Jen-Mitsuke Peters

A Brief Summary…

Although my spiritual journey began at age 12 when a genius violin teacher invited me to be “full of the possibility,” and opened further with the Sanskrit chant, “May all beings everywhere be happy!” at age 26, rounding off my very first yoga class and blowing my then-neuroscience-immersed mind, Suffering has been the tough love guru that has forced me to get practical about the implementation of both spiritual and scientific tools… What really works when the rubber meets the road?

My passion for healing and my deep trust in the transformative power of compassionate relationships and lineages of deep study, practice and devotion have deepened over the past three decades alongside personal experiences of chronic illness and trauma. A big part of my life has been invested in healing 3 recurring post-viral syndromes, 3 persistent and at times life-threatening autoimmune disorders, the constant challenge of inflammation and barrage of mental & physical symptoms triggered by ongoing mold and bio-toxin sensitivity as well as sexual, emotional and spiritual abuse in my past.

While many people paint the healing journey as a remedial one, something broken people have to fix before they are allowed to do or be anything worthwhile or proceed to the real practices all the lofty Influencers preach about, I now see Being, and also healing, as the highest spiritual soul path, developing all of the most critical skills, realizations and relationships that every one of us needs to not only survive but thrive in this interconnected world, regardless of our entry point. Indeed I am backed up by both ancient and modern wisdom that emphasizes what actually matters and how to cultivate the richest human experience, or live who we really are, no matter which real-life challenges we may be facing at this moment.

Of course, if anybody says they have The Answer, run the other way, but I can offer some generalizations about the paths I believe in and those from which the people I work with seem most to benefit.

Firstly, your therapies, practices or ceremonies must benefit You and those alive on this planet Now. Pain tempts us to dive whole hog into a regimen of transcendent renunciation, pious self-flagellation, dissociated postponement for some kind of later cash-out, or humiliating subservience to some kind of authority figure who seems to know more about You than You. Don’t fall for any of that–this path is actually nurturing, loving, embodied, immediately rewarding, relational and empowering, if not always easy.

Secondly, you must tap into more than your impressive brain and cognitive capacity. I believe that living our best lives involves not only our Personal Conscious, but also our Personal Unconscious, so much that we do not “know” under everyday circumstances but can learn about through dreams, body practices, the evocative arts, or other targeted exercises that open us to that plethora of experience and wisdom, as well as the Collective Unconscious (as C. G. Jung called it), the archetypal realm, deities, Spirit, the myths of all of us over time, our very own team of unseen guides and unbroken ancestors… We are meant to be so much more than our homogenized lack of culture suggests. Talking about what you already know will only get you so far, but there are so many resources out there just waiting for us to ask…

My Training

In terms of formal education, I am a Columbia-, Princeton-, Max-Planck- and NIH-trained neuroscientist, hold an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling specializing in Transpersonal Psychology from Naropa University and am currently a PhD candidate in Depth Psychology focusing on Integrative Therapies & Healing Practices at Pacifica Graduate Institute. 

I began teaching yoga internationally in 2005, while living abroad in Europe and Asia for 7 years. I returned to the USA in 2011 to intensify studies with my principal teachers, Richard Freeman & Mary Taylor, whom I have practiced with and assisted for over 2100 hours. I am also an 800-hr Advanced Certified Jivamukti teacher and have trained extensively in many additional yoga styles, meditative practices, philosophical schools and therapeutic modalities since 2003.

The traditions that most flavor my current personal sadhana, teaching and client work include Srividya Tantra and Dzogchen, and I meet with my meditation teacher Rudy Bauer for seminars 3x per week. Additionally, last year I completed a 3.5-year set of initiations with my shamanic teachers and healers, Jennifer Hinton & Patrice Bazile, and I continue to be enrolled in an ongoing queue of continuing education that I can gleefully pass on to all who will listen! 

My fluffy assistant Jiyu and I study, practice, teach, create, coach and counsel from our home studio in sunny Denver, CO and increasingly also out in the wilder places… We hope to meet you, at least metaphorically, right where you are 😉

More information on my training can be found in the CV below:

Education

Pacifica Graduate Institute in Carpinteria, California.
PhD Program, doctoral candidate, degree anticipated in 2025,
Depth Psychology–Integrative Therapies & Healing Practices:
Mutual healing of Humans & Nature through shamanic vision quests & ceremony.
C. G. & Emma Jung Honor Scholarship, 2019-2022.

Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado.
M.A., May 2018, Clinical Mental Health Counseling,
Mindfulness-based Transpersonal Counseling:
Trauma-Informed Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga.
Naropa Honor Scholarship, 2014-2018.

Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey.
M.A., February 2003, Psychology (Program in Neuroscience):
Experience-modulated hippocampal and cortical neuroplasticity.
National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Fellowship, Honorable Mention, 2002.
Princeton Prize, Merit Fellowship in Natural Sciences & Mathematics, 2000-2001.

Columbia University in New York, New York.
B.A., cum laude, May 1998, Neuroscience & Behavior.
Dean’s List all 6 semesters, 4-year degree completed in 3 years, 1995-1998.

Research Fellowships

Max-Planck Institute in Andechs, Germany.
Foreign Scholar Research Fellowship, 2004-2005:
Hippocampal plasticity in migrating birds.

National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, Maryland.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS),
Experimental Therapeutics Branch (ETB), Molecular Neuropharmacology Section.
Post-baccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award Fellow, 1999-2000:
Phosphorylation and desensitization of D1 dopamine receptors.

Scientific Publications

Mirescu, C., Peters, J. D., Noiman, L., & Gould, E. (2006). Sleep deprivation inhibits adult neurogenesis in the hippocampus by elevating glucocorticoids.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 103(50), 19170-19175.

Peters, J. D., & Gould, E. (2005).  Experience, structural plasticity, and neurogenesis.  In T. Steckler, N. H. Kalin, & J. M. H. M. Reul (Eds.), Handbook of stress and the brain, Part 1: The neurobiology of stress (pp. 699-709). Amsterdam: Elsevier.

Mirescu, C., Peters, J. D., & Gould, E. (2004). Early life experience alters response of adult neurogenesis to stress. Nature Neuroscience, 7(8), 841-846.

Kim, O. J., Gardner, B. R., Williams, D. B., Marinec, P. S., Cabrera, D. M., Peters, J. D., Mak, C. C., Kim, K. M., & Sibley, D. R. (2004). The role of phosphorylation in D1 dopamine receptor desensitization: evidence for a novel mechanism of arrestin association. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 279(9), 7999-8010.

University Teaching

University of Colorado in Boulder, CO

  • Guest Lecture on Trauma-Informed Yoga in Yoga: Ancient & Modern, Fall 2019, 2022.
  • Guest Lecture on Hatha Yoga Techniques in Yoga: Ancient & Modern, Fall 2017.

Princeton University in Princeton, NJ

  • Preceptor & Laboratory Instructor, Introduction to Psychology, Fall 2003.
  • Preceptor & Guest Lecturer, The Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, Spring 2003.
  • Preceptor, Abnormal Psychology, Fall 2002.
  • Preceptor, The Brain: A User’s Guide, Spring 2002.
  • Preceptor & Guest Lecturer, Neuroendocrinology: Hormones and Behavior, Fall 2001.

Psychotherapy Training

PhD coursework (GPA 4.0) in addition to scholarly research and clinical supervision 2019-2022:

  • Jungian Psychology & Contemporary Healing (2 semesters)
  • Depth Psychology for the Healing Professions
  • Integrative Mind Body Health, Mindful Awareness & Somatic Embodiment
  • Engaging Collective Trauma, Cultural Healing & Social Justice
  • Archetypal Psychology
  • Imaginal & Experiential Dimensions of Therapeutic Practice
  • Dreams & Active Imagination
  • The Relational Field: Theoretical Distinctions
  • Healing Narratives
  • Depth Approaches to Psychopathology
  • Interpersonal Neurobiology, Affective Neuroscience & Depth Psychology
  • Eco-Spirituality & Eco-Therapy: Nature as Healer
  • Psyche, Soma, Cyborg
  • Indigenous Healing Traditions
  • Psychic Pain & the Human Condition
  • Psyche & the Sacred: Psychology & Spirituality in Dialogue
  • The Feminine Body: Mythology, Culture & Healing Practices
  • Working with Illness & Death: East-West & Depth Perspectives on Suffering
  • Psychobiography
  • Body, Mind & Soul in the Healing of Trauma

MA coursework (GPA 4.0) in addition to the standard curriculum emphasizing assessment, diagnosis & ethical counseling skills across cultures & the lifespan, 2014-2018:

  • Group Dynamics & Leadership
  • Transpersonal Psychology
  • Jungian Psychology
  • Gestalt (2 semesters)
  • Career Counseling
  • Grief, Loss & Life Transitions
  • Mindfulness-Based Interventions (3 semesters)
  • Non-Dualism
  • Authentic Movement
  • Shamanic Journeying

Continuous Continuing Education(!)  I am constantly digesting the latest clinical and scientific breakthroughs disseminated in e-calls and summits, as well as through participation in the following courses, workshops, trainings & seminars:

  • Healing Complex Trauma with Internal Family Systems (Frank Anderson, MD), 2022.
  • 5 courses in Activating your Inner Jaguar: Embodied Consent, Healthy Boundaries & Real-World Understanding of the Nervous System (Kimberly Johnson, SEP), 2020.
  • 4-week course in Money & the Nervous System (Kimberly Johnson, SEP), 2020.
  • 4-week course in Limits & Boundaries (Kimberly Johnson, SEP), 2020.
  • 4-week course in Healing Sexual Trauma: A Somatic & Attachment Approach to Working with Therapy Clients (Peter Levine, PhD & Diane Poole Heller, PhD), 2019.
  • 5-week course in Unraveling the Mystery of Memory in the Treatment of Trauma (Peter Levine, PhD & Diane Poole Heller, PhD), 2019.
  • 4-week course in Embodying Social Justice: Understanding the Trauma of Oppression (Rae Johnson, PhD, RSMT), 2019.
  • Treating CEN—Childhood Emotional Neglect (Jonice Webb, PhD), 2019.
  • Neuropsychology & Modern Psychoanalysis (Elizabeth Olson, PsyD-LCSW), 2019.
  • SSP—Safe & Sound Protocol Training (Stephen Porges, PhD), 2018.
  • Animal-Assisted Therapist Certification (Pawsitive Therapeutic Interventions, Amanda Ingram, LCSW, CAC III), 2018.
  • Entering the Early Unknown: Sensing When to Speak & When to be Silent (Angelo Ciliberti, LPC, LAC, CGP & Jordan Blank, LCSW, CGP), 2018.
  • Disaster Mental Health: Intro to Disaster Cycle Services (American Red Cross), 2018.
  • Somatic Sex Education—Yoga of Sex, online portion of the Sexological Bodywork training (Joseph Kramer, PhD & Faculty), 2017-2018.
  • Forging a Feminine Path—Sexuality & Spirituality (Kimberly Johnson, SEP), 2017.
  • 24-hour Somatic Experiencing Meets Yoga Training for Trauma (Mariana Caplan, PhD, LCSW, SEP), 2017.
  • Somatic Experiencing—Basic Principles (Ellen Byrne, SEP), 2017.
  • Modern Psychoanalysis (Elizabeth Olson, PsyD-LCSW), 2016.
  • DBT—Dialectical Behavior Therapy (Elizabeth Olson, PsyD-LCSW), 2016.
  • Family Therapy (Elizabeth Olson, PsyD-LCSW), 2015.
  • Hakomi Mindfulness-Centered Somatic Psychotherapy Workshop (Melissa Grace, MA), 2015.
  • ACT—Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (Brooks Witter, LPC), 2015.
  • Cancer Caregivers & Caregiving Symposium (Susan Bauer-Wu, PhD-RN & Faculty), 2012.

Clinical Experience

Founder, Jungle Physician LLC in Denver, CO, 2015.  Registered Psychotherapist (NLC) in Colorado since January 2017.  Drawing on 9 years of in-depth study & research in the neurosciences as well as  immersion in yoga, meditation & other therapeutic-transformational spiritual practices since 2003.  Personal experience healing from emotional, sexual & spiritual abuse & neglect as well as over a decade of chronic illness.  Offering counseling, coaching, trauma-informed treatments, retreats & trainings to individuals & groups.

Community Holistic Health Center in Lafayette, CO, 2017-2018.  700-hour Internship supervised by Jen Fuller, MA, LPC, CACII.  Affordable Sliding-Scale Counseling Program.  Provided counseling sessions for individuals (children through seniors), couples & families.  Addressed alcohol and drug addiction, health concerns, relationship issues, career transitions, stress, trauma, anger, grief, anxiety & depression.  Explored spirituality, sexuality & identity.  Facilitated the following groups:  Grief & Transitions, Mindfulness & Purpose, Women’s Sexuality, Yoga & the Chakras.

Collective for Psychological Wellness in Boulder, CO, 2016.  Adult DBT Group Co-facilitator, 15 sessions with Elizabeth Driscoll, MA.  Led the weekly mindfulness component.  Co-led check-ins, Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills instruction & discussion.

AIM House in Boulder, CO, 2015.  70-hour Practicum supervised by Angelo Ciliberti, MA, LPC, LAC, CGP, 2015.  Worked with young women in transition & recovery.  Collaborated with staff to aid in crisis intervention & prevention.  Led or co-hosted weekly Human Sexuality & Relationships groups.  Co-facilitated weekly Relational Group Process with the Clinical Director.  Gave individualized yoga sessions & taught a workshop at Family Weekend.  Chaperoned creative recovery groups & improvisation classes.  Modeled empathetic listening & authentic relationship at meals & in milieu.

Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga

Personal practice of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga since 2003. Teaching groups, privates, workshops, courses, immersions, trainings and retreats internationally (Europe, Asia & North America) since 2005. Developing Jungle Physician TIAVY (Trauma Informed Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga) since 2014.

Founder, Teacher, Therapist at Jungle Physician LLC in Denver (since 2015).
Taught at Ashtanga Yoga Denver (2016-2019).
Taught at Richard Freeman’s Yoga Workshop in Boulder (2012-2015).
Taught Ashtanga Self-Practice & Led at Jivamukti Yoga Munich (2007-2009). 

1500+ hours of international study with my principal teacher Richard Freeman since 2007, as well as 600+ additional hours assisting him with month-long teachers’ intensives, immersions, courses & conferences since moving to Boulder to intensify studies with him and Mary Taylor in 2011. Detailed study of each posture in the Primary, Intermediate, Advanced A and Advanced B Ashtanga Series.

4 months of Mysore practice, Goa, India (Rolf Naujokat), 2009-2010.
2 months of practice while living on a riverbank in a gorge, Crete (Cliff Barber), 2009.
3 weeks of Mysore practice & private study, Tokyo (Dominic Corigliano), 2009.
5-day Ashtanga Teaching & Adjustment Clinic, Munich (Nancy Gilgoff), 2004.

Workshops with Bettina Anner, Danny Paradise, David Swenson, John Scott, Mark Darby & Tim Miller.

Jivamukti Yoga

Assistant to Sharon Gannon & David Life for international workshops, 2008-2014.
Jivamukti Yoga Munich faculty, teaching groups, privates & workshops, 2005-2011.
Mentor for 500-hr Jivamukti Apprenticeship Program, Munich, 2010-2011.
Advanced Jivamukti Teaching Certification, Munich, 2009.
500-hr Jivamukti Teaching Apprenticeship, Munich (Petros Haffenrichter), 2006.
300-hr Jivamukti Teacher Training, New York (Sharon Gannon & David Life), 2005.
9-month Pre-certification Apprenticeship, Munich (Patrick Broome), 2004-2005.
70 days of training while on retreat in Crete (Petros Haffenrichter), 2004-2011.

Therapeutic & Specialized Yoga

Iyengar Yoga—Personal practice since 2003.  Workshops with Chris Saudek, Dean Lerner, Devki Desai, Gabriella Giubilaro, Lois Steinberg, Marla Apt, Nancy Stechert, Paul Cabanis & Ramanand Patel since 2006.  Practice with Craig Kurtz & Jayne Satter in Denver & Boulder, 2012-2019.  Regular study with Michael Forbes & Elisa Bruni in Munich, 2004-2011.

24-hour Somatic Experiencing Meets Yoga Training for Trauma (Mariana Caplan), 2017.
50-hour Yoga for Survivors of Cancer Teacher Training, Boulder (Laura Kupperman), 2014.
30 Restorative & Therapeutic Kaiut Yoga workshops, (Francisco Kaiut), 2011-2014.
3-day Adaptive Yoga for Physical Disabilities Intensive, Boulder (Matthew Sanford), 2011.

Workshops with Alan Finger (ISTHA Yoga), Angela Farmer (Angela & Victor Yoga), Bo Forbes (Yoga for Emotional Balance), Dharma Mittra (Dharma Yoga), Emil Wendel (Pranayama & Kriya Yoga), Gary Kraftsow (Viniyoga), Godfrey Devereux (Dynamic Yoga), Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa (Kundalini Yoga), Mark Whitwell (Krishnamacharya & TKV Desikachar), Patrick Oancia (Baseworks), R. Sriram (Krishnamacharya & TKV Desikachar), Rod Stryker (ParaYoga) & Simon Borg-Olivier (Yoga Synergy) since 2005.

Meditation, Buddhism & Karma Yoga

Personal meditation practice since 2003.  

Study with my principal meditation teacher, Rudy Bauer PhD, 3x per week since 2022, including the Advanced Seminar: Contributions of Dzogchen and Phenomenology to Psychotherapy, Cultivating Meditative Awareness, and Dakini Practice: Archetypal Dimensions of Dzogchen and Kashmir Shaivism.

Srividya Tantra — Initiated by & continued study with Sri Sivapremananda, ongoing courses & workshops with Pandit Rajmani Tigunait & Kavitha Chinniayan. Workshops with Douglas Brooks & Paul-Muller Ortega since 2017.

Zen practice— 5 weeks of study & sesshin practice (Roshis Joan Halifax & Pat Enkyo O’hara, Zenji Martin Mosko, Senseis Genzan Quennell, Kazuaki Tanahashi & Hozan Alan Senauke), 2013-2017.

Tibetan Buddhism—9 annual courses with retreats in the tradition of Chogyam Trungpa, (Jules Levinson, PhD), 2007-2017.  4 weeks of study on the intersection of Buddhism & Yoga, (Prof. Robert Thurman & Richard Freeman), 2012-2015.  2 weekends of textual study (Thrangu Rinpoche), 2014.

Vipassana Meditation—30 days of silent retreats in the tradition of S.N. Goenka, 2008-2010.

Karma Yoga—2-month residency at Santosh Puri Ashram, Haridwar, India (Mataji Narmada Puri & family), 2010.

Various workshops with Rev. Angel Kyodo Williams, Acharya Dale Asrael, Joanna Macy, Lama Marut, Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche & Sharon Salzberg since 2005. 

Shamanism, Ceremony & Animistic Practice

Leading ceremony, journeying, workshops and incorporating elements of journeying into my attachment-based trauma psychotherapy practice since 2018.

Regular ceremony & journey circles with Jennifer Hinton and Patrice Bazile since 2013 as well as weekly engagement with Patrice’s original and powerful form of shamanic bodywork. Completed a 3.5-year Gates of Initiation training in 2023. Workshops on divination, rattle-making and psychopomp with Jennifer, ongoing.

Other Body, Movement, Healing & Self-Study Practices

Year-long Infinite Soul Wisdom Astrology Course with Martha Alter Hines 2024-2025.
10-week Authentic Movement Course, Boulder (Daphne Chellos), 2017.
Reiki Level 1 Certification, Boulder (Susan Chiocchi), 2013.
42-day Dynamic Meditation at Osho Leela, Munich (daily morning practice), 2005.

Music Training & Performance

Kirtan instruction (2005-2011) under Bhagavan Das, Dave Stringer, David Newman, Jai Uttal & Shyam Das.  Performance (on violin) with Danny Paradise, Daphne Tse, Dave Stringer, Fantuzzi, Jason Kalidas, Michael Hewitt, Petros & Friends.  Performance (on voice & harmonium) internationally in classes, workshops & retreats since 2005.

Violin instruction (1985-1998) under Elisabeth Adkins (Associate Concertmaster, National Symphony Orchestra), James Stern (Cleveland Institute of Music), Oliver Steiner and Anastasia Jempelis (Eastman School of Music), Robert Cole & Estelle Roth (Suzuki Method).

Columbia University Orchestra (George Rothman), 1996-1998.
American Youth Philharmonic (Luis Haza), 1992-1995.
National Symphony Orchestra Apprentice Program (Mstislav Rostropovich), 1993-1994.
Eastman School of Music Summer Horizons Program, 1992.

Piano instruction (1989-1995) under Howard Spindler (Eastman School of Music) & Linda Gutterman (Suzuki Method).

Languages

Proficient German, 2 years of university French & Russian, ongoing study of basic Sanskrit.

Additional Passions

Past—diving, hang gliding, horseback riding, quilting, softball & swing dancing.
Present—holistic health, puppies, drawing, tree climbing & Vespa scooters.

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Jen pours her soul & resources into her work 😅 and greatly appreciates all of your support: participation, follows, likes, testimonials, donations, referrals & positive vibes! 🥰 Thank you 🙏🏻