Dr. John Astin works with RGI on developing mind-body education programs, content and products addressing optimal health, healing and healthy aging.  While treating disease still remains paramount, diet, exercise and stress reduction are increasingly being recognized as central to disease prevention and/or management.  John works with the Reilly Group to developed innovative communications health programs that address the public’s interest in wellness with renowned national organizations and leaders.

From 1997-1999, he was a research fellow in the Complementary and Alternative Medicine Program at the Stanford University School of Medicine.  In 2002, he was on the faculty at the Complementary Medicine Program, University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Since 2003, he has been a Research Scientist at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.  His research and clinical work has focused on several related areas: 1) the use of mind-body therapies, particularly mindfulness meditation, to treat various health-related problems; 2) psychosocial factors associated with use of complementary and alternative medical therapies; 3) the psychological construct of control and its relationship to mental and physical health; and, 4) the role of spirituality in healthcare.

His research has appeared in such journals as Archives of Internal Medicine, JAMA, and the Annals of Internal Medicine. He is the co-author with Deane Shapiro of the book: Control therapy: An integrated approach to psychotherapy, health, and healing.

Along with his scholarly pursuits, John is the author of Too Intimate for Words, a book of contemplative poetry and prose. John received his Ph.D. in Health Psychology from the University of California, Irvine.