According to the National Institute for Mental Health (NIMH), more than 16 million people suffered from major depressive disorder (MDD) in 2016. Also from NIMH, more than 1.3 million of those people attempted suicide in 2016. The last great revolution in the treatment of clinical depression was in the 1980's with the advent of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). These drugs proved to be effective with a large portion of the population.
Psychedelic Therapy & Counseling
The 1990's gave us mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT), which became (and still remains) the gold standard in treating major depression and related disorders. But MBCT and SSRI's are all we've had to offer depression patients for the last twenty years, and unfortunately there are still millions of people who do not respond well to these standard interventions. These people have "treatment resistant" major depression, either from MDD or as a function of existing psychological trauma (PTSD).
With the advent of mild general anesthetics, however, we have a powerful new tool that is changing the way clinical psychologists treat major depression and trauma. The Awakened Mind Institute (AMI) is among the few clinics in the country that specializes in psychedelic assisted psychotherapy.
Psychedelic Assisted Psychotherapy
Clarity counseling is intensive and administered in 3-5 hour blocks. We call these 3-5 hour treatment blocks a "session." Often only one session is needed, but just as often, one or two additional sessions will need to scheduled to achieve the patient's goals. Every session includes the patient, of course, and your counselor. Also present will be a medical professional who will be continuously "micro-dosing" the patient with a mild general anesthetic. As the medication reaches clinical levels of effectiveness, you will then begin cognitive therapy.
Getting psychedelic assisted psychotherapy is a process. One of our therapists will evaluate your case in an initial consultation, and if this type of assisted therapy is indicated, an intake will be scheduled. After histories have been gathered, diagnostics established, and goals and objectives for the first session have been determined, then the session itself is scheduled in conjunction with a trusted, local hallucinogenic clinic.
For some patients, psychedelic assisted psychotherapy can accomplish in a few hours what months or even years of classic talk therapy and the standard medication cocktails never could. This is especially true for treatment resistant patients with trauma and dysregulated moods.
From Doctor Parker Wilson: "Working with Loss - The Wisdom of a Broken Heart".