The Beginning of the Beginning: What Might be Promising about Psychedelic Assisted Therapy

Psychedelic Assisted Therapy. Perhaps reading that phrase brings about word associations like “mushrooms” “LSD” “Molly” “Mescaline” “altered state”, “euphoria” and even “the 60’s”. Or perhaps just seeing those words makes you curious enough to take a listen to this awesome podcast with Dr. Brian Pilecki, a clinician and researcher in the emerging field of integrating psychedelics into the treatment of behavioral health disorders. Listen in and learn as Dr. Pilecki explains some of the ins and outs of psychedelic assisted therapy to include what it is, who might benefit, types of psychedelics that have been most studied, where the research stands, as well as how to get more information about being trained to provide this type of treatment. You won’t be sorry. Dr. Brian Pilecki is a clinical psychologist at the Portland Psychotherapy Clinic specializing in treating anxiety disorders, trauma, and PTSD, and matters related to the use of psychedelics. He completed his doctorate at Fordham University in Bronx, NY, and completed his pre-doctoral internship at the Weill-Cornell Medical center at New York Presbyterian Hospital. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and practices from an orientation based in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Dr. Pilecki also received a master’s degree from the California Institute of Integral Studies in East-West Psychology where he studied psychedelic medicine, non-Western ways of knowing, and contemplative traditions such as Buddhism. He is an active researcher and has published on topics such as anxiety disorders, mindfulness, psychedelics, and the relationship between theory and practice in psychotherapy. At Portland Psychotherapy, Dr. Pilecki is involved in research on the positive benefits of psychedelics and provides clinical services in the preparation for or integration of psychedelic experiences.Resources mentioned in this episode:
• Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies maps.org/ Calls-to-action: Subscribe to the Practical for Your Practice PodcastSubscribe to The Center for Deployment Psychology Monthly Email