About me

Hello! I’m Dawnn Rabinowitz McWatters, Psy.D. For the past twenty-plus years, I’ve dedicated my life to improving mind/body health for adults and their families, as a clinical psychologist, educator, and food activist.

In 2019, I closed my full-time psychotherapy practice in order to explore urban agriculture as well as nature-based healing modalities. Currently, I am on sabbatical while I support my young family during the pandemic. Beginning in April 2021, I’ll be available for limited telehealth services (for Washington state residents only) and later in the year, online services based upon my Sow to Savor educational program.

THE ACADEMIC DETAILS: B.A. in Liberal Arts, cum laude, Willamette University (1995); M.S. (2002) and Psy.D. (2006) in Clinical Psychology, Pacific University; President’s Award of Academic Excellence, Pacific University (2006)

LICENSURE: Licensed Psychologist (#PY00003711, Washington). Licensed Psychologist, Inactive (#2195, Oregon). Please note: I am NOT able to provide psychological services in states where I do not hold a license or my license is currently inactive.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE HIGHLIGHTS:

• From 2007 – 2019, I’ve maintained a small private practice as a mindfulness-based psychotherapist serving the needs of the Portland-metro community and specializing in eating disorder treatment. In previous years, I’ve worked in university and college counseling centers, correctional institutions, a community outpatient mental health clinic, and an inpatient psychiatric forensic unit. I briefly returned to practice in 2020 to provide supportive telehealth services.
• I’ve led numerous presentations (most frequently, on stress management, general mindfulness, self-care for caregivers, and mindful eating) at local colleges, yoga studios, the YMCA, New Seasons, Wild Oats, and Whole Foods.
• I’ve served as an adjunct Assistant Professor and Instructor at several local colleges, including Oregon State University, a local art school, and Pacific University School of Professional Psychology.

From 2002 – present, I’ve trained with both Buddhist and secular teachers of mindfulness, to include Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn and other UMASS medical School Center for Mindfulness staff, Dr. Jan Chozen Bays, and Dr. Christopher Germer and Dr. Kristin Neff, the developers of the Mindful Self-Compassion program. I remain deeply grateful to the many individuals who contributed to my understanding and practice of mindfulness, and to the various centers that invited me into their sacred spaces to explore these ancient spiritual traditions. My professional inquiry into the field of mindfulness also prompted me to seek out and reclaim my own cultural heritage of Judaism. Moving forward, I’m committed to supporting and celebrating a diverse community of mindfulness teachers, practitioners, and students.

The SAVOR Project was born (or rather, germinated) out of the soil of my work as a mindfulness-based psychotherapist, my long-time passions for growing food and teaching, and my developing interests in therapeutic horticulture. Over the past several years, classes in horticultural therapy and plant science, and experiences as an Oregon State University Extension Master Gardener volunteer further exposed me to ways that horticultural activities contribute to health and well-being.

The mission of The SAVOR Project, quite simply, is to facilitate healing, to center joy, and to strengthen connections in our lifelong relationship with food.

When I’m not working, I enjoy spending time with my biracial, interfaith family and engaging in a ever-widening variety of interests, which include raising chickens, edible landscapes, creative writing, and amateur birdwatching.