JOPPPAH Editorial Team
Editor in Chief: Kate Stahl-Kovell, PhD, MA [she/her/hers]
Kate Stahl-Kovell is a maternal health specialist. She leads the team at JOPPPAH as Editor in Chief. She also lectures at Mt. San Jacinto College, conducts ethnography in maternal health throughout Southern California, and is a Marriage and Family therapist intern in Riverside, California while she finishes her MFT at Syracuse University. Stahl-Kovell received her PhD in Critical Dance Studies from the University of California, Riverside in 2020. Her dissertation work highlights how birthing parents negotiate policing in maternal healthcare by gaining techniques of the body prior to childbirth. Stahl-Kovell is currently researching the use of EMDR and CRM as preventative care for birthing parents. She can usually be found oil painting, hiking, and climbing in the San Bernardino mountains in Southern California, where she happily resides with her partner and two children.
Managing Editor: Jess Kimball, she/her
Jess Kimball is a full spectrum birth and postpartum doula practicing in New England. She is passionate about infant sleep, babywearing, and returning to a "village style of care". Jess is also a published author. She enjoys traveling and has worked all over the United States, France, and Honduras as well.
Jess first joined APPPAH as a member through their scholarship in 2016 while completing her doula training, then as a volunteer a year later. She fell in love with reading the journal and learning more about the psychology of birth through APPPAH’s various education programs. As JOPPAH's managing editor, she is able to combine both her tech skills and passions all in one role. She enjoys baking, training in MMA and Muay Thai, and spending time on her cozy homestead with her partner and their many animals.
Assistant Editor - Christiana Rebelle
Christiana Rebelle is a perinatal health consultant and researcher dedicated to educating fitness and medical professionals about pre-and peri-natal nutrition, exercise, and behavioral health. For nearly 20 years, she was a health coach for pregnant women and new mothers. Christiana also wrote extensively on prenatal health and provided seminars and workshops in her community. Her doctoral research examined pregnant women's health beliefs and behaviors, emphasizing the inequities and inadequate care that can lead to adverse outcomes for women and children in the South. Subsequent analysis looked at the impact of provider counseling on prenatal physical activity and sedentary behavior. Christiana is currently developing coursework for medical professionals to improve health literacy and communication between patients and providers. On the weekends, she can usually be found outdoors with her wife and two young children.
Associate Editor: Thomas Verny, MD, DPsych, DHL (Hon), FRCPC, FAPAM
Thomas R. Verny is a psychiatrist, writer and academic. After publishing his book, The Secret Life of the Unborn Child (1981), he founded the Pre- and Perinatal Psychology Association of North America (PPPANA) in 1983 (renamed APPPAH in 1995) and served as its president for eight years. In 1986 he launched the Association's Journal (JOPPPAH), which he edited until 1990 and continues to serve on the JOPPPAH Editorial Board. Thomas continues to lecture and lead workshops on Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Psychotherapy through-out Canada, the United States, Europe, South America and Southeast Asia. He is a member of the Ontario Review Board (ORB).
Thomas’ new book, THE EMBODIED MIND, will be published by Pegasus in the fall 2021. Thomas lives in Stratford, ON, Canada.
Book Review Editor - Barbara Hotelling, MSN, FACCE, AdvCD (DONA), CHT
Barbara Hotelling is a Clinical Nurse Educator in Maternal Child Health in the Accelerated BSN program at Duke University School of Nursing in Durham, NC. She also teaches in the Center for Nursing Discovery’s simulations lab, is an Advisor for the Women’s Health Organization, teaches in the Community Health course and trains birth doulas. Barbara has an MSN in Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner, is certification as a Certified HUG Trainer (H.U.G. Your Baby) and is an IBCLC, certified Lactation Consultant. She is also a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator, DONA Certified Birth Doula, and has been a volunteer in teen parenting programs in Pontiac, Michigan. She has served as President of DONA (1995-1997), Chair of the Coalition for Improving Maternity Services (2000-2002), and President of Lamaze International (2002-2004). Barbara Hotelling lives in Duram, NC.