MEET THE GYRL LAB
ELLEN GARRISON
Lab Manager
Ellen is from the Chicago suburbs and received her BS in Biology from the University of Michigan. She worked for a few years as a pharmaceutical rep and decided to go back to school to pursue her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Rush. After 10 years as a Labor and Delivery nurse and Assistant Unit Director of a post-partum unit, she changed course and discovered her passion for research.
Ellen enjoys working in this field because it is so understudied. For too long people with menstrual pain have been with limited options for therapies and treatments. The research we are doing is taking steps forward in understanding the basic mechanisms behind the pain and she enjoys figuring out the “why”.
SARAH DARNELL
Research Coordinator
Sarah is originally from St. Louis, MO and graduated from Loyola University Chicago in 2020 with a BS in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience & Psychology. Sarah has a strong research background in sensory modalities and is interested in how menstrual pain may influence these mechanisms. Sarah is also passionate about advocating for independent access to health care for those who menstruate, and pain management related to chronic conditions.
DINA VAVARUTSOS
Research Coordinator
Dina graduated from Loyola University Chicago in 2020 with a BS in Environmental Science and a minor in English, and subsequently earned her MPH in 2021 from the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health. In graduate school, Dina largely focused her research on reproductive and mental health, with an emphasis on the effects of hormonal contraception and the barriers surrounding access to mental health care. Dina has been able to continue pursuing her passion surrounding these subjects and many more with the Gynecology Research Lab, and hopes to only continue underlining the importance of providing accessible and equitable reproductive health care in her future work.
EMILY BURDA
Research Assistant
Emily is from the Chicago suburbs and graduated from Loyola University Chicago in 2023 with a B.S. in Psychology and a B.S. in Software Engineering. She loves deriving insights from data and studying the mechanisms behind menstrual pain.
NATALIE OSBORNE
Postdoctoral Researcher
Natalie is originally from Canada, where she completed her PhD in pain neuroimaging at the University of Toronto. Her PhD explored how the brain is altered by chronic pain and its treatment, and whether these changes are influenced by sex and gender. She was thrilled to join the lab in 2023 to investigate historically understudied pain conditions in women and people who menstruate, such as dysmenorrhea and endometriosis. You can read more about her research and science communication work at www.natalieraeosborne.com
ALUMNI
MATTHEW KMEICIK, PHD
2020-2022
23andMe
GENEVIEVE ROTH
2017-
PhD candidate, Loyola University Chicago
KAT DILLANE
2014-2016; 2019-2022
Senior Research Specialist, UIC
SIOBHAN IHENACHO
2021
Masters Student, UIC
MARGARET SCHROER
2019-2021
Nursing Student, Rush University
GABRIELA ASHENAFI
2019-2021
Medical Student, University of Michigan
CODY SAIN
2019-
MD candidate, Pritzker School of Medicine
FOLABOMI OLADOSU, PHD
2016-2019
Medical Writer HealthVizion
NICOLE STEINER
2015-2019
Senior Research Coordinator SCL Health
OMAR NELSON, PHD
2018-
Research Assistant Professor, University of Chicago
RICHARD COCKRUM, MD
2018-
Fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery and Gynecology, NorthShore
REBECCA ZUCKERMAN, MD
2014-2018
Ob/Gyn Resident, University of Vermont
AVISEK DATTA
2017-
PhD candidate, University of Illinois
JULIA KANE MORLOCK
2013-2016
Educational Psychologist
CAROLYN KUHN, MD
2015-
Ob/Gyn Resident, University of Chicago
INSIYYAH PATANWALA, MD
2013-2015
Assistant Professor, Indiana University
KELLY POLNAZSEK, PHD
2015-
PhD candidate Loyola University Chicago, Dept. of Psychology
NITA PADAVIL, MD
2013-2015
Psychiatry Resident Northwestern Memorial
ADAM GAFNI-KANE, MD
2012-2014
Clinical Assistant Professor, University of Chicago
NATHAN SHLOBIN
2014-
MD candidate, Northwestern University
SAANIYA FARHAN
2014
MD candidate, Thomas Jefferson University
ALICE HAN, MD
2012-2013
MD Candidate, University of Illinois
CHRISTINE KANG
2013
MD candidate, University of Illinois Chicago
ALLYSON WESTLING, MD
2011-2012
Resident Physician, University of Colorado
PETER YU, MD
2010-2012
Resident Physician, Ohio State University
JAKE CARROW, PHD
2010-2011
Postdoctoral Researcher at Northwestern University