How to Become a Psychedelic Therapist: The Scoop on Psychedelic Training Programs

As psychedelic medicines like MDMA and psilocybin advance in the FDA’s process to become approved medications, simultaneously more off-label ketamine clinics are starting, and an increasing number of practitioners are holding space in underground settings, the coming need for psychedelic training seems inevitable. The demand for many trained therapists and guides is already high and is on an upward trajectory. 

Meanwhile, in the public discourse, books like Michael Pollan’s 2018 How to Change Your Mind caused mainstream interest to explode. Reading it inspired many people to look for information about psychedelic therapy and opportunities to become guides or therapists.

Providers are seeking training to become more informed about psychedelic experiences. They also want to know how to become certified to administer psychedelics in clinical trials and potentially become a licensed psychedelic therapist.

Still, many unknowns remain. Are there psychedelic training programs outside of the programs offered by the drug sponsors? Will they need FDA compliance to dispense MDMA or psilocybin post-approval? The FDA has never regulated psychotherapy, yet medical devices often require certified training. Regulatory agency compliance requires a demonstration of competency and maintenance of acquired skills. Take, for instance, transcranial magnetic stimulation, which is a device with specific training requirements. The FDA has not yet determined how it will regulate training programs for psychedelic-assisted therapies, but it is widely accepted that training is necessary for safety and positive treatment outcomes.

What are the Options for Training in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy?

Despite many unknowns as to when MDMA and psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy will be available for the general public (by prescription), many psychedelic training programs already exist. The programs have different formats and focus, and prepare trainees in various modalities and orientations, including medical, talk therapy, and spiritual. Given the range of options, it is important to consider what you hope to do with your education after completing a program and how it will play out in your career path.

We’ve evaluated several training programs and chosen the top-tier offerings to share on Psychedelic Support. Read on to learn more about the training programs best suited to prepare you to be a psychedelic therapist or facilitator.

IPI Psychedelic Therapy Training Program

The Integrative Psychiatry Institute now offers an online Psychedelic Therapy Certificate Training program designed specifically for the busy practitioner. Over 30 faculty members teach the 256-hour program over 12 months. Among these are many leading researchers and clinicians in the field, including Michael Pollan, Gabor Mate, Robin Cahart-Harris, Annie, and Michael Mithoefer. The program educates providers on therapeutic applications of ketamine, MDMA, and psilocybin and includes 80 hours of CE credits. It combines online self-paced modules, online lectures, virtual intensives, small group sessions, and an optional in-person ketamine or psilocybin experiential retreat. To enroll, you must have an advanced degree in either medicine or mental health. The training costs $7,000-$10,000, and trainees receive a certificate upon completing the program. The program meets the criteria for training facilitators to work in Oregon Psilocybin Services, although you must also be an Oregon resident to qualify.

Vital Training Program

Psychedelic education and digital media platform Psychedelics Today offers a training program called Vital, a holistic, immersive 12-month certificate program focused on the elements of psychedelic therapy and integration for practitioners. Designed for medical professionals, psychotherapists, coaches, nurses, and complementary health practitioners who are called to incorporate psychedelics safely and ethically into their existing practice, the Vital curriculum consists of five core modules, 2-hour weekly live-taught webinars, study groups, recorded course content, six experiential retreat options (one of which is required), and a final integration project.

All classes are remote to accommodate a global student population. Webinars, lectures, and study groups combine for 180 hours of teaching time spread out over 12 months. Upon completion, students receive a Certificate in Psychedelic Therapies and Integration.

To enroll in the Vital training program, interested individuals must fill out an application and receive an offer from the program’s selection committee. Applicants may be from a wide range of professions, including coaches or guides, and are not required to be licensed mental health or medical professionals or ordained clergy. The tuition cost is currently $12,500 with a $2,000 early bird discount and scholarships available based on financial need. Several scheduled information sessions throughout the year explain more and answer questions about the program. Two cohorts start each year.

Lykos MDMA Therapy Training Program

More substance-specific training programs also exist. Lykos Therapeutics (formerly known as MAPS PBC) has trained providers specifically on their method of MDMA-assisted therapy. The training is currently only available for providers who would likely qualify to work on MDMA clinical trials as psychedelic therapists. The program was formerly open to other practitioners outside of trial therapists. Lykos has already educated about 3,000 practitioners, and the program went entirely online in 2020 in response to COVID-19 restrictions. Now, there are options for either a blended format (online and in-person) or an entirely virtual one. For you to qualify for the Lykos training program, you must be a qualified medical professional or a qualified behavioral health practitioner.

The Lykos program is a multi-part course with didactic education and experiential learning components. Trainees start with online presentations covering MDMA pharmacology and its clinical safety profile, an introduction to the MDMA Treatment Manual [4], and some basics about clinical trials. Psychedelic therapists who treated the study participants show and discuss the MDMA session videos; small group discussions and additional reading and writing assignments follow. The next parts involve role-playing, scenario enactments, group and dyad activities, creative projects, and then treating a patient with MDMA under supervision and evaluation from experienced supervisors.

If you would like to connect with others who are interested in starting up MDMA clinics or need/offer supervision and prescribing services for your psychedelic therapy practice, check out our free Professional Connect service.

Lykos Therapeutics MDMA Therapy Certification Criteria

Lykos Therapeutics, formerly MAPS PBC, has minimum criteria around who would qualify to work as therapy providers within their sponsored clinical trials, which includes the following:

• Hold an active license or registration to practice psychotherapy in good standing in their jurisdiction, OR
• In a post-doctorate, post-graduate internship, or residency program in the field of mental health OR
• Demonstrate a minimum of 1,000 hours of experience providing behavioral health services

Lykos’s MDMA Therapy Training Program has evolved over the years. Currently, there is no available information from Lykos regarding training or qualifications for providers if MDMA becomes an FDA-approved medication. Providers will most certainly need some type of specialized training to deliver MDMA, but since the FDA does not regulate psychotherapy and psychedelic-assisted therapy is a new paradigm in healthcare, it is unclear what will be required from a regulatory standpoint and what type of education will be needed for efficacious delivery of MDMA therapy of positive outcomes. 

DEA Approval

Each clinic offering psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, including any trial sites or Expanded Access centers, will also need a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) license. DEA approval requires a licensed medical provider to be part of the program (e.g., a medical doctor/MD, doctor of osteopathy/DO, or other eligible prescriber). Other industry drug sponsors, such as Usona Institute and COMPASS Pathways, and various university researchers have devised their own training programs and ways to prepare psychedelic therapists to work on clinical trials. At this time, websites haven’t posted further information about training content. However, journal publications have described procedures, such as the Usona Guide Manual [2].

What Do You Learn in the Training Programs?

The comprehensive programs range in the number of hours and cover a broad area of topics related to psychedelic therapies. Time is spent on historical and philosophical aspects of non-ordinary states of consciousness, including non-substance-induced ones, as seen in Holotropic Breathwork and deep meditation. Learning objectives for IPI and Vital focus more broadly on psychedelics, ketamine, and empathogens rather than specifically on MDMA-assisted therapy, as in the Lykos program [3]. By the end of the program, students should have a deep understanding of safety, preparation, psychedelic therapy modalities, and integration techniques.

What are the Experiential Components of Psychedelic Training Programs?

A focal point of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy is the value found in non-ordinary states of consciousness. This focus dates back to the first research studies of LSD in the 1950s. The prevailing attitude suggests that by understanding the substance effects, therapists can more readily establish empathetic rapport and presence to support a person’s therapeutic process. They can also engender respect for the power and significance of these experiences.

Indigenous communities deem it essential that shamans or ceremonial leaders have personal experience with the psychoactive plants they give to others. However, in Western medical practices, doctors have no similar encouragement to take a medication to understand the effects a patient would feel.

Personal Experience Presents a Challenge

Thus, psychedelics present a new challenge for psychedelic therapists and medical training. As many experienced practitioners believe, suppose there is value in the administrator of the substance having had their own experience with psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. How can providers legally pursue an experiential learning component to their training? The evidence of the potential benefits of doing so remains anecdotal due to a lack of approved controlled research. However, many training programs include experiential sessions, which could be psilocybin in Oregon, breathwork, or ketamine. Not everyone is suitable to ingest a psychedelic substance. Breathwork or other practices, like shamanic drumming, can be an option to experience expanded states of consciousness without consuming a psychoactive substance.

Holotropic Breathwork for Experiential Psychedelic Training

Holotropic Breathwork is one alternative to reach a non-ordinary state of consciousness without taking any substance. A person can enter into similar drug-induced states through accelerated breathing and stimulating music.

Several programs incorporate Holotropic Breathwork as experiential learning in their program. Therapists may consider alternatives for exploring non-ordinary states. However, they should do so while considering carefully the legal and ethical guidelines of their licensing board and professional organizations. Psychedelic Support and its partners do not encourage or condone the illegal use of substances.

Given this reality, other possible alternatives for legal experiential learning exist. They include attending plant medicine ceremonies in other countries where it is legal, guided psilocybin sessions in Oregon and Colorado, participation in clinical trials, shamanic drumming/chanting practices, sweat lodges, or extended meditation.

Research is needed to understand if first-hand exposure by therapists impacts client outcomes. If so, what type of drugs or experiences are best for training? We encourage therapists exploring this new area to consult with their colleagues (find them in our Professional Connect) and even seek out legal counsel as they deem appropriate.

What Can I Do Now?

If psychedelic therapy interests you, then here are some things you can do now to determine if this path is right for you. If it is, you can prepare for the future. Start by reading books and articles about psychedelic-assisted therapies. If you want hands-on experience supporting individuals undergoing a difficult psychedelic experience, one great way to do so is to volunteer for harm reduction services at festivals. Of course, taking our FREE psychedelic courses is a great place to start (two courses include free continuing education credits).

Already a health provider? Network with other professionals interested in this topic (Professional Connect) and attend psychedelic conferences. If you are a clinician, consider joining Psychedelic Support psychedelic educational courses with the option of continuing education (CE/CME) for health professionals. If you’re already offering ketamine, consider getting you and your staff ketamine training (CE/CME).

In conclusion, educate yourself and share what you are learning with others. A new profession is evolving for psychedelic therapists. More opportunities are becoming available for those who wish to pursue a career in psychedelic medicine.

References

1. Pollan, M. (2018). How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence. Penguin Press.
2. Cooper, K. (2014). Guide Manual for Pharmacokinetics of Psilocybin in Healthy Adult Volunteers Study (Unpublished Manuscript). University of Wisconsin.
3. Phelps, J. (2017). Developing Guidelines and Competencies for the Training of Psychedelic Therapists. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 57(5), 450–487. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022167817711304/
4. Michael C., Mithoefer, M.D. (2017). A Manual for MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy in the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (Version 8.1). Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies. https://maps.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/MDMA-Assisted-Psychotherapy-Treatment-Manual-V8.1-22AUG2017.pdf/