Bessel van der Kolk, MD, is a clinical psychiatrist whose work integrates mind, brain, body, and social connections to understand and treat trauma. His research ranges from the impact of trauma on development and brain imaging, to the use of yoga, neurofeedback, EMDR, and theater for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder.
van der Kolk is a professor of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine, medical director of the Trauma Center in Boston, and codirector of the Complex Trauma Treatment Network (NCTSN).
An internationally recognized leader in the field of psychological trauma, he is author of more than 150 peer reviewed scientific articles and several books, including Psychological Trauma, the first integrative text on the subject, Traumatic Stress: The Effects of Overwhelming Experience on Mind, Body, and Society, and The Body Keeps the Score: Mind, Brain, and Body in the Healing of Trauma.