The Emerging World of Psychedelic Therapies

Psychedelic Therapy has received unprecedented attention in the past few years. This Google Trends search shows us how frequently the keywords “Psychedelic Therapy” have been used from 2004 until now:

‘Psychedelic Therapy’ search trend 2004-now

To the untrained reader, this may drum up visions of psychedelic hippies, CIA agents jumping out of windows, or raves. Psychedelic Therapy actually looks quite different than this, though!

Instead of looking like this:

Image Credit: DALL-E

It looks kind of more like this:

Image Credit: Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies

What Exactly is ‘Psychedelic Therapy’?

Well, according to Wikipedia: 

Psychedelic therapy (or psychedelic-assisted therapy) refers to the proposed use of psychedelic drugs, such as psilocybin, MDMA,[note 1] LSD, and ayahuasca, to treat mental disorders.[2][3] 

I myself have worked in the field of psychedelic therapies for several years. In fact, those two kindly-looking therapists in the image above were my bosses briefly.

Essentially, psychedelics are a class of mind-altering substances. So-called ‘classic’ psychedelics are thought to work on the serotonin system primarily. These commonly include psilocybin mushrooms (‘magic mushrooms’), Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD or ‘Acid’), and Dimethytryptamine (DMT, the psychoactive ingredient of Ayahuasca).

These substances are distinct from other classes of substances, such as stimulants (cocaine, methamphetamine, etc.). They are not commonly thought to be addictive - actually, they can help treat addiction if used correctly. I wrote an article once about how they can be used addictively, so it’s important to exercise caution.

So, that’s a very brief introduction to what psychedelics are, but what does it mean to add ‘therapy’ to that?

As the name implies, psychedelic therapy refers to the therapeutic usage of psychedelics. Specifically, psychedelics are used as therapeutic aids to improve mental health dysfunction. 

How Does Psychedelic Therapy Work?

Psychedelic Therapy involves several elements. Different teams employ different models, as there is no major consensus on the optimal way to deliver this treatment. However, we do observe some consistent trends.

Oftentimes, you will see people using eye shades and headphones. The purpose of this is to encourage people to turn their attention inward. Music is carefully selected for the journey to guide the client through their journey. 

Additionally, there is usually a comfortable environment created for the client. You may see crystals, plants, tapestries, and more in the therapy room. Usually, clients lay down on a mat, bed, or couch with some sheets, blankets, and pillows.

Credit: Johns Hopkins University

This image represents a typical therapy room and client experience during the session. 

The Journey

So, those are some of the basic logistics, but what is actually like to go through a session of psychedelic therapy? Typically, a psychedelic therapist will prepare the client for their session ahead of time. This varies, but it’s considered best practice to get to know the client (building rapport) before going into a psychedelic journey. This is because the psychedelic experience can be a vulnerable space, and the client needs to feel like they can properly trust their therapist to take care of them in that state.

A common practice is for the therapist to discuss an ‘intention’ with the client. This can vary, but often you may see intentions like:

• I want to stop smoking cigarettes

• I want to get in touch with my inner child

• I want to have a better relationship with my inner critic

Sometimes people may have an intention to explore their mind, too, but you wouldn’t see this as much in the ‘therapy’ environment.

Once a client feels prepared, the therapist and client make time for the full journey. This can change a lot depending on the substance being used and other factors. As an example, a psilocybin journey can last around 6-8 hours. 

It’s really difficult to describe the individual experience of being on a psychedelic. I say that as someone who is pretty good at describing things, and also someone who has taken a whole lot of psychedelics. I suppose it’s kind of like trying to describe what it’s like to be someone else. You can probably get a general idea of someone else’s experience, but you’re not going to know what it’s like to really be them. The same is true with psychedelics - because it’s a deeply personal experience!

We do see some pretty impressive results, though. While we can’t exactly understand what a person experiences, it is possible to scan their brains (before, after, and even during). Additionally, researchers can carefully control for other variables and observe changes before-and-after a session. Probably the most popular experiment of psychedelic therapy came from a team at Johns Hopkins University, led by Dr. Roland Griffiths. 

Several participants in the study reported having extremely meaningful and spiritually significant experiences, even more significant than having a child or losing a loved one. Other studies have shown deep and lasting changes in participant mental health symptoms.

All-in-all, researchers are still trying to understand the great mystery of what really goes on during the psychedelic experience, but it has been very interesting to note the results that we have seen.

After the Journey

A common post-psychedelic practice is to do ‘integration’. Integration refers to taking the insights from a psychedelic experience and applying them to one’s life. A simplistic way to look at this is that the psychedelic can ‘show’ you, but it can’t do the work for you. That is to say that the experience can really only cause a shift in perception, but it is up to take the action needed to implement change into your life.

For example, if you are overweight and your journey shows you that you have been destroying your health, you may feel called to lose weight. The psychedelic is not going to make you lose weight, but it could be really helpful to have the clarity of mind to lose weight. You are going to have to figure out what the proven strategies to losing weight are, and implement them. Maybe you need a calorie counter, a personal trainer, and you have to start doing extra work to do all of this. You have to sign up at a gym, meet a personal trainer, figure out your dieting strategy, buy the right foods, etc. 

Your therapist will help you continue to integrate your experiences and implement those lasting changes!

Conclusions

In many states, psychedelic therapy is illegal, as psychedelics remain illegal. Many psychedelics were put on the list of controlled substances with the “Controlled Substances Act of 1970”. The banning of psychedelics was largely based on politics and misinformation, rather than a thorough understanding of research surrounding psychedelics. Still, it’s important to note that there are likely still many risks associated with psychedelic use that we don’t understand. Steps are being taken to understand the specific benefits and risks of psychedelic use, as well as the specific conditions under which we observe positive effects.

Some states are making legal changes to allow psychedelics to be taken without breaking state laws. Until federal changes are made (due to lengthy and expensive research and policy changes), psychedelics will remain illegal under federal law. It is unlikely that the federal government would expend resources to come after people using psychedelics as therapeutic agents. Thus, it is becoming increasingly possible to use psychedelics therapeutically without incurring legal risks.

Oregon was the first state to make psychedelics legal for therapeutic use, and they are still implementing their changes. Here in Colorado, we are following the lead with the Natural Medicines Health Act. Other states are following suit, trying to garner interest and implement policy changes.

If you are located in Colorado, it’s possible to legally do psychedelic therapy now. The caveat is that you cannot set yourself up as a psychedelic therapist without first becoming a licensed facilitator and having a healing center license. That will be available in the coming year-or-so. 

For now, if you are seeking legal psychedelic services, we have several practitioners in our community that offer these services. 

Ketamine-assisted therapy is one popular option to access altered states of consciousness. It is lower on the list of Controlled Substances, meaning that it can be taken legally with a therapist as long as you have a prescription. We have prescribers in our community that do this, and we have several licensed and trained ketamine-assisted therapists. 

We also have practitioners in our community that offer legal psilocybin-assisted therapy if you are looking to take a deeper journey. We have practitioners who are trained in MDMA-assisted therapy as well, which will be legal in the coming years.

If you have had a psychedelic journey that wasn’t in a therapeutic context, and you need some support integrating your experience, we also have practitioners that can assist you with integration. 

Please visit our website to learn more about us, find a practitioner, or get connected to treatment services.