CIIS’ Center for Psychedelic Therapies & Research in May '23 Issue of National Geographic

National Geographic’s May 2023 issue examines the world of psychedelic-assisted treatments: what’s propelling this new and growing interest in treating a variety of mental health issues, who will most benefit from psychedelic-assisted treatments, and who is leading the way in helping to make these drugs safe, affordable, and accessible to people all over the world.

In particular, journalist Meryl Davids Landau provides an in depth look at how California Institute of Integral Studies’ Center for Psychedelic Therapies & Research (CPTR) has emerged as a national leader in the training and certification of medical and behavioral health professionals who will begin treating patients in the near future.

Davids Landau speaks at length with CPTR’s founding director, Dr. Janis Phelps as to the importance of creating an effective training program that ensures the safety and inclusion of patients who can successfully be treated for a range of mental health issues including addiction, depression, eating disorders, and much more.

Davids Landau shares the experiences of Dr. Anthony Back, an oncologist at the University of Washington and a CPTR Alum, who is hoping to use psychedelic-assisted treatments to alleviate the fears of his patients who are diagnosed with a life-threatening disease or who are in the final stages of their illness and who fear the prospect of dying.

Excerpt: 
"It was the realization that psychedelics might one day be integrated into mainstream medical care that spurred the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco to become the first in the U.S. to offer a psychedelic-assisted therapy training program seven years ago, says Janis Phelps, director of the school’s Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research."

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