Dr. Haunani ‘Iao is a kānaka Hawai’i licensed clinical psychologist, born and raised in Hawai’i, and the president and founder of ‘Iao Mind Body Health. She holds both a master’s and a doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Argosy University/Hawai’i School of Professional Psychology. Her approach is relational and embodied, blending modern science with ancestral wisdom to support sustainable health and well-being at both the individual and systems levels.

Dr. ‘Iao has over 14 years of experience in the field, combined with 10 years of leadership experience in healthcare. Her leadership roles include serving as the Integrated Health Director early in her career at Mālama I Ke Ola Health Center, as well as positions at a large multispecialty primary care group, where she held roles as both the CPC+ Medical Director and Behavioral Health Director. In these positions, she gained valuable experience in planning and implementing large-scale program development and practice transformation. She has also supervised, managed, and trained a multidisciplinary team, including psychology postdoctoral trainees and practicum students. These initiatives deepened her understanding that leadership AND therapy requires both innovation and empathy, balancing evidence-based strategy with compassion.

Her specialization lies in training, supervision, and the direct provision of services that focus on treating trauma and promoting resilience through transformative, experiential therapies grounded in neuroscience. She believes that listening to the wisdom of our bodies is crucial for trauma healing and integrates somatic modalities into her work. ‘Iao Mind & Body Health stands out by offering evidence-informed, culturally grounded care that honors both the science of the brain and the wisdom of the body.  Her approach to therapy, leadership, and training is grounded in compassion, emotional intelligence, systems awareness, and a trauma-informed lens. She guides with curiosity and humility, viewing challenges as opportunities for innovation, growth, and meaningful connection.

Dr. ‘Iao is passionate about teaching and inspiring groups, workplaces, and communities to build resilience knowledge, and strategies as safeguards against the effects of adversity. She developed a proprietary program called Discover Your Inner Resilience©, a 7-module, data-driven group intervention designed to cultivate resilience through embodiment, psychoeducation, and community engagement. This structured program integrates the latest research in trauma science, polyvagal theory, mindfulness, and somatic psychology with experiential practices like breathwork, movement, interoception, and values-based reflection.

Additionally, Dr. Iao is a certified and registered yoga teacher with specialized training in a modality called Trauma Sensitive Yoga. This is an evidence-based treatment for complex and treatment-resistant trauma, noted for its higher levels of acceptability and patient retention. She offers Trauma Sensitive Yoga groups to foster mindfulness, build community, and promote healing from trauma.

Dr. ‘Iao has completed her first year of service as the Maui Representative on the Hawai’i Psychological Association Board. Furthermore, she has contributed content to national media outlets, including Peloton’s The Output, Well+Good, and Oprah Daily, where she serves as a behavioral medicine sleep expert.

Areas of specialty: corporate wellness, trauma-based disorders, insomnia, depression, anxiety disorders, and adjusting to medical, physical, social, or psychological changes.

Ages served: 18+

Insurance Accepted: HMSA HMO/PPO, HMSA Quest, UHA, 

Therapy modalities: Somatic Experiencing (SE), Trauma Sensitive Yoga, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-i), Somatic Experiencing (SE), Coherence Therapy (CT), mindfulness-based therapy approaches, parts work with memory reconsolidation, and Eye Movement Desensitization Therapy (EMDR), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).

Personal: I enjoy nature. Simply watching the wind swaying through the grass or trees makes my body feel at ease. I love swimming in the ocean, paddleboarding, and hiking. Meditation and embodiment practices are part of my daily hygiene. Food, herbs, supplements, exercise, nature, and aloha are my medicine. I am a level 2 Reiki-trained practitioner, and I give Reiki to myself, my husband, my pets, and other family members. I am a lifelong learner, and I thoroughly enjoy learning new skills; I am committed to constantly growing and improving my craft. My ‘ohana is everything. Time with my family, my husband, two dogs, and two cats t is precious.  We love sitting on our lanai at sunset in upcountry Maui, enjoying the view and the aloha.

Philosophy: We all have a remarkable capacity for learning and healing, including the ability to witness our experiences rather than relive past trauma. In space, astronauts learn that objects no longer need to be placed down; they can simply be released, and a pen will float beside them after writing. When astronauts return to Earth, they often find themselves dropping things as they readjust to gravity.

Just as the brain can unlearn and relearn gravity, we can unlearn outdated beliefs and survival-based truths. Through new learning, we strengthen the healthier, truer knowledge that already exists within us.