The Osher Center offers free lectures on the 2nd Thursday of every month from noon to 1:00 p.m. at 1701 Divisadero, Suite 150 at Sutter Street. Bring a lunch and join us at these free, informative sessions. There is no need to preregister for these presentations; however, if you have questions, please e-mail or call 415-353-7700.

August 14, 2008
Ayurveda for Optimal Health: Helping Body, Mind and Spirit to Thrive

Our Speaker: Sudha Prathikanti, MD

Ayurveda is an ancient Indian system for health and healing that has been practiced continuously for over 5000 years, influencing many other healing traditions around the world. In this lecture, Dr. Prathikanti will give an overview of Ayurveda and its components and therapies, providing information that participants can use to assess their own Ayurvedic constitution and make health-promoting lifestyle choices.

Sudha Prathikanti, MD is Associate Director of Behavioral Health at the UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, and Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UCSF. After completing medical school at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and her residency at UCSF, Dr. Prathikanti obtained certification as an Ayurvedic practitioner through the California campus of the Ayurveda Institute of America, where she studied under many prominent Ayurveda scholars from India.

September 11, 2008
Whole Person Healthcare

Our Speaker: Ilene Serlin, PhD, ADTR

Whole Person Health Care shows how healing practices-- including yoga, meditation, Qi Gong, art, music and dance therapy-- are being integrated with modern medicine, in hospitals and at nontraditional healthcare facilities.

Dance Movement Therapy for Women with Breast Cancer will also be presented. This is a short educational DVD about the use of dance therapy in a 12-week support group for women living with breast cancer.

Ilene Serlin, PhD, ADTR, General Editor of Whole Person Health Care, is a clinical psychologist and registered dance/movement therapist in private practice in San Francisco and Marin County. She is affiliated with organizations such as the American Psychological Association, Division of Humanistic Psychology and San Francisco Psychological Association, among others. For more information, visit her website at www.ileneserlin.com.

Note: Copies of the textbook and DVD will be available for purchase at the lecture.