Join us in this course to explore how to make psychedelic therapy safely and equitably accessible to clients from underserved communities, particularly those affected by the war on drugs.

In the age of psychedelic water, Facebook mushroom ads, and ketamine yoga, it’s hard to know what’s what. While “accessibility” should be a means towards equity, the intersection of capitalism and psychedelics has led to an interest in profit over ethical client care. “Accessible” psychedelic treatments are more readily available, but at what psychological cost?

Psychedelic medicines can be powerful tools that amplify the subconscious, lower defenses, and help people connect with more vulnerable parts of themselves. As such, this modality must be approached with care, especially when working to make these treatments more accessible to people who use drugs and other systematically-oppressed populations.

As co-founders of two nonprofit psychedelic therapy clinics, we will frame the course from our experiences of building sliding-scale clinics that work with clients who are often left out of the conversations within the psychedelic therapy space.

We review the impacts of the war on drugs on populations we work with, the current cultural context of psychedelic therapy, how we weave harm reduction approaches into our practice, and the risks of psychedelics (within and outside of therapy). We provide a culturally-sensitive tool for how to “assess clients in” for services.


Who is this course for?

Whether you're an aspiring psychedelic therapist, a psychedelic guide, or a client considering seeking psychedelic therapy treatment, we hope this course supports you in weighing out the risks and benefits of these medicines.

Harm Reduction Framework

• War on Drugs
• Who’s Currently Served by Psychedelic Therapy
• Overview of Theory of Harm Reduction Therapy
• Stigma & Psychedelic Exceptionalism

Risks & Benefits

• Psychedelics & Capitalism
• Risks of Psychedelic Use
• Risks of Psychedelic Therapy
• Benefits of Psychedelic Therapy
• When's it Worth the Risks?

Assessing In vs. Screening Out

• How to Collaboratively Work With Clients to Build Safety for Psychedelic Therapy

Learning Objectives

After this course, you will be able to:

1. Describe “defiant hospitality” within the context of harm reduction.
2. Identify ways the War on Drugs has led to potential unconscious bias when working with underserved and systemically oppressed populations.
3. Identify ways that harm reduction approaches can be useful in psychedelic-assisted therapy.
4. List the risks and benefits of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
5. Discuss the efficacy of psychedelic-assisted therapy research in meeting the needs of underserved populations.
6. Assess clients’ preparedness for participating in psychedelic-assisted therapy.