About me
Dr. Ryan Parsons is in his first year of a T32 postdoctoral scholar-fellowship in the UW Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine/Seattle Children’s Research Institute under the mentorship of Dr. Tonya Palermo. He completed his undergraduate degrees (BMus, BA Psych Hons) in South Africa at Nelson Mandela University and the University of South Africa. He subsequently completed his MSc degree in Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience at Goldsmiths, University of London and his PhD at the University of Bath in the United Kingdom. Previous work has focused on exploring flourishing in adolescents living with chronic pain, investigating potential positive aspects as a result of, or despite, living with chronic pain. Dr. Parsons most recently completed a two-year postdoctoral researcher position at the University of Oxford (2023-2025) where he primarily worked on the Oxford BrainWaves study – a program of research to improve school-based mental health and well-being in adolescent populations. His current work focuses on applying a positive psychology approach to pediatric pain to promote resilience and wellbeing in adolescents. Current projects involve investigating the influence of various resilience resources and mechanisms on adolescent pain outcomes, including postsurgically and longitudinally.Â