We're thrilled to offer our second annual day-long public workshop on psychedelic integration and harm reduction. Presenters will include the co-directors of the Psychedelic Education & Continuing Care Program, Katherine MacLean, PhD and Ingmar Gorman, PhD, as well as special guest, clinical psychologist and psychedelic researcher Alicia Danforth, PhD. Please see the bios below for more information.

Regular tickets are $125. Students and others facing financial hardship can email info@psychedelicprogram.com to request the code for a $50 ticket.

This workshop will cover the basics of psychedelic harm reduction, how to differentiate between a psychedelic experience and a potential mental health crisis, and how to provide compassionate, non-intrusive support during the experience and helping the individual make contact with a trusted mental health professional or medical service, if needed. We will also discuss the process of integration, or how the insights and challenges of a psychedelic experience can be incorporated into daily life in a way that benefits the individual and their community.

Dr. Danforth will also provide a side-by-side comparison of media headlines vs. actual findings from clinical research into psychedelics for mental health conditions, and will provide practical guidelines for how you can stay informed while remaining appropriately skeptical of headlines that sound too good to be true.

BIOS

Alicia Danforth, PhD, is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Los Gatos, California. Since 2006, she has worked in clinical research at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center on clinical studies with psilocybin for adults with anxiety related to advanced-stage cancer and with MDMA-assisted therapy for autistic adults who experience social anxiety. She is currently a lead clinician and supervisor for a new clinical trial at UCSF of psilocybin-assisted therapy for psychological distress in long-term survivors of HIV/AIDS. She earned her doctorate degree at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, where she co-developed and taught the first graduate-level course on psychedelic theory, research, and clinical considerations for therapists and researchers in training. More: https://www.aliciadanforth.com/

Katherine MacLean, PhD is a research psychologist with expertise in studying the effects of mindfulness meditation and psychedelics on cognitive performance, emotional well-being, spirituality, and brain function. As a postdoctoral research fellow and faculty member at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, she conducted clinical trials of psilocybin, the primary chemical found in "magic mushrooms”, and other psychedelic compounds. Her groundbreaking research on psilocybin and personality change suggests that psychedelic medicines can enhance openness to new experiences and promote mental health and emotional well-being throughout the lifespan. Dr. MacLean is the co-founder and current director of the Psychedelic Education and Continuing Care Program in New York, where she leads training workshops, educational seminars, and monthly integration groups focused on increasing awareness and reducing risks of psychedelic use. She is also a Zendo Project volunteer (psychedelic harm reduction at festivals) and a co-investigator and study therapist in the MAPS-sponsored Phase 3 clinical trial of MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD.

Ingmar Gorman, PhD is a clinical psychologist who specializes in assisting populations who have had experiences with psychedelics and other psychoactive compounds. He is the Administrative Director of the Psychedelic Education and Continuing Care Program at the Center for Optimal Living, where he leads groups, trainings, and works with individual clients. Additionally, Dr. Gorman has extensive training in treating substance misuse, drawing upon mentorship by Dr. Andrew Tatarsky and Dr. Jen Talley, in Harm Reduction Psychotherapy and Mindfulness based approaches. Dr. Gorman received his PhD in clinical psychology from the New School for Social Research. He completed his internship at Bellevue Hospital Center and is currently an NIH funded postdoctoral fellow at New York University's Behavioral Sciences Training in Drug Abuse Research Program, which is NIDA’s largest and longest-standing training program. Dr. Gorman is also site Co-principal Investigator and therapist on a Phase 3 clinical trial studying the potential psychotherapeutic utility of MDMA for post-traumatic stress disorder.