Misconceptions

Rikki Spivak MS, OTR/L is a Columbia University–trained occupational therapist, graduating with her master's degree in 2002. For more than two decades, she has served children, adolescents, and adults with a specialized focus on emotional regulation, safety, and trauma healing. She maintains a thriving private practice in Monsey, where her work integrates a polyvagal-informed lens, somatic principles, and practical therapeutic tools to help clients build resilience and re-establish a grounded sense of safety in their bodies and relationships. Rikki is also a kallah teacher, trained by Rochel Goldbaum with additional trauma-informed training from the Eden Center. She specializes in teaching kallahs who are trauma survivors, those navigating religious differences, and kallahs coping with OCD, anxiety, or sensory processing challenges. She uniquely blends clinical expertise with deep sensitivity to the Jewish Orthodox community's needs, ensuring that education around intimacy remains safe, supportive, and empowering. A sought-after educator, Rikki has delivered classes and professional trainings to kallah teachers, clinicians, and mental health professionals on the centrality of safety in intimacy and the intersection of trauma, the nervous system, and sexual well-being. Her work bridges clinical insight with compassionate, practical guidance—helping individuals and couples step into relationships with greater clarity, confidence, and connection.

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www.RikkiSpivak.com

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Upcoming training for therapists January 14th at 12:00pm EST - register at

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Toby Tabak is a mother and nonprofit leader whose work is shaped by lived experience and deep community engagement. She serves as a director at Yad Rachel / Project Ima, supporting maternal mental health through education, advocacy, and compassionate care. She is a co-founder of WeeCare Preemies and WILLPOWER, a coalition of women in leadership roles in Lakewood.

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Bethany (Beth) Warren, LCSW, PMH-C is a perinatal psychotherapist in private practice in San Diego, California and has worked in reproductive mental health for 25 years. She is author of the books: The Pregnancy and Postpartum Mood Workbook and most recently, Healing From Reproductive Trauma. She is in the process of writing her 3rd book, about trauma-informed care in perinatal spaces.

Beth is certified in EMDR therapy and Perinatal Mental Health, specializing in perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, birth and reproductive trauma, pregnancy loss, and infertility. Her work is rooted in trauma-informed and person-centered care from an attachment lens. She is passionate about spreading awareness about mental health treatment and prevention and is regularly featured on podcasts and gives trainings on perinatal mental health and trauma.

She is also an EMDRIA approved consultant and facilitates EMDR therapy trainings.

Beth is a current member and previously served as the President of the Board of the Postpartum Health Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting awareness of Perinatal Mental Health and accessibility of quality mental healthcare for all parents.

You can follow Beth on Instagram @bethanywarrenlcsw and at her website: bethanywarrenlcsw.com

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Gila is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Yesh Tikva. Three years into her personal fertility journey she founded Yesh Tikva with the help of four incredible and dedicated women. She received her BA in psychology from Yeshiva University Stern College for Women and an MA in Applied Behavioral Analysis from Columbia University. Prior to assuming the position of Executive Director of Yesh Tikva, she worked for 8 years as a behavior therapist and parent educator working with children on the Autism spectrum.

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Eling Tsai (she/her) is a Registered Dietitian, New York State Certified Dietitian-Nutritionist, and Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist. In her work, Eling creates a nonjudgmental space to help people find peace in their relationship with food. Using a Health at Every Size® (HAES®) and Intuitive Eating informed approach, she works with her clients to improve their well-being, body image, and outlook around food while working towards nutrition-related goals and managing a range of medical conditions. She has a special interest in disordered eating, eating disorders, and diabetes, as well as helping families create a positive feeding environment at home. Eling believes a positive and energizing relationship with food and body should be a right for all people.

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Sarah Ottensoser is a certified and licensed speech-language pathologist with over two decades of experience working in school settings. For the past 16 years, she has specialized in executive function coaching, supporting students in building the skills they need to thrive academically and personally. In addition to her direct work with students, Sarah partners closely with families to address executive function challenges at home and leads workshops for both parents and educators. Alongside her school-based work, Sarah also maintains a private practice where she works with children, teens, and adults. She lives in Baltimore with her family and enjoys reading, swimming, and spending time with her grandchildren.

Peninah Taragin Gershman worked as a geriatric speech-language pathologist for 10 years. After that she worked at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services as a health policy analyst. She is now pursuing a Master of Arts degree in Holocaust and Genocide studies at Yeshiva University. She is very involved in Eshel, an organization that supports Orthodox LGBTQ people and their families. She serves on the board of the organization and is a parent volunteer and mentor. She has three young adult children and lives in Silver Spring, MD with her husband Greg.

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Hudson Jones, Psy.D., is a San Diego-based psychologist and the founder of Origin Psychology, a psychotherapy practice dedicated to supporting the mental health of men and fathers. His academic, research, and clinical work center on men's mental health, with a particular emphasis on reproductive psychology. As a trainer for Postpartum Support International, Dr. Jones educates professionals on best practices for supporting fathers during the perinatal period, highlighting the unique challenges men face as they transition to parenthood. His research explores the impact of mental health stigma on fathers of NICU infants, with a focus on improving access to care for NICU dads. Dr. Jones completed his postdoctoral fellowship at the Center for Men's Excellence and his pre-doctoral internship at SHARP Mesa Vista Hospital in San Diego, CA. He earned his doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Denver, specializing in child-caregiver relationships. Outside of work, Hudson enjoys surfing, playing guitar, and exploring the outdoors with his spouse and their dog.

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Chanchkie Slavin is a passionate teacher and lifelong learner. She is part of the spiritual leadership team in Chabad Malvern and spends her days working to foster a sense of community and Jewish pride in the younger generation and their families through her role as Director of the Early Learning Centre, pre-marital teacher and mikvah lady amongst other things. She is a Bachelor Qualified teacher, and is continuing her education studying Halacha, Talmud, Torah, and Jewish thought. She lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and beautiful children.

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Kayleigh Summers is a licensed clinical social worker and private practice owner in Downingtown, PA. She specializes in perinatal trauma and has specific training in both perinatal mental health and EMDR. Kayleigh uses her training as a licensed therapist and her lived experience as an Amniotic Fluid Embolism survivor to treat and support families experiencing perinatal trauma. Kayleigh has also created thriving birth trauma support communities through Instagram and Tik Tok, as well as her podcast, where she provides connection, story sharing, and resources to support those experiencing birth and other trauma.

Website: https://thebirthtraumamama.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebirthtrauma_mama/

Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thebirthtrauma_mama

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Dr. Heather Nixon is a Professor of Anesthesiology and the Division Chief of Obstetric Anesthesiology at the University of Illinois Hospital at Chicago where she has worked for the last 15 years.

She completed her residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical School and her Obstetric Anesthesiology Fellowship at Northwestern Memorial Hospital – Feinberg School of Medicine. Her previous academic appointments include Residency Program Director, Associate Head for Education and Obstetric Anesthesiology Fellowship Director. Dr. Nixon served on the Illinois Maternal Mortality Review Committee for 6 years. She currently serves as the Anesthesiology Representative on the AWHONN (Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses) Respectful Care Collaborative and a Contributor to the ELEVATE (Elevating Anesthesia Choices for Cesarean Delivery: A Roadmap to Patient-Centered Research and Quality Improvement) project.

Nationally, she served as the Vice Chair for the American Society of Anesthesiologists Committee on Obstetric Anesthesia for six years and a member of the board of directors for the Society of Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology for the last 10 years. Heather is the current Immediate President of the Society of Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology. She is a recognized national and international speaker and is a passionate advocate for patient safety as it relates to medication management in anesthesiology and the patient experience in obstetric anesthesia care. Notably, she is featured in the New York Time and Serial Productions "The Retrievals Season 2" for her quality improvement and safety work in the clinical area of intraoperative pain during cesarean delivery.

Dr. Nixon has received numerous teaching awards from the Society of Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology, the American Society of Anesthesiologists, the Society of Education in Anesthesia and the American Medical Association.

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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@misconceptionspodcast