AnnellenSimpkinsPhD&CAlexanderSimpkinsPhDWebpage

About Us

We are psychologists specializing in meditation, hypnotherapy, and neuroscience. We are authors of 28 books, many of them bestsellers. Their most recent books are The Tao of Bipolar (New Harbinger, 2013), Neuroscience for Clinicians (Springer, 2012), Zen Meditation in Psychotherapy (Wiley, 2011), Neuro-Hypnosis (Norton, 2010), Meditation and Yoga in Psychotherapy: Techniques for Clinical Practice (Wiley, 2010), The Dao of Neuroscience (Norton, 2010), and Meditation for Therapists and Their Clients (Norton, 2009). Our books have more than 20 foreign editions and have won numerous awards.

We have been practicing psychotherapy for more than three decades and have taught our meditative and hypnotic methods to facilitate mind-brain change in people of all ages. We have been involved in neuroscience for more than a decade and teach Tae Chun Do, a martial art that includes yoga mindfulness, meditation, and breathing to address mind, body, and spirit. We present seminars and workshops all around the country. We also teach at professional conferences, state mental hospitals, and university campuses. We speak to popular audiences and have appeared on radio programs through out the United States and Canada. We have performed psychotherapy research and studied personally with psychotherapy masters, including Milton H. Erickson, Jerome D. Frank, Carl Rogers, Lawrence Kubie, and Ernest Rossi. Our Eastern philosophy influence along with our commitment to continual learning and therapeutic effectiveness has helped us to look at things through the crystal of a unique vision, which we extend to you with warmth and clarity in our books, seminars, and this webpage

BACKGROUND TRAINING

Psychotherapy

We received our PhDs from Alliant University in 1983. When pursuing our training as psychotherapists, we sought to suppliment our formal education with independent study from innovative thinkers, meeting with them regularly, attending their classes, and delving deeply into their work. We learned how to perform research on therapeutic effectiveness from Jerome D. Frank at the Johns Hopkins Hospital Phipps Clinic. Frank's groundbreaking 25-year psychotherapy research project uncovered the nonspecific factors that are so important for effective therapy, such as faith, hope, expectancy, the therapeutic relationship and mastery. We also had the opportunity to meet personally with John C. Whitehorn, former director of Phipps Clinic who helped us learn the art of therapeutic interviewing that uncovers the person, situation, and reaction.

We met regularly with Milton H. Erickson, the brilliant innovator in incorporating hypnosis into treatments. Erickson showed us the vast potential of the unconscious and how to facilitate change through these natural automatic abilities. He supervised our clinical work and guided us in our hypnotherapy. Ernest L. Rossi guided us further in our theory, worked with us on our research, and supervised our practice of hypnosis and the facilitation of the brain. He encouraged us to recognize the close interaction between the body, mind, and brain, expressed at the deep and fundamental level of the genes. G. Wilson Shaffer , Dean of Johns Hopkins and Director of the Counseling Center was our first hypnosis teacher who taught us how to elicit hypnotic responsiveness and supervised our work with clients.

Philosophy

We studied phenomenology at the New School for Social Research attending classes and seminars with Aron Gurwitch on phenomenology and Edmund Husserl, and with Hannah Arendt on Immanual Kant. We have continued our philosophical studies at the philosopy department at University of California, San Diego, which masterfully integrates classical Greek philosophy, taught by Georgios Anagnastopoulos and David O. Brink with modern neuroscience research on philosophy of mind, scientific philosophy, and brain taught by Jonathan Cohen, William Bechtel, Christian Wuthrich and many others.

Meditation

We have been meditating as part of our martial art, Tae Chun Do, for 40 years. According to ancient legend, the founder of martial arts, Bodhidharma, was also the founder of Zen, which translates as "meditation." and so the two are intimately linked. We attended classes with Alan Watts and at Zen, Daoist, and Buddhist monestaries. We continue the regular practice of meditation and communicating the art and science as a helpful tool of psychotherapy. We spent many years learning sensory awareness with Charlotte Selver and Charles Brooks, delving deeply into mindful sensing.

Neuroscience

We have attended classes and seminars in neuroscience for over 15 years. We were introduced to the topic by Vilayanur S. Ramachandran who taught how to learn from what patients can and cannot do. Jaime Pineda, an active researcher in mirror neurons and autism, has shown us how to integrate neuroscience with cognitive retraining. We continue our studies in this fascinating and quickly changing field from innovative researchers. Our hope is to bring these important findings to clinicians to integrate into their treatments.

From all our studies, research, and practice we continue to look at psychotherapy through the crystal of a broad vision which we communicate to you now, extending warmth and clarity through our books, teaching seminars, and this website.

Mirror Neurons: The Empathic Embodiment of Intentionality
Click on the above link to see more!

Click to learn more about our most recent books

Look for our newest books!

The Tao of Bipolar:
Using Meditation and Mindfulness to Find Balance and Peace

New Harbinger
Softcover
ISBN: 9781608822928
Release Date: April 1, 2013
192 pages
$16.95

Discover your calm, balanced center within

Learn how meditation changes your brain for the better

Practice meditation, breathing exercises, and evidence-based mindfulness

Foster your creativity

Improve your relationships

Many people with bipolar disorder lead productive and happy lives, and you can too. If you are bipolar, you may face certain psychological challenges like mood imbalances, periods of severe depression, and manic episodes. If you would like to supplement your medical treatment to help you better manage your symptoms and find your personal sense of balance, this is your guide.

Tao, a Chinese word meaning "the way," is a metaphysical concept for understanding the universe as a circular flow of energy. Drawing on a combination of ancient wisdeom, psychology, and neuroscience, this book will help you balance your emotions and reconnect with the serence center within.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Introduction
Part I: Fundamental Principles and Facts
Chapter 1: Looking Through the Lens of Tao
Chapter 2: All About Bipolar Disorder
Chapter 3: How Meditation Can Change Your Brain

Part II: Learning Meditation
Chapter 4: Warming up to Meditation
Chapter 5: Focus on Breathing: The Gateway to Moods
Chapter 6: Open Focus: Developing Mindful Awareness
Chapter 7: No Focus: Clearing Your Mind

Part III: Easing Your Moods, Fulfilling Your Talents
Chapter 8: The Way Out of Stress
Chapter 9: Moderate Your Depression
Chapter 10: Harmonize Your Mania
Chapter 11: Balance Your Relationships Chapter
12: Nurture Your Potential
Recommended Reading
References

ADVANCED ACCLAIM FOR THE TAO OF BIPOLAR
"Annellen and Alex Simpkins have produced another great book that represents their lifelong commitment to helping people using unique resources...This step-by-step guide of systematic meditation techniques is designed for people diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The reader learns to enter into a different mental state that permits both relaxation and alertness, where once there was only mania or despair."
--Michele Ritterman, PhD author of The Tao of a Woman and Using Hypnosis in Family Therapy

"The deep message the conveys is: Nurture your potential by committing yourself to doing meditations. Find healthy daily routines of waking and sleeping, balance your moods to harmonize your relationships, and become what you want to become, trusting in the power of both Tao and nature...Even though the book is mainly directed to persons with bipolar disorder, it is also helpful for any therapist. The book nurtures the mind, body, and spirit of every reader, satisfies the need for sound knowledge, and gives the pleasure of reading a well-written book enriched by metaphors and cases."
--Consuelo Casula, psychologist, psychotherapist, and the president-elect of the Europeacn Society of Hypnosis

"Throughout this helpful, holistic, clear, and cogent book the experienced authors skillfully depict both the bipolar condition and the many therapeutic ways its symptoms may be alleviated. Compassionately reassuring the sufferer, the Simpkins encourage an attitude of non-judgmental awareness accomplished by meditation and breathing exercises to follow each day. ..This book will be of great help to any who read it and apply it to their lives."
--Tasha Halpert, author of Heartwings: Love Notes for a Joyous Life

The Simpkins have written a wonderful book. It begins with a solid foundation of ancient Eastern phiolosophy integrated with modern Western science and a clear description of bipolar disorder. The benefits of a variety of meditations are described and clear guidelines are offered to match these with the individual symptoms that different people experience. Simple, easy-to-follow exercises are offered throughout the book so each reader can experience their own process, leading to sustained improvements. This is a wonderful book and will be appreciated by many people suffering from bipolar disorder. I recommend it enthusiastically."
--Robert McMeilly, MBBS, an international teacher of Ericksonian approaches to psychotherapy and hypnosis.

"The Tao of Bipolar is a how-to guide to clearing your mind, easing your moods, and developing your talents. I'm pleased to have this powerful resource to offer to my patients. The Simpkins offer you the tools you need to gain a high level of awareness and control over your bipolar symptoms. Their easy explanations and practical meditation exercises will help you develop powerful, life-changing habits."
--Ashley Bavis Bush, LCSW, author of Shortcuts to Inner Peace and Transcending Loss

"A true self-help book. The authors expertly guide the reader through a description of bipolar disorder and teach, step-by-step, how to meditate to increase the ability to manage the mood swings that go with bipolar disorder. A great introduction for anyone considering treatment, and a thoughtful addition to talk and medication therapies."
--Tanya H. Hess, PhD, director of training at Coaching into Care, Philadelphia VA Medical Center

"A wonderfully well-written book integrating ancient philosophy of Tao and modern neuroscience for self-help with bipolar disorder."
--Kathryn and Ernest Rossi, authors of the video e-book Creating New Consciousness in Everyday Life

Neuroscience for Clinicians: Evidence, Models, and Practice

Springer 464 p. 98 illus.
Softcover Information
ISBN 978-1-4614-4841-9
Also avaiable as an E-Book
2012

Very clear introduction to neuroscience for practicing psychologists

Helpful definitions of neuroterminiology

A broad range of topics are covered,

Based in the latest research findings

Clear applications for clinical practice

"This book is a terrific introduction to basic neuroscience , as a prelude to understanding the current excitement surrounding the neural basis of mind – body interactions. “
VS Ramachandran, PhD, Director of the Center for Brain and Cognition , UCSD and author of The Tell-tale Brain

"Neuroscience for Clinicians is the book I have been waiting for...Among all the books on my shelves, Neuroscience for Clinicians is an exceptional book, and I highly recommend it."
Richard Landis, PhD Clinical Psychologist. Editor Milton H. Erickson Foundation Newsletter

"In summary, you have a wonderful treat awaiting you that has gifts liberally offered so that you will have a positive emotional experience and learn important information about neuroscience. I am recommending it to every clinician I know, and quoting the information they give to clients, therapists and myself, over and over."
John Lentz, DMin, Author of Trance Altering Epiphanies You Can Create and Compassionate Healing of Sex Addicts and Those Who Love Them

Neuroscience for Clinicians introduces an elegant new lens not only for understanding the role of the brain in pathology, but also for using this knowledge in therapy, to help the mind by treating the brain. Offering conceptual models and empirical data as well as hands-on techniques and practical guidelines, it describes methods versatile enough to be used by therapists across theoretical orientations. Detailed discussion of neuroplasticity explores the brain’s capacity for change and in-depth case studies of anxiety, substance abuse, cognitive problems, and mood disorders demonstrate the mind’s ability to alter brain structures during the course of therapy. And the book is written at a comfort level that requires no previous neuroscience background. Featured in the coverage:

Learning from brain-damaged individuals.
How neurons think and learn.
Neuroplasticity and neurogenesis: moment-by-moment change.
Incorporating the brain into treatment.
Maximizing the social brain.
Shifting the nervous system in common disorders.

Clinicians interested in understanding the brain’s interactions with the mind and its role in psychological problems will find Neuroscience for Clinicians stimulating and adaptable to their own approaches to therapy. The book can also enhance neuroscience and biological psychology classes in cognitive science, medical, and psychology departments.

Forthcoming Seminars & Workshops

Neuroscience for Clinicians:
Brain Change for Stress, Anxiety, Moods, Trauma, and Substance Abuse
Sponsored by CMI PESI Education Solutions

Appleton, WI Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Madison, WI, Thursday, August 8, 2013
Milwaukee, WI, Friday, August 9, 2013

Timonium, MD, Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Elicott City, MD, Thursday, September 26, 2013
Fairfax, VA, Friday, September 27, 2013

Goddard College September 23 & 24, 2013