What is Integration?
Ketamine treatments can be a time for deep revelation and profound non-ordinary experiences. These experiences may feel exciting, expansive, confrontational, or even existential while they are happening. Afterward, patients can have difficulty figuring out what to do with this new information, how to make meaning of it and create new perspectives and take action. Professional psychedelic integration services can be done in an individual or group setting and may involve your own licensed therapist or trained psychedelic coach. Dr. Stefany Wolfsohn is able to provide additional integration support to patients who do not have these services established prior to starting ketamine therapy.
Like any new endeavor, your ketamine journey begins with preparation. Have you learned enough about ketamine to start the process? What are your expectations of this treatment? Along the way, you will likely encounter parts of yourself you either did not know existed or parts that may have been suppressed for a long time. Even though you might be unaware of them, these parts can still influence your life and cause problems or make you feel “stuck”.
Are you willing to be curious and invite these parts of you out so that you can work with yourself to heal and make changes in your life? Are you willing to let go of old thought patterns to make room for new ones? Being vulnerable may seem scary at first; however, entering a ketamine journey with this state of mind is helpful in creating long-term sustainable change.
Is your external environment prepared for change? Are your loved ones or caregivers prepared for your ketamine journey? What needs to be said to them before going into a ketamine treatment? What do you need emotionally and physically before you arrive to your appointments and afterwards?
Information about internal and external preparation for ketamine therapy is discussed and given to each patient in writing to help prepare for the ketamine journey and the integration work that follows.
Ketamine therapy has the potential to do more than reduce symptoms for a set period of time. It creates a window of opportunity for personal growth and transformation. Integrating information from your treatment experiences into everyday life is a significant part of your journey. This is when the real work begins and people discover their own capacity for healing. There may be ups and downs along the way. It can be challenging to understand new insights and to make behavior changes.
There are several activities that patients are encouraged to do between ketamine treatments to help themselves do integration work. Some patients audio record their conversations with therapists during treatment in order to listen to their own voice and insights from the medicine session in the days to weeks following treatment. Journaling, drawing, painting or doing an activity outside in nature after treatments can be very therapeutic. Music, meditation and dance can also help connect mind, body and spirit.
Patients are offered additional integration support either with Dr. Wolfsohn or with other licensed practitioners and/or coaches with additional training in psychedelic medicine. Each practitioner uses modalities and techniques within their scope of practice.