Biography

Kile Ortigo, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist (Emory, 2012), CIIS-certified psychedelic psychotherapist (2019), and founder of the Center for Existential Exploration, where he offers depth-oriented psychotherapy and integration services in Palo Alto and San Francisco. Dr. Ortigo has trained at Stanford, UCSF, and Emory-affiliated hospitals, including completing two fellowships, specializing in PTSD, substance use, and human sexuality and gender. Afterward, he worked at the National Center for PTSD for five years, where he directed a national technology-based implementation program and led the national VA LGBTQ+ Healthcare Fellowship Program.

Dr. Ortigo has served on the advisory board of Psychedelic.Support, a practitioner directory and training platform, and has authored several articles and chapters on personality, trauma, diversity, technology, and psychedelics. More recently, he has published two books: (1) the STAIR Narrative Therapy (2nd Edition) therapist treatment manual, as a coauthor, and (2) Beyond the Narrow Life: A Guide for Psychedelic Integration & Existential Exploration, with a foreword by Johns Hopkins psychologist Dr. Bill Richards. Beyond the Narrow Life offers a guided journey to explore intersecting themes involving mythology, existential concerns, and psychospiritual developmental material. The book’s activities and meditations support both independent exploration and psychedelic psychotherapy.

Dr. Ortigo continues to support public education and professional training by being part of the core CIIS training team as a consultant, moderator, mentor, and faculty member of the CIIS Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies & Research (CPTR) certificate training program.