About the Bridge Back Project

Dr. Christy co-founded The Bridge Back Project in October of 2017. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors, she also leads Bridge Back Project's research program as Principal Investigator. She is passionate about providing a research-based treatment to help ease suffering for those who have suffered from post traumatic stress injuries.

Dr. Christy is trained in the highly specialized technique of Fascial Counterstrain by Tim Hodges, LMP, JSCCI, CACI and Brian Tuckey, PT, OCS, JSCCI, both of whom have been pioneering an effort to expand the methodology of Counterstrain to effectively restore function to the fascial systems of the body: Visceral, Neural, Cranial/Dural, Musculoskeletal, Arterial, Venous and Lymphatic. She is an instructor for the Counterstrain Academy and the Jones Institute, and a graduate and clinical adjunct faculty member of Bastyr University.

Jay Fluegel joined the board in October 2023 after serving as a volunteer for over 9 months. Jay is a maker, strategist, and storyteller with 25 years of product leadership experience. He is the founder of Atomically, a transformation consulting company helping start-ups, scale-ups, nonprofits, and established enterprises transform their businesses, products, technology, and leadership.

He studied Entrepreneurship at Cornell University and in the Technology MBA program at University of Washington’s Foster School of Business. He has been on the management teams of startups including Jump Networks which was acquired by Microsoft, and built or turned around teams at Microsoft, Expedia, and Axon/TASER. Business strategy, product vision and demonstration, and idea incubation are his superpowers. People are his love.

Dr. Kristin Barnes is a licensed Naturopathic Physician, licensed Acupuncture and Eastern Medicine Practitioner. She brings together a wealth of life experiences gained from 23 years of active duty in the US Navy with a passion for pursuing vitality and wellness. Kristin has a special interest in working with military veterans and any patient who wants to address chronic stress, optimize mental health and integrate trauma. She blends Traditional Chinese Medicine, botanical medicine, nutrition, physical movement, and Counterstrain® to address both emotional and physical pain. Kristin also has completed a certificate in Psychedelic Assisted Therapy. She focuses on patient education as well as journey preparation and integration counseling to facilitate the responsible, safe, sustainable and conscientious use of these traditional world medicines.

Kristin received her BS in Chemistry from the United States Naval Academy in 1992 and is a graduate of the Naval War College. She served as an F14 Naval Flight Officer with seven global deployments. She holds a master’s in nutrition, Masters of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine as well as a Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine. She has been practicing medicine since 2021 and completed her two-year residency in 2023. Kristin continues both in private practice in Port Townsend, WA and as an associate physician at a clinic in Poulsbo, WA near Bremerton.

With a background in entrepreneurship, organizational development, and extensive training in relational intelligence and coaching, Theora is proud to serve as the Bridge Back Project’s Executive Director.

She was a student-athlete and world adventurer who sustained both head and back injuries defending goals and chasing new destinations. She found Counterstrain after 14 years of chronic pain and reduced mobility that were negatively impacting her quality of life. Counterstain treatmentss effectively treated her symptoms, which other healthcare providers had concluded were untreatable. She now lives mostly free of both symptoms and pain, and is a “converted skeptic” passionately advocating on behalf of making Countertrain accessible to as many people in need as possible.

Brian Tuckey, the originator of “Fascial Counterstrain,” graduated magna cum laude from the University of Maryland, School of Physical Therapy in 1990. He has 30+ years of outpatient orthopedic experience and has been certified as an orthopedic specialist (OCS) by the American Board of Physical Therapy Examiners since 1995.

After several years of sports medicine practice, Mr. Tuckey took a strong interest in manual medicine and began training intensively in various osteopathic manipulation techniques. In 1992 he began training under Dr. Lawrence Jones D.O., the originator of Strain and Counterstrain technique, and eventually became one of only 4 physical therapists in the United States to be personally certified to teach “Strain and Counterstrain” or “Classic Counterstrain technique” by Dr. Jones.

In the late 1990’s Mr. Tuckey made the connection between Jones neuromuscular tender points and the human fascial system. This discovery led him to develop over 1000 new Counterstrain (CS) treatments that impact virtually every anatomical structure in the human body. Mr. Tuckey named this new, multi-system version of Counterstrain, “Fascial Counterstrain (FCS).” Most practitioners trained in FCS believe that the scope, specificity, and clinical impact of this newly developed technique is unmatched in the manipulation world.

In addition to practicing full time as the owner of Tuckey and Associates Physical Therapy he teaches FCS classes to an expanding audience of medical practitioners in the United States, Europe, Asia and Australia.

MS I/O Psychology; Director of Recovery at Alltru

Alex Robinson is an Army Special Operations Forces (SOF) combat Veteran with a decade of active-duty experience in the Special Operations community. During her service, she led the unit’s Cultural Support Team program, undertaking multiple combat cycles with the 75th Ranger Regiment and other Tier 1 organizations. Her pivotal role in the selection of women for Special Operations and her contributions to policy changes for the integration of women into male-centric teams helped open doors for full integration.

After her military service, Alex pursued education at the University of Southern California (USC), achieving a Master's degree in Organizational Psychology. Her focus on gender equity initiatives and LGBTQ advocacy showcased her commitment to fostering inclusivity. In 2021, facing numerous mental and physical challenges, Alex sought unconventional treatments beyond the VA system. Discovering solace and recovery through plant-based medicines, breathwork, writing, yoga, and meditation, she emerged on a new path of supporting herself and others on their healing journey.

Alex is a leadership and human performance coach, and serves as an Oregon psilocybin facilitator, supporting Innertrek and the Heroic Hearts Project on domestic and international veteran healing retreats. Her mission revolves around empowering and supporting the success and healing of the next generation of leaders, fostering a legacy of resilience and growth.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Consultant and Trainer; Seventh Generation

Carolyn Hartness, Eastern Band Cherokee/Norwegian, is a consultant committed to a life of service assisting individuals, families, communities and organizations and Tribes to create holistic, collaborative, evidence and spiritually based wellness for themselves, and future generations.

For over 34 years, Carolyn has served Indigenous and non-indigenous communities, in the United States, Canada, Norway, Australia and New Zealand, offering consultation to agencies, schools, families and individuals around cultural diversity and wellness, and prevention/intervention strategies relating to fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (F.A.S.D.), wellness and recovery.

Carolyn works on projects with counties, Tribes, state projects and organization, designing programs, curricula, intervention strategies, and assessment tools. She facilitates many gatherings and circles, to bring healing to individuals, including veterans, incarcerated individuals, families, Tribal people, communities and providers through honest, open and transformative sharing.

Vi is a process improvement specialist and certified ScrumMaster with a background in traditional, hybrid, professional, academic, and SEO publishing. They help nonprofits and startups scale sustainably, operate efficiently, and elevate their offerings during growth phases and restructures.

For the last decade, Vi has worked in marketing and hybrid publishing as Head of Content at SEO marketing startup First Page Sage, and then as Content Division Operations Manager for Scribe Media, a hybrid book publisher. Most recently, they work as a Publishing Editor for Sage, one of the “Big Five” global academic publishers.

Vi has been active in the nonprofit sphere alongside their corporate career. In 2019, they were a primary show host and community spokesperson for the Atheist Community of Austin, sitting on the events committee and fostering brand awareness and donor commitments as a conference speaker. They then co-founded Skeptic Generation, a donation-based startup that built a community of 15K weekly participants and raised over $50K in individual support in the first year of operation.

Since returning to Portland in 2023, Vi has been putting their community first by founding Media Alchemy Guild, a collective of content creation experts who provide ghostwriting, editing, marketing, and production services to self-publishing authors and hybrid publishing startups. They also volunteer as Media Manager for Portland Radio Project, a non-profit station dedicated to partnering with small businesses and fostering the careers of diverse local artists.