Published Expertise in Biofeedback & Mental Health Tech
I first-authored the largest study to date of a real-time heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback app, analyzing data from over 5,000 people in a digital mental health program.
With leading experts, we validated a new HRV metric enabling app users to track nervous system responses to biofeedback in real time. This metric is used therapeutically by a digital mental health company to monitor progress.
In addition, this work provides the basis to personalize the biofeedback experience - so that each client can receive tailored feedback. This work was meant to provide a resource for therapists and researchers to better contextualize a patient’s biofeedback metrics, when working with clients in online therapy.
Our paper was published in Psychophysiology, one of the field’s leading journals. Read the paper.
A personalized real-time HRV Biofeedback app product and ML algorithm based on this work, which I led as a senior leader at Meru Health, was released in 2023 as part of that company’s digital mental health product, treating clients with depression and anxiety.
Here is a link to a science-oriented talk I offered for new graduates of Meru Health.
You cannot heal the mind, without healing the body
Over 20 years ago, when I first started my career focused on the mind-body connection, I thought I would learn to help people improve their physical health by treating psychological distress.
But the reality was more complicated.
What I found was that emotional healing is much harder when the body is locked in a state of stress-related inflammation—especially for women dealing with trauma, caregiving pressure, or chronic stress (Aschbacher et al., 2022, 2012). Talk therapy, even by excellent therapists, did not work as well for those with higher inflammation.
That’s why I don’t just work with the mind—I work with the body, too.
In therapy, I often use HRV biofeedback and breathwork to help regulate the nervous system. With regular practice, many clients find it easier to stay grounded, focused, and emotionally steady—even in the face of stress.
Early research also suggests that this kind of nervous system balance may help reduce inflammation, though studies are still emerging in this area (Herhaus et al, 2023). Nonetheless, there are known plausible mechanisms, such as the anti-cholinergic pathway (Tracey et al, XXXX).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2021.07.012
Can we Make AI More empathetic?
Awhile back, I presented my work on training OpenAI’s models to respond with greater empathy and therapeutic skill at ODSC, a leading data science conference (link here). The talk drew a standing-room-only crowd—organizers told me they had to bring in 40 extra chairs. It’s a hot topic.
For the record, I don’t believe AI should replace therapists—but I do believe it can support them.
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