Alix Amar, LCSW is a psychotherapist who has been in private practice for over 30 years. She specializes in working with people who have experienced trauma and those living with dissociation. She has advanced training in many therapy modalities including treating trauma and dissociation, sandtray, expressive arts, Gestalt therapy, somatic approaches, and EMDR.

Alix also leads Dissociative Creative Explorations—a series of workshops designed to bring people with dissociation together in community to explore creativity through practices like journaling, SoulCollage®, and Altered Books. These workshops aren't therapy, but they offer a meaningful space for connection, play, and self-expression.

Alix also serves on the board of An Infinite Mind, a nonprofit organization that educates and supports people living with dissociation, their supporters, and the therapists who work with them.

Amy Beckler, LCSW, RYT-200hr specializes in supporting mothers through the emotional and spiritual transitions of motherhood. With a warm, intuitive, and trauma-informed approach, she helps women navigate postpartum overwhelm, identity shifts, and the quiet grief that often accompanies motherhood. Drawing from yoga practices, somatic work and mindfulness, Amy creates a safe space for mothers to feel seen, held, and reconnected to their inner wisdom. She accepts various insurances and private pay and offers virtual sessions. And she and her husband have a brand new podcast called Devoted which is all about relationships!

Amy Wagner,  is a Holistic Trauma Transformation therapist who helps people reclaim the intuitive and connected relationships in the most important parts of their lives.  She is an EMDRIA Approved Consultant and Advanced EMDR Topics Trainer.

She owns a boutique group trauma therapy practice in Orlando, specializing in working with clients who experience complex and developmental trauma. 

 As a therapist, Amy has been transformative in helping other therapists learn to reduce stigma and embrace the healing journey of trauma transformation for their clients.  Her course, Soul of Dissociation, sold out during the first two offerings.  Amy is on a mission to help healers embrace collective healing by reducing the stigma of “othering”.  Amy is passionate about the interplay of intergenerational trauma, peak performance and athlete mental health which she discusses in the book in progress, “Cart Path Only”.

Atash Yaghmaian is an Iranian-American author, psychotherapist, and educator whose work explores trauma, multiplicity, and parts-work. She is the author of My Name Means Fire (Beacon Press, 2025), a memoir weaving her personal history with Dissociative Identity Disorder with the story of Eeran's shifting political landscape. The founder of Atash Healing and Founding Member of Harvest Collegiate High School's counseling program in New York City, Yaghmaian has been featured in LitHub, Ms. magazine, The Daily News, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Ruminate Magazine, and Medium. She is a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW-R) and EMDR-certified therapist who speaks and writes widely on healing, trauma, and the power of storytelling. 

Bonnie R. Armstrong spent decades as an apparently normal person, unaware of the complex dissociative infrastructure that hid much of her childhood from her conscious memory and supported her from inside. Bonnie enjoyed her life as wife, mother, community activist, and a 40-year career that included high-level positions in two Governors' offices. She served as an expert consultant on child and family policy issues with federal, state, county and local governments and philanthropies, and as a national speaker and trainer. She specialized in youth development and child abuse prevention, not knowing that she was also an abuse survivor. 

Now she has written a memoir that chronicles her healing journey and the ways her system used dissociation to survive and thrive.  An Apparently Normal Person: From Medical Mystery to Dissociative Superpower has won several awards and was an Amazon best-seller. 

Award-winning author Cheryl Rainfield is a nonbinary lesbian who writes novels for teens, drawing on their own trauma and healing experience to write. They’re the author of six books including SCARS, STAINED, HUNTED, and VISIONS; SCARS has their own arm on the cover. Cheryl is a cult torture survivor with resulting polyfragmented Dissociative Identity, and talks about these issues on social media and through articles on their website.

Cheryl Rainfield has been said to write with “great empathy and compassion” and to write stories that “can, perhaps, save a life.”

Dorinna’s career has spanned 34 years, as she became a counselor in 1989, working in the substance abuse field. She obtained her Master’s Degree in Social Work from the State University of New York in 1995.

After moving to Fort Collins, Colorado in 1999, she started a private practice. She was trained in EMDR in 2001 and found that this therapy was so powerful and such a good fit for her that it has been her primary lens since then.  By 2010 she was both certified in and an approved consultant in EMDR therapy. For the past 9 years she has facilitated EMDR trainings for HAP/Trauma recovery and is currently a trainer candidate.

She specializes in working with complex trauma and dissociative disorders and in addition to her therapy practice, she offers consultation and training for other therapists through her consultation business Advanced EMDR Education. 

Alison Miller, is a PhD psychologist who worked with children and families in Victoria, B.C. She founded the LIFE Seminars courses for parents, and co-wrote two books on parenting with Dr Allison Rees, who took over the courses. She encountered her first dissociative clients, who were ritual abuse survivors, in the early 1990s, learned from them, and continued that work for twenty five years. Given the nature of this topic there is an inherent trigger warning. Please take good care of yourself or selves and know you can pause or stop listening at any time and come back to it later. The purpose of this interview is to educate, provide hope and lessen fears around this topic. 

In a distinguished and sometimes controversial career that has encompassed research, treatment, and activism, child psychiatrist Frank W. Putnam has documented the long-term mental, physical, and social consequences of childhood maltreatment and neglect. Part memoir, part call to action, Dr. Putnam’s Old Before Their Time gives an inside look at a scientist negotiating the politics of established medicine and partisan politics in a quest to understand and heal wounded children and the adults they become. Putnam co-founded the pioneering Female Growth and Development Study (FGDS), which for more than three decades has followed sexual-abuse survivors. The FGDS’s rare longitudinal data about everything from morbid obesity to mental illness has informed more than 60 peer-reviewed articles—as well as Bessel van der Kolk’s New York Times bestseller, The Body Keeps the Score. 

Dr. Jamie Marich (she/they/we) is the author of the popular Dissociation Made Simple: A Stigma-Free Guide to Embracing Your Dissociative Mind and Navigating Life (2023), now available as both a book and a clinical flipchart. She is the author of over 10 other books and manuals in the field of trauma, addiction recovery, and the expressive arts. They are an EMDR Therapy trainer and founder of The Institute for Creative Mindfulness, one of the largest training organizations in North America that works to create an inclusive space for plural trainees and others with dissociative responses. In 2019, the EMDR International Association awarded Jamie with their Advocacy Award for her work in destigmatizing dissociative disorders and other mental health concerns. 

Mike is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist specialising in complex trauma and dissociative disorders. While working in the NHS in both child, adolescent and adult community settings, Mike started Cheshire Psychology, a small private practice. Since then, Mike has worked as a consultant in the Ministry of Defence, offering mental health support to serving military personnel, and formed the CTAD Clinic, a specialist referral assessment and treatment service for complex trauma and dissociation within the UK. 

Mike is a member of the European Society for Trauma and Dissociation (ESTD), having previously been on the ESTD Board. Mike has taught on the ESTD-UK foundation course as well as with various university doctorate programmes for clinical psychology trainees in the Northwest. Mike formed The CTAD Clinic YouTube channel in 2020 to promote education and awareness into dissociation and which now has over 22,000 subscribers. 

Jenna (@gianusystem) and Jonathan (@splendid_supporter) were married for over fifteen years before they knew that Jenna wasn't just Jenna. She was part of a system of alters sharing one body. As the system made itself known, Jonathan took a proactive role in learning about the disorder and how best to support them in healing. His acceptance and insight have been a key part of their healing journey. 

Jade Miller is a multiple, writer, and peer support worker who helps others living with dissociative experiences find community, language, and grounding. Through her coaching at Peer Support for Multiples and her upcoming Safe Harbor Peer Respite Center, she's building spaces where complexity and healing can coexist. Her teaching and writing emphasize belonging, integrity, and the quiet power of survivors leading their own recovery.

Jaime Pollack lives in Central Florida where she works as a district Pre-K special education resource teacher. She also works part-time as an in-home early interventionist for special needs children aged birth to three. In 2005, she was diagnosed with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) resulting from childhood trauma. Jaime searched for support only to find there were very limited resources available. Her efforts to find support for herself led her to seek out other survivors living with the disorder. As she found others living with DID, she witnessed firsthand the challenges they shared and decided to shift her focus to help others, like herself, living with DID. Her passion to help others led to the creation of An Infinite Mind in January of 2008.

Jaime spends her free time traveling with her husband, being out in nature, and snuggling her dog and 2 cats on the couch.

Julia is an artist, workshop designer, and facilitator who uses art to explore identities, trauma, and healing. Living with dissociative identities, she understands her art as a tool for internal and external communication. With a Master’s in Criminology and a background in leadership, she has published two books and taught at the Healing Together Conference. 

Kelly Caniglia, a Somatically focused Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor in North Carolina, a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in FL, a Clinical supervisor in both states as well as Certified Clinical Trauma Professional. Kelly specializes in working with Dissociative Identity Disorder and the plural community. Kelly works with An Infinite Mind, serving as their Intern Coordinator, then added to the Board of Directors, and now as their Director of Marketing and Events.

Professionally, Kelly focuses on clinical work with people living with systems through two DID focused group practices located in North Carolina. Kelly can often be found offering trainings, supervising newer Clinicians, providing consultation, speaking out in various media or headlining speaking engagements in the name of spreading good information and educating the Clinical community to help debunk myths and increase resources for the DID community. 

Monika Ostroff, LICSW, CEDS-S, is the Executive Director of the Multi-Service Eating Disorders Association (MEDA) a national nonprofit dedicated to providing equitable access to compassionate care for Every Body. 

With over 25 years of experience in the field, Monika is the co-author of Anorexia Nervosa: A Guide to Recovery and a contributing author to Self-Harm Behavior and Eating Disorders. She has presented at national conferences, taught at the university level, and been featured in media outlets and podcasts. Her work is grounded in a trauma-informed, social justice framework, and a strong commitment to HAES®-aligned, compassionate care for all.

In addition to her role at MEDA, Monika is the creator of Healing My Parts — a podcast, Substack, and Instagram platform exploring Dissociative Identity Disorder and trauma through the lens of a therapist navigating her own healing. 

Rev. Karla Fleshman, LCSW, MDiv (they/she) has been an advocate for justice movements since Middle School marching with Quakers for Peace before coming out in the early 90's protesting with Act-Up & Lesbian Avengers; & culminating with Soulforce actions advocating against spiritual violence toward LGBTQ folx in the 2000's.  They are a contributor in Understanding & Dealing with Violence: A Multicultural Approach (Wallace & Carter, 2003)  They are the owner, clinical director of Transitions Delaware, a private group practice which centers the experiences of LGBTQ folx.  They earned their MDiv from Columbia Theological Seminary (1999) & their MSW from the University of Maryland School of Social Work (1991). They are EMDR Certified with an Advanced Certification in Dissociation Studies for EMDR Therapists from ICM & are also an EMDRIA CIT centering LGBTQ+, Spirituality, & Dissociative Experiences.

Ryder Fox, MS (they/them) is a trauma-informed wellness coach, educator, and consultant with nearly 30 years of experience supporting vulnerable populations. 

They work at the intersection of practitioner education and direct client care—helping professionals build sustainable, long-term approaches to supporting people living with complex chronic conditions, while also working directly with individuals who often struggle to find affirming, effective support.

As the founder of Stronger U, Ryder has had the rare privilege of supporting some clients continuously for nearly two decades. They are also the founder of THRIVE Lifeline, a nonprofit providing identity-affirming crisis and peer support for multiple marginalized communities.

Sally Maslansky is a psychotherapist and author whose lived experience with Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) profoundly informs her clinical work and writing. Diagnosed in her mid-thirties, she worked in therapy with Dr. Daniel J. Siegel, MD—treatment grounded in Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB), Attachment Theory, and Mindful Awareness Practices.

Now a practicing therapist herself, Sally brings a rare dual perspective to the field—bridging the personal and the professional. Sally lives and practices in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where she continues her work in private practice and trauma advocacy. 

Skylar Lyralen Kaye, fae/they, has performed solo shows, created characters for film, and told stories on stages from Boston to Lizbin. Nothing prepared faer for the moment faer own personalities spoke for themselves out loud - some for the first time - in a recording studio.

The audiobook version of Bachelorx: A Nonbinary Memoir has launched on Audible, Amazon and Apple Books. Featuring 47 distinct voices, all performed by Kaye, the audiobook includes 18 of their own personalities and 29 people from their life.

Written and narrated by award-winning writer, filmmaker, and actor Skylar Lyralen Kaye, SAG-AFTRA, AEA.