The Research Team

Jason Luoma, Ph.D. (he/him) is CEO of Portland Psychotherapy in Portland, OR. His research focuses on shame, self-stigma, connection, and the application of ACT and psychedelic-assisted therapy as an intervention for shame and increasing self-compassion. He is currently PI of a clinical trial of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for social anxiety disorder that is one of the first trials of psychedelic-assisted therapy in the Pacific Northwest. He’s an internationally recognized trainer in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), former chair of the ACT training committee, and past president of the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science. He has over 60 publications including co-authoring two books: Learning Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and  Values in Therapy: A Clinician’s Guide to Helping Clients Explore Values, Increase Psychological Flexibility, and Live a More Meaningful Life. His work on shame and compassion can be read at www.actwithcompassion.com.

Chris Stauffer, M.D. (he/they) is dual board-certified in Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine. They are Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and Physician-Scientist at the Portland VA Medical Center. They currently lead the OHSU Psychedelic Medicine Research Collaborative, teach Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy with Polaris Insight Center, and are a mentor for the Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research certificate program at the California Institute of Integral Studies. They were Sub-Investigator, Study Physician, and Study Therapist at the UCSF site for MAPS-sponsored Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD and Co-Investigator and Study Therapist for a trial of psilocybin-assisted group therapy for demoralization in long-term AIDS survivors.

Will Lucas, B.S. (he/him) is a Clinical Research Coordinator at Portland Psychotherapy Clinic, Research, and Training Center. He graduated from Western Oregon University with a degree in Chemistry and has since demonstrated a strong commitment to the advancement of psychedelic therapies. Notably, he contributed to the Oregon Psilocybin Therapy Campaign in 2020 and managed a local initiative to protect Psilocybin Services in 2022. Today, his work is informed by his experience in project management and coursework on Clinical Research Coordination through the CITI Program. Will has a long-term goal of researching altered states of consciousness and continuing to advocate for policy reform in this area.

Lilly Kennedy, B.S. (she/her) received her BS in Psychology from Portland State University. She has been working in research since 2019 working on projects ranging from early childhood education to interpersonal sensitivity. Working as an advocate for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault victims highlighted the need for innovative treatment techniques to help typically underserved communities. She plans on pursuing a career researching treatment techniques to help those who have been historically underserved by the mental health community.

Dr. Kati Lear (she/her) is a licensed psychologist, continuing education coordinator, and associate investigator at Portland Psychotherapy. Her clinical work and research focus on the treatment of clinical issues characterized by high levels of shame and self-criticism (social anxiety, trauma, and PTSD, depression). Kati completed her doctorate at the University of Wyoming and her pre-doctoral internship at Rocky Mountain Regional VAMC in Denver, CO, where she completed a year-long rotation in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for Depression. Kati completed her post-doctoral fellowship at Portland Psychotherapy, where she developed her clinical skills in ACT and compassion-focused techniques from Jason Luoma, Ph.D. and Jenna LeJeune, Ph.D. and conducted empirical research on interpersonal processes related to shame and self-criticism in Dr. Luoma’s lab. Her research focuses on shame and self-criticism, self-compassion, and more recently, MDMA-assisted therapy as a potential treatment for social anxiety disorder.

Kyong Yi, LCSW (she/her) is a clinical social worker who specializes in helping people with relationships, increasing intimacy and connection, as well as addressing the impact of anxiety, trauma, depression, substance use, and sexual issues. Her practice is based in the orientations of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Compassioned Focused Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).

Jenna LeJeune, Ph.D. (she/her) is President and co-founder of Portland Psychotherapy Clinic, Research & Training Center in Portland, Oregon. In her practice as a clinical psychologist, Jenna specializes in using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to work with adults struggling with various relationship difficulties, including problems with intimacy, sexuality, trauma-related relationship challenges, and also struggles a person may have in their relationship with their own body. Much of her work focuses on issues related to meaning, values, self-compassion, and shame. She is the co-author of the book Values in Therapy: A Clinician’s Guide to Helping Clients Explore Values, Increase Psychological Flexibility, and Live a More Meaningful Life.

Seth Mehr, MD (he/him) is the founder of Cascade Psychedelic Medicine. He specializes in ketamine treatment for depression, anxiety and PTSD. He plans to offer psilocybin services in 2023 under Oregon’s Measure 109. He is a board-certified Emergency Medicine physician who has practice in Oregon for over 20 years.

Aryan Sarparast, M.D. (he/him) is a board-certified psychiatrist, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), and founder of Penumbra Psychedelic Consultation. His area of expertise is educating patients, healers, and the public about how psychiatric medications interact with psychedelics. In his professorial role, he enjoys teaching psychotherapy and psychopharmacology to trainees at OHSU. He is an avid reader who enjoys matcha lattes and loves learning about world cultures.

Akeesha Simmons, M.A. (she/her) is a student in the clinical psychology PhD program at Pacific University. Her primary research interests include mindfulness-based interventions, chronic stress, and resilience in high-stress populations. She also has an interest in cross-cultural psychology and cultural adaptations to MBIs. Her clinical work is informed by Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and compassion-focused approaches for adults experiencing anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress. 

Nick Hebert, LCSW (he/him) is a psychotherapist at Portland Psychotherapy, whose clinical interests include anxiety and related concerns, trauma, gender and sexuality exploration, and grief and loss. When not at the clinic, he is generally knitting, reading, enjoying good food or taking walks in the woods.  

Priyadarshani (Priya) Loess, Ph.D. (she/her) is a licensed psychologist at Portland Psychotherapy. Her clinical work primarily focuses on helping people work through sexual assault and trauma, depression, social anxiety, emotion regulation, identity exploration, as well as with helping people cultivate self-compassion. Her practice is primarily based in orientations of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT).  

Angelica Spata, B.A. (she/her) received her BA in Psychology from Cal Poly Pomona. She has been working as a research assistant since 2020, with a focus in psychedelics, psychological flexibility, and substance use. She was drawn to the field through her volunteer experiences as a harm reduction medic at various music and arts festivals where she observed a need for compassionate, trauma-informed psychiatric care. Angelica’s aim is to holistically approach mental health treatments and is interested in psychedelic-assisted therapy for management of addiction and co-occurring disorders. She plans on pursuing a career as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. 

Brandy Tidwell, PhD, RYT (she/her) is a Psychologist Resident at Portland Psychotherapy. Her primary clinical interests include complex trauma, identity exploration, and serving marginalized communities. She approaches her work from a holistic and theoretically integrative lens grounded in systems theory, intersectional feminism, interpersonal neurobiology, and Buddhist psychology. From that foundation, she integrates a variety of evidence-based models, such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT), Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Brandy is also a certified trauma-informed yoga instructor and regularly incorporates yoga asana, pranayama, and philosophy into clinical practice as relevant. 

Dr. Degenhardt, PhD is a postdoctoral fellow in the Anxiety Clinic at Portland Psychotherapy. She provides treatment for the full range of anxiety-related concerns, and strives to provide tailored, personalized psychotherapy while fostering a warm, authentic, and collaborative therapeutic relationship. Dr. Degenhardt earned her doctorate in clinical psychology from Seattle Pacific University and completed her APA accredited internship at the University of Washington School of Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Harborview Medical Center. During her time working in rehabilitation units in hospital settings, she developed an additional special interest in working with individuals with disabilities, and she is trained in evidence-based interventions for pain and adjustment to disability and chronic illness. Research interests include empathy, violence prevention, gender stress, and psychedelic assisted therapy.