Board of Advisors
Sandra L. Brown, M.A., is the founder of this Association as well as The Institute for Relational Harm Reduction & Public Pathology Education. A former psychotherapist in the field of psychopathology and survivor trauma, Sandra is an accomplished and respected community educator on the intersections of mental illness, personality disorders, violence, and recidivism. She is a clinical lecturer and trainer, TV and radio guest, and an author. Her books include the highly popular How to Spot a Dangerous Man Before You Get Involved, the award-winning Women Who Love Psychopaths: Inside the Relationships of Inevitable Harm With Psychopaths, Sociopaths & Narcissists, as well as the clinically relevant Counseling Victims of Violence: A Handbook for Helping Professionals.
More about Sandra’s professional accomplishments is available at her website.
George K. Simon, Jr., Ph.D., is an internationally-recognized expert on manipulators and other problem characters and the author of 3 bestselling books: In Sheep’s Clothing (which has been translated into twelve foreign languages), Character Disturbance, and The Judas Syndrome. He’s made appearances on several major television (Fox News Network, CNN, CBS 48 Hours) and radio programs and is also the host of a weekly internet program on UCY.TV called Character Matters.
Dr. Simon served for several years on the Arkansas Governor’s Commission on Domestic Abuse, Rape and Violence, is a past President of the Arkansas Psychological Association, and is a Board Certified Diplomate in Forensic and Clinical Psychology (ACFEI). More information about Dr. Simon’s experience, current writings, and other engagements can be found here.
Bree Bonchay, MSW, LCSW, is a licensed psychotherapist with almost two decades of experience working in the field of mental health and trauma recovery. She specializes in helping people recover from pathological relationships, and shares her insights about pathology in her blog, Free From Toxic. Her articles have been featured in major online magazines, and she has appeared on radio as a guest expert. She is the author of the book, I Am Free, which is the market’s first non-fiction anthology about surviving and healing from pathological relationships. She is also a public speaker, facilitates workshops, and the founder of World Narcissistic Abuse Awareness Day, which is celebrated every 1st of June.
Julie Butler, MA, is an art instructor and public art administrator. She has facilitated mental wellness art workshops for children, adults, at-risk teens, individuals with special needs, and clients of homeless shelters. She also leads group art therapy sessions in residential addiction recovery facilities. Julie is currently a candidate in the Yorkville University Masters of Counselling Psychology program, with a special interest in relational trauma.
Ms. Butler contributes to the Association by handling many administrative tasks. To learn more about Julie and see some of her works of art, visit her website, JulieButlerArt.com.
Carl Gacono, Ph.D., ABAP, is an internationally known forensic expert with over 80 professional publications. His Asheville, NC, practice includes conducting psychological evaluations and psychotherapy from a reality- based/existential approach.
Relevant to his participation in the Association is Dr. Gacono’s work related to psychopathy, antisocial personality, and other personality disorders. Dr. Gacono works with the victims of psychopaths, and families with one or more members that have personality disorders. More information about Dr. Gacono’s practice and credentials is available here.
Claudia Paradise, LCSW-R, has been in practice since 1995. She serves on the executive committee of the Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy’s Center for the Study of Anorexia and Bulimia. Claudia is personally and professionally passionate about the education, treatment, and prevention of self harm and narcissistic abuse through her writing and public speaking. Additionally, she provides supervision and teaches at an institute level. She is an eclectic practitioner who employs analytic theory, DBT, CBT, somatic, and EMDR therapies to treat adults, couples, and children in her New York office. She is committed to the understanding of narcissism and sociopathy and their wide-reaching effects on the individual, the family, and the environment.
More information about Ms. Paradise’s experience and affiliations is available on LoveFraud.com and on LinkedIn.
Sherri L. Renner, JD, is the founder and owner of LawYou America, LLC, through which she focuses her years of litigation experience on helping self-represented litigants. Most of the pro se litigants helped through LawYou are survivors of pathological love relationships who are involved in family court proceedings with their former partners. Ms. Renner also works closely with the Institute in creating relevant educational materials for judges and other legal professionals.
To contact Ms. Renner or access LawYou’s resources, visit the website.
Jennifer Young, LMHC, is the Director of Counseling and Survivor Support Services with The Institute for Relational Harm Reduction & Public Pathology Education, is a Certified Trauma Professional, and is trained in Forward-Facing Trauma Treatment. She has been instrumental in providing the Clinical Model of Care approach through the Institute services, collaborated with the Purdue Research on Super Traits, and provides in-person, tele-mental health, and retreat services.
She currently is a member of the Pinellas County (Florida) Fatality Review Team, member of the Suncoast Mental Health Counseling Association, and a contributing writer for Safe Relationships Magazine.
More about Ms. Young’s work is available on her website.