Relational Psychoanalysis and Psychedelic Medicine in the Treatment of Complex Trauma

Abstract
Contemporary treatment methods that privilege altered states of consciousness--hypnosis, EMDR, DBR, among others, have become mainstays of patient care in the treatment of complex trauma and dissociation. More recently, in addition to new treatments for depression and substance use disorders, psychedelic compounds such as MDMA and ketamine are being used to treat post traumatic suffering by facilitating altered states of consciousness, in the presence of a therapist. While psychoanalytic approaches have been under-represented in current psychedelic research protocols, training manuals, and curricula, basic psychodynamic principles such as relational safety and attentiveness to transference/ countertransference phenomenon, have been a consistent part of ISSTD treatment guidelines for complex trauma and dissociative disorders. Psychedelic and psychoanalytic treatments have a great deal in common, and a rich, moving history together. Their synergy promotes both efficacy and safety in the form of increased associative freedom; increased internal capacity for focusing on self-state phenomena; the creation of a safe, boundaried container, and most importantly, the even more delicate nature of transference/countertransference work occurring between patient and therapist under conditions of increased vulnerability and therefore, increased risk.

This workshop will provide 1) a historical overview of psychedelic psychoanalytic treatment in the United States and Europe; 2) an introduction to psychedelic phenomenology from a psychoanalytic perspective will be described, focusing on hyper-associative states and drug-induced ego dissolution (DIED); 3) a series of inward focused, experiential exercises, for workshop participants, designed to invoke non-substance-induced alternate states of consciousness, followed by sharing of the experience and the practice of attuned listening ;and 4) a general introduction to ketamine including a history of research, modes of administration, boundaries, ethics and risks od ketamine-assisted therapy (KAP).

This workshop is presented in memory of Garrett Deckel, MD, whose commitment to caring for patients with severe trauma and dissociative disorders using “the entire toolbox” approach made her a valued and fierce contributor to both ISSTD and psychedelic communities

Timed Outline
15 Minutes - Introduction
45 Minutes - History of Psychedelics and Psychoanalysis
30 Minutes - Experiential Non-ordinary State of Consciousness exercise
30 Minutes - Break
60 Minutes - Clinical Case presentation
30 Minutes - Discussion/Questions