ID: HR19-1058

Presenting author: Sara Gael

Presenting author biography:

Sara Gael is the Director of Harm Reduction at the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, where she organizes MAPS' Peer Support initiative, the Zendo Project. Sara is a transpersonal psychotherapist working as a sub-investigator on the MAPS MDMA-assisted psychotherapy trials for PTSD in Boulder, CO.

Integration as Psychedelic Harm Reduction

Sara Gael

Thousands of people use psychedelics every year, many for the first time. These experiences can often be life-changing. Whether this change is positive and transformational or traumatic with lasting negative impact is influenced by a variety of factors - two important ones being how an individual integrates their experience and how they are supported in that integration. Skilled integration support services are necessary at a time where an increased number of individuals are choosing to take psychedelic substances.

The development of integration resources, including integration counseling and integration support groups and organizations, reflect an increased need for post-experience support for those who use psychedelics. Whether an individual ingests a substance in a recreational, ceremonial, or therapeutic environment, integration work supports mental and emotional health as well as mitigates the effects of potential adverse reactions to psychedelics. In this way, integration is a form of harm reduction which increases the potential for positive outcomes and decreases potential harm.

While integration resources are becoming more common in some places, there is still a large gap in services between the number of individuals who need these services and what services are currently available.

What are some of the negative psychological and emotional risks of psychedelics, and how can these risks be mitigated? What types of integration services are currently available? What standards should be in place for integration service providers? How does integration fit into the overall psychedelic harm reduction framework?