Miguel Farias and Dr. Catherine Wikholm

Dr Miguel Farias has pioneered brain research on the pain alleviating effects of spirituality and the psychological benefits of yoga and meditation. He was educated in Macao, Lisbon and Oxford. Following his doctorate, he was a researcher at the Oxford Centre for the Science of Mind and a lecturer at the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford. He is the founding director of the Brain, Belief, and Behaviour Lab at Coventry University and the lead editor of the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Meditation.

Dr Catherine Wikholm is a Clinical Psychologist and a Chartered Psychologist. She read Philosophy and Theology at Oxford University before training as a psychologist and completing a Masters in Forensic Psychology and a doctorate in Clinical Psychology. Post-qualification, Catherine has worked within the specialism of children and families, both in the NHS, as part of a London child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS), and in private practice. Her current NHS role is as a Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist in a London perinatal mental health service.