Jennifer DeDecker
Jennifer
DeDecker

Faculty
Campus:
- Saybrook University
- College of Social Sciences
- College of Integrative Medicine and Health Sciences
Website:
- Full Moon Rising
- Biography
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Dr. Jenny DeDecker completed her doctorate in Mind-Body Medicine, specializing in Mindful Leadership in Healthcare at Saybrook University and was the Department of Research's inaugural Post-Doctoral Teaching and Research Fellow. Her doctoral research was a Straussian grounded theory study that focused on the embodiment of compassion in health care and the potential for compassion to mitigate burnout. Jenny is a strong advocate for health and wellness and is a published researcher in perinatal mood and anxiety disorders. She recently published a Constructivist grounded theory study with the Department of Research Chair, Dr. Walker Ladd, regarding birth doulas' experience of compassion. Jenny is committed to the education and advancement in the fields of somatic psychology, contemplative neuroscience, ethics, social sciences, and mind-body medicine. She is a dedicated visionary, scholar-practitioner, and life-long learner.
Jenny is owner of Full Moon Rising, a wellness studio offering bodywork, yoga and mindfulness instruction, and maternal health services. She is a certified lactation counselor, childbirth educator, and birth doula. She resides in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan with her husband and two children.
- Areas of Expertise
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Area Expertise Integrative Medicine Complementary Therapies Education Massage therapy Mindfulness and Meditation Yoga and Asian Arts Leadership & Management Leadership Approaches and Practices Research Design/Methodology Grounded Theory Phenomenology - Education History
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Degree Institution Year BA Human Biology University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 2005 BA Anthropology University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 2005 MS Mind-Body Medicine Saybrook University, California 2019 PhD Mind-Body Medicine Saybrook University, California 2023 - Professional Memberships
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Role Organization Approved Provider National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork Member American Anthropological Association Member Council on Anthropology and Reproduction Member Doula Research and Advocacy Collective - Licenses
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Licensed Massage Therapist, Michigan Certified Lactation Counselor, Center for Healthy Children - Community Involvement
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Role Organization Vice President NVAS Board of Education Co-Chair Upper Peninsula of MI Lactation Coalition Member Association of Bodywork and Massage Professionals Member Wisconsin Association of Lactation Consultants Member Council on Anthropology and Reproduction Co-Chair Full Moon Doulas - Curriculum Vitae
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Download - Research
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Compassionate Health Care and Burnout Prevention
Maternal Mental Health
- Publications
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Chapter DeDecker, J (Augu). Relationships and Boundaries. In C. Velderman and K. Robinson (Ed.) Ethics for Acupuncturists: Singing Dragon Press.
Journal Ladd, W. and DeDecker, J. (2022). The lived experience of postpartum anxiety: a hermeneutic phenomenological study. The Qualitative Report, 27 (7), 1316-1340.
DeDecker, J. (2020). “Compassion Fatigue” is a misnomer: How compassion can increase quality of life. Creative Nursing, 26 (4), 246-252.
Other DeDecker, J. (2023). Fostering compassion: A grounded theory of the experience of engaged compassion. Saybrook Dissertation.
- Professional Skills
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Qualitative Research, Maternal Mental Health, Compassionate Health Care, Burnout, Birth Work, Maternal and Infant Health, Breastfeeding and Infant Feeding Practices