.
Dr. Webb is actively involved in the academic community, and is an Assistant Clinical Professor at the Yale School of Medicine where he teaches upcoming psychiatrists. He strongly believes in family-centered mental health, and serves as a Board Member for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Colorado.
He serves as a mentor for Prime Health Colorado, a non-profit dedicated to improving outcomes and reducing costs in health care systems by investing in high-tech startup ideas.
Dr. Webb has held prominent medical leadership roles in Colorado, serving as the Medical Director for the Colorado Office of Children, Youth, and Families; and also as Acting Chief Medical Officer for the Colorado Department of Human Services.
Dr. Webb has an M.D. and Ph.D. in Neuroscience, and has published peer-reviewed research articles related to neuroscience and psychiatry. His work has been featured at national scientific conferences as well as on TV, radio, and major print publications.