Biography
Anne Baker is a Research Investigator in the Department of Anesthesiology and the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center (CPFRC). As a psychotherapist and neuroscientist, Dr. Baker is primarily interested in understanding intersections between nociplastic and autoimmune pain conditions, central sensitization, and complex trauma. In tandem, Dr. Baker is focused on tailoring psychedelic-assisted therapies and other insight-based psychotherapeutic approaches (e.g., Internal Family Systems, mindfulness) to treat chronic pain and its common comorbidities. Dr. Baker earned her PhD at the University of Utah under the mentorship of Drs. Eric Garland and Tiffany Love and completed her postdoctoral training in the Human Affect and Pain Neuroscience Lab at Duke University. In those roles, she conducted clinical research on chronic pain and opioid-treatment of chronic pain using a range of psychophysiological and neuroimaging measures including electroencephalogram (EEG), heart rate variability, positron emission tomography (PET), and magnetic resonance imaging and functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI/fMRI) of both the brain and spinal cord. As a junior faculty member at the CPFRC, Dr. Baker will leverage her depth of knowledge in chronic pain pathophysiology to help develop innovative, mechanistically driven treatments for chronic pain.