Jill A. Stoddard, PhD, is the founder and director of The Center for Stress and Anxiety Management, an outpatient clinic in San Diego, CA. She specializes in evidence-based treatments for anxiety and related disorders, and is associate professor of psychology at Alliant International University where she teaches, conducts research, and mentors students in topics related to anxiety disorders; trauma; emotion regulation; acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT); and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). She received her PhD in clinical psychology from Boston University in 2007.
Niloofar Afari, PhD, is an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Diego; director of Mental Health Integrative and Consultative Services at VA San Diego Healthcare System; and director of Clinical Research at the VA Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health in San Diego, CA. In addition to clinical practice, she conducts research and mentors graduate and postdoctoral students in the application of ACT to chronic health conditions. She received her PhD in clinical psychology in 1996 from the University of Nevada, Reno, under the mentorship of ACT cofounder, Steven C. Hayes.
Foreword writer Steven C. Hayes, PhD, is Nevada Foundation Professor in the department of psychology at the University of Nevada. An author of thirty-four books and more than 470 scientific articles, he has shown in his research how language and thought leads to human suffering, and cofounded ACT, a powerful therapy method that is useful in a wide variety of areas. Hayes has been president of several scientific societies and has received several national awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapy.