Director

Fadel Zeidan, PhD | Contact​

Laboratory Director, Dr. Fadel Zeidan, is an Associate Professor of Anesthesiology at UC San Diego. He is also Co-Founder and Neuroscience Director of the newly formed UC San Diego Psychedelic Health and Research Initiative. His research is focused on determining the active mechanisms that mediate the relationship between self-regulatory practices and health.

Lead Scientist

Jon Dean, PhD | Contact

Jon has a B.A. in Chemistry, and a Ph.D. in Molecular and Integrative Physiology from the University of Michigan. Jon's Ph.D. work in rodent models demonstrated the natural presence of the psychedelic N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in the mammalian brain at concentrations comparable to major neurotransmitters such as serotonin. Jon joined the Zeidan laboratory in late 2020 to undergo clinical neuroscience training as a postdoctoral fellow. Jon's research focuses on the overlap of psychedelics and mind-body interventions for treatment of chronic pain and comorbidities across multiple fMRI studies on psilocybin and mindfulness meditation. Jon is also the director of the DMT Research Program within UCSD's Center for Psychedelic Research, who alongside Dr. Zeidan will soon launch clinical studies on continuous intravenous infusions of DMT. When he's not #sciencing, Jon likes to hike with his floof ball Siberian husky, enjoy a craft beer or six, play some guitar, and slowly, slowy, slowly learn to surf.

Graduate Students

Lora Khatib | Contact
PhD Neuroscience

​Lora graduated from UC Berkeley with a bachelor's in psychology and has spent the past two years working in human subject research. She is passionate about exploring the cognitive and neural factors that underlie conditions such as PTSD, depression, and chronic pain to discover novel treatments that target multiple dimensions of mental distress. Lora is aspiring to pursue a Ph.D. in Neuroscience and is excited to contribute to the investigation of integrative approaches to pain relief, such as mindfulness meditation and psychopharmacology. When she is not at work, Lora loves spending most of her time at the beach running, surfing, or reading.

Gabriel Riegner | Website | Contact
PhD Data Science

Gabriel graduated from the University of Southern California in 2019 with a bachelor's in neuroscience and cognitive science. There he worked with Dr. Assal Habibi at the Brain and Music Lab on a longitudinal project studying the effects of music training on children's brain and cognitive development.  Additionally, he led a project on memories for musical melodies using a signal detection model. Now at UCSD Gabriel attaining his PhD in Data Science and is excited to apply the framework of cognitive neuroscience to uncover the mechanisms involved in the experience of pain. Otherwise, you'll find him hiking around his hometown in Arizona or surfing the Baja coastline.

Ethan Hurwitz, M.A. | Contact
​PhD Cognitive Science

Keionni Thompson
​Masters Clinical Research

​Ethan is a PhD student in Experimental Psychology at UCSD researching the cognitive mechanisms underlying psilocybin therapy. His work investigates the role of cognitive flexibility and how probabilistic models of cognition can be used to bridge the levels of analysis in psychedelic science.

Keionni graduated from UC San Diego with a bachelor's in Cognitive Science and Public Health. She is currently pursuing a Masters in Clinical Research at UC San Diego. Keionni’s interests lay in studying sleep health and neuropathic pain. She spends her free time reading bowling and playing tennis.

Sagarika Sardesai
Masters in Data Science

Sagarika is a MS in Data Science graduate student at UCSD, interested in delivering actionable insights for informed decision-making. She is excited to apply Data Science and Machine Learning approaches to unlock insights about the effect of new therapies on health. In her free time, Sagarika likes to read, listen to music, go on long walks, and practice the Kalimba.

Research Technicians

Senior Research Technician
​Daniel Barrows

Daniel completed his BSc in neurobiology at UCSD. Before transferring to San Diego he interned at UCLA studying the amelioration of hypothalamic disfunction in rodent models of alcoholism. Currently he runs MRI's, data collection and coordinates various aspects of our clinical research. His other research includes the transdermal diffusion of psychoactive compounds such as  ketamine and DMT.  In his off time, Daniel enjoys playing music, traveling, soccer, surfing, and hiking. 

Ekrayyem Kanj
​Senior Research Technician

Ekrayyem Kanj is a 3rd-year undergraduate student at the University of California, San Diego, where he is majoring in General Biology. Following the completion of his undergraduate degree, he hopes to attend medical school and  pursue a career as a physician in the field of anesthesiology. His ambition is to contribute significantly to the betterment of society by providing medical care, a vocation he regards as the most impactful means of aiding and uplifting individuals. Beyond his academic and career pursuits, he loves various outdoor activities, such as hiking and beach outings, and enjoys engaging in social activities, like trips to amusement parks with friends and family.  

Arwynn Mckinty

Arwynn is a fourth-year student at UCSD majoring in cognitive psychology and minoring in philosophy. She is currently assisting on the phantom limb pain study. She is fascinated by understanding the neural mechanisms of consciousness and how psychedelic therapy can treat mental and physical pain. She is currently completing her honors thesis on the relationship between self-compassion, depression, and psilocybin-assisted therapy. Arwynn plans to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology to further understand psychopharmacology and to help people in the future. Outside of the lab, she enjoys hiking, reading, learning about neuroscience, and being in nature. 

Diana Freeman

​Diana is a recent graduate of UCSD who majored in Clinical Psychology. She is interested in the application of meditative practices, specifically looking at the effect of meditation on pain management, compassion and focus. She plans to pursue a PhD to further investigate innovative treatments to deal with addiction, chronic pain and stress with the hopes of bridging the gap between research and clinical application. In her free time, Diana enjoys making music, teaching yoga, surfing and hanging out with friends. 

Milka Waniak

Milka is currently a 4th year UCSD student, double majoring in Cognitive Behavioral Neuroscience and Social Psychology. Her research interests include mindfulness, emotions, compassion, and empathy. She is interested in the body-mind connection as well as consciousness. In free time, you can find her doing yoga or playing squash.

Briana Farrell

Briana is a 4th year undergraduate at UCSD majoring in clinical psychology. She is particularly interested in compassion and prosocial action, and how they are affected by psychedelic therapy. She is currently conducting research on dehumanization and stigma towards outgroups and she is excited to explore the applications of psychedelic research on these subjects. During her free time, Briana enjoys hiking, doing yoga, and drawing.

Alexandra Kremer

Alexandra Kremer is a third year undergraduate student at UCSD with a specialization in cognitive psychology. She previously worked in Stephan Anagnostaras’s lab assisting graduate students in the development of a PTSD model in mice to study memory functions involved during the prescription of MDMA. Her interests include psychology, meditation, psychedelic research and psychedelic anthropology. In the future she hopes to continue combining her fascination for neuropsychology research and psychedelic science to develop treatments that help those suffering from various mental conditions.

Mindfulness Instructors

Helen Kim, MD | Contact
Certified Mindfulness Facilitator

Helen is a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction teacher in training. In her previous life she was a board certified psychiatrist in Korea for 15 years, working for underserved communities. During this time she witnessed suffering in the lives of her patients and felt a strong pull towards the field of mindfulness and self-compassion as a way to heal and alleviate suffering. 
With the guidance of the founding director, Dr. Steve Hickman, Helen was able to join the UC San Diego Center for Mindfulness. At the center, Helen learned various Mindfulness-Based programs from many great teachers. In their teachings she discovered a rich, grounding foundation for her life, filled with awareness, acceptance, ease, and compassion. On her journey of self-discovery and healing, she is witnessing, over and over, her growth and transformation as a human being. Helen is committed to sharing what she has learned with others who may be on their own journey of self-discovery and healing.

Jennifer Miller, PsyD | Contact
Public Education Specialist/Certified Mindfulness Instructor 

Dr. Jennifer Miller is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist with over 20 years of clinical experience. Her mindfulness training began in 2010 at the UC San Diego Center for Mindfulness where she received her Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction teaching certification. She is also trained in Mindful Self-Compassion. Dr. Miller also owns Mindsmith, A Psychological Professional Corporation, specializing in mindful psychology. Her practice provides mindfulness-based treatment of depression, anxiety, and stress disorders. Dr. Miller is married and mother of two spirited teens. Practicing mindfulness is a daily blessing in this full life.

Sara Schairer​ | Contact
Certified Mindfulness Facilitator

Sara Schairer is the founder and executive director of Compassion It, a nonprofit organization and global social movement whose mission is to inspire daily compassionate actions and attitudes. A facilitator of the Compassion Cultivation Training® (CCT) course developed at Stanford University, Sara leads trainings for audiences of all walks of life, from big tech leaders to inmates. She led compassion trainings in Africa sponsored by the Botswana Ministries of Health and Education and spent a week at a Rwandan refugee camp working on unleashing compassion within its healthcare system.​
Sara gives talks and leads experiential workshops on compassionate leadership, self-compassion, burnout prevention, and mindfulness. She also created the one-of-a-kind reversible Compassion It wristband that prompts compassionate actions on six continents, 50+ countries and all 50 states. Sara is a contributing author to the book The Neuroscience of Learning and Development: Enhancing Creativity, Compassion, Critical Thinking and Peace in Education, and writes for Deepak Chopra’s Center for Wellbeing website.

Joseph Glaser-Reich, MAPP | Contact
Certified Mindfulness Facilitator

​Joe Glaser-Reich is the co-director of the First Responder Division of the UC San Diego Center for Mindfulness and volunteers with the Zeidan Lab. He also serves as an Aviation Survival Technician and rescue swimmer in the U.S. Coast Guard. Joe is particularly interested in the intersection of mindfulness, performance, resilience, and sustainable well-being. He brings a wealth of coaching and teaching experience to his roles as a certified mindfulness coach and an Assistant Instructor in the University of Pennsylvania’s Master of Applied Positive Psychology Program.
​He regularly works with high performers to enhance performance and resilience. Joe also has extensive experience integrating mindfulness at an organizational level having co-led a mindfulness pilot project designed to advance wellness, resilience, and performance across multiple federal agencies. Joe is currently investigating pathways to return to academia to pursue a PhD in psychology.