Karen Kissel Wegela

Karen Kissel Wegela, PhD, is a licensed psychologist in the State of Colorado. She has been a professor at Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, for more than forty years and served as the department chair for fifteen years. She began working as a psychotherapist in private practice in 1977 and recently closed her private practice. Before she was a psychologist, she taught high school English. She is the author of three books: How to Be a Help Instead of a Nuisance (Shambhala, 1996), reissued in 2011 as What Really Helps: Using Mindfulness & Compassionate Presence to Help, Support, and Encourage Others; The Courage to Be Present: Buddhism, Psychotherapy, and the Awakening of Natural Wisdom (Shambhala, 2009); and Contemplative Psychotherapy Essentials: Enriching Your Practice with Buddhist Psychology (W. W. Norton, 2014). She has been an invited speaker at numerous conferences both nationally and internationally. She holds a BA from the University of Rochester (Major in English, 1967), an MA from Boston University (English Language & Literature, 1968), a second MA (Education: Guidance & Counseling) from the University of Denver, and a PhD from the Union Institute (Counseling, Psychology & Experiential Learning, 1977).