Interviewing the masters: Jeff Zeig, Julie Linden and Christina Liossi

Professor Christina Liossi

Professor Christina Liossi has worked as an Honorary Consultant at Great Ormond Street Hospital since 2005 and has worked clinically in the UK and Europe with children with various chronic medical conditions, including cancer, cystic fibrosis, chronic kidney disease, epidermolysis bullosa and sickle cell disease. Professor Liossi is also a Chair in Paediatric Psychology at the University of Southampton. Her research interests include the cognitive and affective neuroscience of pain and the development and evaluation of theory-driven psychological interventions for the management of acute and chronic pain in young people. Professor Liossi has published over 80 peer-reviewed papers, several book chapters, a book on the management of procedure related cancer pain in young people and has supervised over 20 PhDs, MDs, and professional doctorates. Her randomised, controlled clinical trials have been critical to the establishment of hypnosis as an evidenced-based intervention in the care of children with cancer.   

Dr Wendy Phillips

Dr Wendy Phillips is a Consultant Neurologist at Addenbrookes' Hospital, Cambridge, and Princess Alexandra Hospital, Harlow. She has a BSc in Pharmacology and a PhD in Neuroscience, where she focused on models of Huntington's disease and stem cell therapies. She undertook post doctoral studies at the Charite Hospital in Berlin, again exploring Huntington's disease. Dr Phillips set up and continues to run a clinic at Addenbrooke's Hospital for patients with Functional Neurological Disorders (FND), and runs clinics for patients with typical and atypical Parkinsonism and other movement disorders. She also runs clinics for in-patients with general neurological conditions and is on the Board of Directors of the British Neuropsychiatry Association. Dr Phillips is Associate Editor of BMJ Neurology Open, and has a medico-legal practice. In addition, she sits on the Advisory Board of FND Hope.  

Dr Julie Linden

Julie H. Linden, Clinical Psychologist, is the Past President of the International Society of Hypnosis (ISH) and of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis (ASCH). Long before integrative medicine was popular, Julie was integrating hypnosis principles and skills into a wide range of areas. In medical settings, she was an early pioneer of hypnotic pain management (1975) and facilitating healing in acute care, for example in burn patients, medical procedures, emergency room presentations, and preparation for surgery as well as chronic illness care including, kidney dialysis, oncology, cystic fibrosis, and more. In clinical psychology, she has forged the path on the integration of play therapy, trauma, and hypnosis. Julie works with clients of all ages and has contributed to the understanding of hypnotic work in a developmental framework. She has taught and written about a range of topics, from children and adolescents, trauma, hypnotic sandtray, gendered hypnosis and feminist hypnotherapy, ego state therapy, hypnosis and the brain-gut connection, education and training in hypnosis, as well as hypnosis and leadership. Passionate about hypnosis best describes Julie, as she enthusiastically travels the world, lecturing and training others on the enormous potential for healthy change when hypnosis is incorporated into healthcare practice.  

Dr Laurence Sugarman

Dr Laurence Irwin Sugarman is Research Professor and Director of the Center for Applied Psychophysiology and Self-Regulation in the College of Health Sciences and Technology at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), a Developmental and Behavioural Pediatrician at the Easter Seals Diagnostic and Treatment Center in New York, and Clinical Professor in Pediatrics at the University of Rochester, School of Medicine and Dentistry. Over nearly forty years of clinical practice, Dr Sugarman refined clinical biofeedback and hypnosis strategies that effectively increase resilience and coping skills for young people and families. Based on this experience, he produced an internationally acclaimed video-documentary,  Hypnosis in Pediatric Practice: Imaginative Medicine in Action. At RIT, he has focused on (1) how best to evoke the abilities of young people with autism spectrum disorder and other chronic health problems, (2) innovative interactive media for health, and (3) pedagogy for professional development in psychobiological care. Dr Sugarman has authored over forty publications, teaches internationally, and has held leadership positions in the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis. With Dr William Wester, Dr Sugarman has co-authored and co-edited the text, Therapeutic Hypnosis with Children and Adolescents, now in its second edition. His new book, co-authored with Julie Linden and Lee Brooks, is Changing Minds with Clinical Hypnosis: Narratives and discourse for a new health care paradigm. 

Dr Jeff Zeig

Jeffrey K. Zeig, PhD, is the Founder and Director of the Milton H. Erickson Foundation. Dr Zeig is the architect of The Evolution of Psychotherapy Conferences, considered the most important conferences in the history of psychotherapy. He also organized the Brief Therapy Conferences, the Couples Conferences, and the International Congresses on Ericksonian Approaches to Hypnosis and Psychotherapy. Dr Zeig is on the Editorial Board of numerous journals, Fellow of the American Psychological Association (Division 29, Psychotherapy), Fellow of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, a Distinguished Practitioner in the National Academy of Practice in Psychology of the National Academies of Practice, and an Approved Supervisor of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. As a clinical psychologist and marriage and family therapist, Dr Zeig has a private practice and conducts workshops internationally across 40 countries. He is an invited speaker at major universities and teaching hospitals, including the Mayo Clinic, Menninger, and MD Anderson. Dr Zeig has authored, co-authored, and edited more than 20 books on psychotherapy that appear in 15 languages. 

Dr Mark P. Jensen

Mark P. Jensen, PhD, is a Professor and Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle, USA. He has published extensively (11 books and over 700 articles and book chapters) on the topics of pain assessment and treatment. His award-winning book on the use of hypnosis for chronic pain management (Hypnosis for Chronic Pain: Therapist Guide, published by Oxford University Press) provides a popular introduction to hypnosis and hypnotic pain treatment. Dr Jensen is also the editor of the Voices of Experience book series, published by Denny Creek Press. He is a popular workshop facilitator, teaching skills in communication strategies that increase patient engagement in treatment and motivation to self-manage pain. 

Professor Sally Hanks

Dr David Kraft

As a UKCP-registered Psychotherapist, Dr David Kraft runs a successful practice in Harley Street and has published over 30 peer-reviewed articles in the literature. His research interests include phobic anxiety, hyperhidrosis, irritable bowel syndrome, eating disorders and the history of hypnosis. David has been a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine for over twenty years and is currently President of the Section of Hypnosis and Psychosomatic Medicine. In addition, he is an accredited member of BSCAH and has taken on a number of positions over the years including Honorary Treasurer, at national level, and Honorary Secretary of the London Branch. David has been teaching healthcare professionals clinical hypnosis for over 10 years and has given a number of academic presentations covering a range of topics, including the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome, dream interpretation and sleep disorders.