Journal of Psychedelic Support

Engagement — the Missing Component in Psychedelic TherapyAt 7:00 am on July 4, 2023, Olympic runner Senbere Teferi started the Peachtree Road 10-kilometer Race.Teferi had prepared for the race. This wasn’t her first. Teferri won the Peachtree Road 10-kilometer Race in 2022. She knew how to train. The road race followed the same route that she conquered the previous year. She was prepared.Teferi has integrated racing. She was (and is) a professional runner: a two-time Olympian, two-time world championship silver medalist, and the 5K world record holder for a women-only race. Racing was integrated.Yet, Teferi lost the 2023 Peachtree 10K. How? Only […]

Preparation is critical for a positive psychedelic experience. Diligence in the 60 days before having a psychedelic experience will help you create a safe, supportive, and meaningful framework for that experience, enhancing its potential for positive transformation and healing.A helpful acronym to help you get ready for a therapeutic psychedelic experience is “PREPARE.”P — Purpose:Clarify your intention for the experience. Define what you hope to achieve, explore, or understand. Clear intentions can guide the experience, helping you focus on specific goals or areas of personal growth. Having a purpose can make the experience more meaningful and beneficial. Part of your preparation should include […]

One of the insights gained from the MDMA / Time Capsule experiment was the discovery that I was missing values or ignoring values. This article takes you through the values shifting that took place in the wake of the MDMA / Time Capsule experiment.Governing ValuesHere’s a sad fact: while most people could tell you the general financial mix of their investment portfolio, while most people could tell you how to connect to the Bluetooth stereo in their car, while most people could tell you how to disable the security system of their home, those same people could not tell you […]

The Flexibility Index Test (FIT-60) is a validated, reliable questionnaire that assesses your psychological flexibility across the six domains of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): — Acceptance — Defusion — Self-as-context — Present Moment — Values — CommitmentIn a 10-minute video, G. Scott Graham and Andrea Brown discuss how to use the Flexibility Index Test to improve the outcomes of psychedelic experiences.Graham then outlines a step-by-step process for triaging the Flexibility Index Test results and finding suggested interventions on the Internet. Graham and Brown wrap up their discussion by exploring why coaching might be an important choice instead of DIY-ing your preparation for a psychedelic experience.Watch […]

It has been three months since I took MDMA and did a deep dive into grief.ThingsIt feels like yesterday that I took the MDMA and opened the time capsules.The things ignited on that day, three months ago, continue to evolve.Things.I know that is vague. Let me clarify.“Things” include the feelings of grief, the concepts of what I do, the premise of who I am, the priorities of how I focus, and the values of why I continue.I often think about the MDMA and if there is any sort of ripple effect on feelings of grief since that day. The truth is that if […]

The Mystical Experience Questionnaire is a validated self-report survey that has been used in research settings to measure mystical-type experiences, including experiences on psychedelics.In a 10-minute video, G. Scott Graham and Andrea Brown discuss ways to use the Mystical Experience Questionnaire outside the laboratory to make psychedelic experiences more “mystical.”Graham suggests using the Mystical Experience Questionnaire to reverse-engineer a mystical psychedelic experience. Together, Graham and Brown exemplify how to do this using two questions from the Mystical Experience Questionnaire.Watch the video:https://medium.com/media/e69a53cb58fcd485b383df04f4b8e4c2/hrefTake the Mystical Experience Questionnaire online here: https://psychedelicsupportcoach.com/mystical-experience-questionnaire-meq-30/Learn more about G. Scott Graham here: https://gscottgraham.comMake your Psychedelic Experience Mystical was originally […]

Sometimes this plant medicine is described as having a ‘trickster’ energy, but what does this really mean? And how can you learn from it?Fox is a classic trickster from Western European folkloreWhenever someone works with psychedelics there is a potential risk involved. We as humans desire things to be as safe as possible, but it’s an upfront and apparent thing we must face when working with certain medicines. Plant medicines bring a whole lineage of ancient wisdom and energy that cannot be put into a box and must be encountered and embraced for what it is. We must learn to come closer […]

Considering the limitations of ketamine for depressionPhoto by Taylor Deas-Melesh on UnsplashClearly, I’m not a medical professional. This isn’t medical advice. I am a writer and lab rat exploring alternative mental health therapies in self-interest and for survival.If you’re like me (roughly 50% of the population who responds positively), you’ll find that ketamine truly is a miracle molecule for the treatment of chronic depression. Especially compared with things like SSRIs, benzos, and therapy alone, it’s remarkable how rapidly the stuff works. When I take it, I notice about a 90% total reduction of symptoms for my bipolar depression and roughly a […]

The dissociative experience of ketamine is often described as a side effect. For me, it’s experiential psychotherapy.This is not medical advice, and I’m not a physician. Do not do what I did, as described below.Ketamine lozenges being prepared at a compounding pharmacy. Image via OsmindAn afternoon in eternityEven as an experienced psychonaut, nothing could have prepared me for the dissociative drug experience.When I took my first few doses of legally prescribed oral ketamine, written off-label via telehealth and shipped discreetly to my doorstoop, I was often alone in my living room. During the early treatments, with my dog tucked under the couch […]

(Part 5 of the story of my psychedelic-enhanced journey to mental health)My ketamine session had been wildly successful at helping me understand the origins of my sense of shame and the underlying trauma. Just a minute or so after the ketamine had started flowing into my bloodstream, I had become cognitively aware of patterns of events that had eluded me during several months of therapy. But nearly a third of the ketamine session had involved another issue entirely, one which was completely unexpected and which I had never addressed in therapy with David.As I explained in the last chapter, remembering an event […]