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Over the past 20 years I have been privileged to help many different types of trauma victims experience remarkable transformations. I integrate EMDR with other approaches to improve results and treat the whole person. It can take time to integrate an improved life.
To start therapy with me is a simple process: contact me via telephone or my contact form for a 15 minute discussion of your needs and to schedule an initial appointment.
My rates are $150 per 50 minute session. I accept Medicare and I am an out-of-network provider for other insurance plans.
My rates are $150 per 50 minute session. I accept Medicare and I am an out-of-network provider for other insurance plans.
I welcome clients of all types of backgrounds and do not discriminate on the basis of gender identification, race, religion, or ethnicity. I work only with adults age 18 and over.
I offer Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) in partnership with local physicians. They prescribe ketamine when appropriate, and I perform the psychotherapy. Ketamine has been shown to be effective with Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and some studies have shown it effective with Bipolar Depression. Unlike traditional SSRI and SNRI antidepressants, ketamine often gives relief in hours, rather than weeks or months.
Many practitioners in town are offering ketamine intravenous infusions, which have been shown to be an effective treatment for TRD and PTSD, but few are combining ketamine with psychotherapy. KAP is a promising, integrative approach to treatment that aims to combine the best of ketamine and talk therapy. Both ketamine infusions and Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy are off-label uses of ketamine; ketamine has been used for many years as an anesthetic, but the FDA has not yet approved its use in depression. However, research shows ketamine to be an effective treatment. Many drugs are commonly used off label. It has been estimated that 40-60% of prescriptions are for off-label drugs.
KAP is a type of Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy; the patient may have a psychedelic experience that can include visions and unusual sensory experiences. Some people have profound mystical experiences such as feeling blissfully one with everything, a sense of being bathed in unconditional love, or vividly feeling the supportive and loving presence of the divine. These profound and sometimes life-changing experiences appear to be part of how the medicine works. At lower doses, psychedelic experiences are unlikely to occur; the patient experiences an increase in openness, a greater sense of compassion and empathy, and a loosening of defenses, which supports and facilitates the therapy process.
Other forms of Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy include Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy and MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy. Current research suggests that these approaches to therapy are remarkably effective, but the research is not complete, the medicines are not yet FDA-approved, and the treatments are not yet available except for those who are in clinical trials. In contrast, ketamine is legally available now, if prescribed by a physician.
KAP, in contrast to ketamine infusions, pays attention to important psychological factors in your healing. It aims to optimize treatment by carefully preparing the client, offering a pleasant and supportive environment for treatment, helping the client integrate the insights of the ketamine experience, and by using all the available tools of psychotherapy. During KAP, the client always has a therapist present, which is often not the case for people receiving ketamine infusions. The presence and the support of the therapist helps reduce any anxiety and fear and makes the experience more comfortable. For more information about how KAP works, see this short article.
My approach to KAP does not involve ketamine intravenous infusions. Instead, the process utilizes oral ketamine lozenges or intramuscular injections. Ketamine lozenges produce states that vary from mildly altered consciousness with an increase in openness, a loosening of defenses, and greater acceptance and compassion to more dramatic psychedelic and mystical experiences.
I have considerable in-depth training in Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy and Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy. In May 2021, I completed the Certificate Program in Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapies and Research at the California Institute of Integral Studies. This was an intensive ten-month training program. I have also received specific training in Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy from Polaris Insight Center in San Francisco. My training makes me uniquely qualified to provide KAP.
Ketamine-Assisted Couples Therapy
I offer Ketamine-Assisted Couples Therapy (KACT). Oral ketamine lozenges are used to facilitate the process of couples’ therapy. This treatment involves lengthy, two-hour couples’ therapy sessions, in which the couple each takes ketamine lozenges. The doses are low, and do not typically result in psychedelic or dissociative experiences. Instead, low-dose ketamine can produce an empathogenic experience—an increase in empathy, openness and compassion, and a loosening of defenses, all of which can help a troubled or estranged couple heal their relationship. The medicine is used in conjunction with techniques of couples therapy from the work of John Gottman, Harville Hendrix, and others.
Shorter, hour-long preparation and integration sessions are also part of the therapy.
For more information about how KAP works, see this short article.
I have extensive training in both couples therapy and Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy.
Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy: FAQ
Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy: How Does It Work
KAP is a remarkable, integrative approach to psychotherapy that combines the effectiveness of psychotherapy with the latest in neuroscience and psychopharmacology. Here is a summary of several mechanisms that appear to play a role in the effectiveness of KAP.
The Default Mode Network (DMN).
Ketamine, like psilocybin and other classic psychedelics, quiets the brain’s default mode network (DMN). The DMN is a network of brain structures that help the brain operate in an efficient manner, by working mostly on habit. By quieting the DMN, ketamine helps people break old habits and get out of their mental ruts.
Disrupting rigid patterns.
Many mental disorders, including depression, anxiety disorders, and addictions, are characterized by excessive rigidity (or excessive order) in thinking, feeling and behavior. Examples include the tendency of depressed people to get stuck in rumination about the past or about how inadequate they feel, the tendency of anxious people to obsessively worry about the future, and the tendency of those with addictions to ruminate about their next fix. Ketamine appears to interrupt these rigid patterns, introducing creative dis-order, allowing the individual to develop new, healthier ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving.
Increased Compassion and Empathy.
At lower doses, ketamine operates as an empathogen: it can facilitate greater compassion and empathy. This helps in developing self-compassion, which is a powerful antidote to the self-critical thinking common in depression. It can also help in the development of greater compassion and empathy for others, which can facilitate couples’ therapy.
Neuroplasticity.
Ketamine is also a neuroplastic agent; it causes the growth of new neurons and new synaptic connections via the release of a protein called brain-derived neurotropic factor. This allows a re-wiring of the brain which also facilitates the development of new, healthier ways of thinking feeling, and behaving.
Anti-Inflammatory Effects.
Recent research suggests that chronic, low-level inflammation from childhood stress, chronic stress, infections, gut bacteria, autoimmune disorders, and other sources can cause depression. Depression is increasingly understood as a disorder of inflammation in the brain. Ketamine has anti-inflammatory properties that treat the chronic inflammation associated with depression.
Psychotherapy.
In Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy, a therapist works with the client in developing new and healthier habits of thinking, feeling, and behaving. The therapist uses all the tools of psychotherapy to assist the client’s growth and change. Treatment approaches including Mindfulness, Internal Family Systems (IFS) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) are commonly used. There is a remarkable synergy in this integration of psychotherapy and cutting-edge neuroscience.
Peak or Mystical Experiences.
It is common for clients to have positive peak experiences during KAP, such as feeling one with everything, discovering deep compassion and love for self and others, or having an experience of the presence of the divine. These experiences tend to be profound and are often cited as one of the most important and meaningful experiences that clients have in their lives. Roland Griffiths, Ph.D., a professor and researcher at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, suggests that these peak experiences can cause “inverse PTSD.” By this he means that these experiences are so positive and affirming that they have a healing and restorative effect, leading to a richer and happier life, which is the opposite of what happens when a serious trauma causes Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.