Kelley O'Donnell, MD, PhD
Psychiatrist
New York City NY
As a holistic psychiatrist, I support my patients in their efforts to construct a life that feels authentic and vibrant. All aspects of my background, from my roots in the humanities to my expertise in psychotherapy, psychopharmacology, and neuroscience, are brought to bear in this alliance. As an integrative psychotherapist, my work draws on psychodynamic psychotherapy, analytical and archetypal psychology (e.g., Carl Jung, James Hillman, Marion Woodman), internal family systems therapy, transpersonal psychology, and various Eastern and Western contemplative traditions.
In my general psychiatry practice, I treat patients with mood and anxiety disorders, addiction, and existential distress. I also work with individuals who may not have a major mental illness but who feel a sense of dissatisfaction, irritability, or ennui as they discover that their lives and accomplishments do not fully align with their core values. In my psychedelic program, I offer ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, psychedelic consultations (for individuals who are considering ketamine or other psychedelic use and would like to discuss the potential risks and benefits), and preparatory and integrative sessions for individuals and groups who have had psychedelic experiences within or outside a formal therapeutic context. Drawing from many hundreds of hours providing psychedelic therapy in the research setting, in my private practice I help individuals make meaning from their prior experiences, navigate their healing journey as it continues to unfold, and harness moments of insight in the service of lasting change.
Dr. Kelley O’Donnell is a holistic psychiatrist and a psychedelic researcher in New York City, and the founder of Mandorla Wellness. She is a board-certified psychiatrist on the faculty at New York University School of Medicine, where she is a clinical researcher and psychedelic therapist in the NYU Experimental Therapeutics Research Group, and an attending psychiatrist at Bellevue Hospital. She is a study physician and therapist on clinical trials of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (including psilocybin and MDMA) and cannabidiol for a variety of therapeutic applications. Her private practice (www.mandorlawellness.com) is based out of Mindstream NYC, in Midtown Manhattan.
As an undergraduate, Dr. O’Donnell studied liberal arts in the Great Books program at St. John’s College, and later earned her MD and PhD (Neuroscience) degrees in the Medical Scientist Training Program at UCLA. She completed her residency in Adult Psychiatry at the NYU School of Medicine. In addition to conventional psychiatry training, she has a Certificate in Psychoanalysis from Columbia University (2019), and she was a Psychoanalytic Fellow at the Psychoanalytic Association of New York (2016-2017). She has completed the MAPS training in MDMA-assisted psychotherapy, and NYU and Usona training in psilocybin-assisted therapy. She was certified in ketamine-assisted psychotherapy through the Ketamine Training Center. She has co-authored 15 peer-reviewed journal articles and one book chapter, and has received a number of awards for both research and clinical excellence.