Dr. Nicholas Vasilis Karayannis

Dr. Karayánnis’s mission as a physiotherapist-scientist follows a two-fold pathway aimed at improving health and healthcare. One path is targeted toward limiting pain-related suffering in people living with spinal pain by providing precise patient-treatment matching of adaptive mind-body interventions. Another path is focused on reducing cognitive frailty in older adults by integrating mind-body exercises (yoga, tai chi) with mental training practices (mindfulness meditation, biofeedback, and cognitive-behavioral therapy) to promote healthy aging. Ultimately, we intend to refine the content and delivery of somatically focused, psychologically informed, and neuroscientific-based mind-body training practices to promote valued activity engagement and cultivate eudaimonic well-being for adults across the lifespan.

Dr. Karayánnis has been supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and completed his postdoctoral fellowship in interdisciplinary pain medicine at Stanford University. Nichólas received his PhD degree in Physiotherapy from The University of Queensland, and a Master’s degree in Physical Therapy from Ohio University. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists, board-certified in orthopedics, and a certified teacher in yoga and tai chi. Dr. Karayannis has extensive training and teaching experience in the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program and heart rate variability - biofeedback training.