Megan Carey Vaughan
CHAIR-ELECT
Dr. Vaughan is a prominent researcher and clinician in human performance, integrative medicine and cognitive neuroscience specializing in performance based mindfulness, sleep, psychedelic integration and biofeedback practices. She designs brain health and resilience programs for Special Operation Forces (SOF) personnel and First Responders, focusing on vital wellness aspects like cognitive functioning, sleep, and emotional regulation. With over a decade of clinical experience and insights as a military spouse, Megan creates interventions that resonate with SOF service members’ unique challenges, leading to meaningful improvements in their mental and brain health. Her compassionate approach encourages individuals to engage in their healing journey, fostering empowerment and positive transformation. After completing her doctorate at Northwestern, she switched focus from a certified brain injury specialist in speech-language pathology to cognitive neuroscience for brain health and brain injury. During this time, Dr. Vaughan developed the Mindfulness-Based Communication Enhancement (MBCE) Program for Special Operations to optimize emotional intelligence and augment cognitive domains of executive functioning, attention and memory. The program was spearheaded at the Richmond V.A. and spread to the Tampa V.A.
Dr. Vaughan currently works with various university-based mind-body medicine programs for special operations and within government entities. She aided with the implementation of a peer-to-peer mindfulness-based performance program for the Department of Homeland Security’s ICE, and the Seattle Fire Department. Dr. Vaughan also works with program design and developed a mindfulness parenting program for special operations nonprofits, mindfulness for teenagers of special operations personnel, and a resilience program for the FDA. In addition, Dr. Vaughan is currently developing a brain health and mindful self-compassion program for military and first responders in an addiction clinic setting.
Dr. Vaughan works with Special Operations spouses and Special Operations Veterans before and after psychedelic interventions. She implements mindfulness, heart math and sleep programming with an emphasis on integrative medicine.
Dr. Vaughan also teaches integrative medicine and human performance symposiums and labs at the Special Operations Medics Association to infuse brain endurance and mental flexibility concepts in young special forces operators.
With the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine, Dr. Vaughan is the chair-elect for the Complimentary Integrative Medicine Board. She delivers meditations at the annual conference, where professionals engage in meditation, learn facilitation skills, and understand their own meditation process. Dr. Vaughan co-chairs the task force for Integrative Medicine for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology to develop an integration model and leads the Integrative Medicine and Human Performance Task Force for Special Operations. She also serves as a mentor on a research project focusing on Special Operations outpatient program development.
