Services
Psychedelic Preparation and Integration
Preparing for a psychedelic experience ranges from planning for needs during and immediately after a journey to exploring reasons for embarking on psychedelic healing. Working with a qualified therapist can help you create the mindset and setting for a safe and therapeutic experience.
Integration of psychedelic experiences is the process of making meaning and incorporating new understandings of self and the world into a person’s life. Integration is ongoing work that takes time and support and can be practiced through a variety of approaches such as music, movement, art, time in nature, and therapeutic techniques.
Psychedelic integration is often a time-limited therapy, with work starting before a psychedelic experience and continuing weeks or months after the experience(s). We use an eclectic approach, informed by therapies focused on examining thoughts and beliefs (CBT), values-focused approach (ACT), healthy interaction of all the parts of oneself (IFS), somatic or body-based awareness, mindfulness-based approaches, trauma-informed therapy, and grief therapy.
Integration therapy can help people prepare for a safe and supported psychedelic journey, increase understanding of experiences while in non-ordinary states of consciousness, support changes in relationships, process unresolved trauma, grief, or loss, and develop regular practices supporting insight and new feelings of connection psychedelics can bring.
What we can (and can’t) do together
Integration therapy at IWC is currently being conducted by video session. While we do not endorse the use of psychedelic medicines that are not legal, we understand people may choose these experiences in an extra-legal setting and, using a harm reduction approach, we will help individuals prepare for and integrate after a psychedelic experience.
Integration is most effective with one or more preparation sessions before a journey, a session soon after a journey, and continuing sessions for several weeks or months post-experience, depending on individual goals and needs. Some people may seek out integration therapy after already having a psychedelic experience, and we are happy to offer integration support even if we did not complete preparation work together.
Liz Diesel, LCSW and Integrate Wellness Counseling, LLC cannot provide access to controlled substances or offer resources for obtaining these medicines. We are unable to be present (act a sitter/guide) while clients are under the influence of any medicine not prescribed and monitored by a licensed medical provider. We are unable to provide medical advice or services.
For those receiving ketamine treatments at a clinic in the Albuquerque area, we are happy to offer therapeutic support during your treatment with prior approval from the prescribing provider. Having a therapeutic provider present during ketamine treatments can be a powerful source of support during the experience and can be valuable to your integration process. For liability reasons, we are not able to transport you to or from your ketamine treatments; you are responsible for arranging transportation according to the prescriber’s guidelines.