A comprehensive approach to Psychedelic
Enhanced Psychotherapy

 

The treatment protocol used at MindSetting is called TRIP: Therapeutic Reset of Internal Processes

Internal processes in this case refers to the thoughts and feelings that cause and maintain mental illnesses.

Mental illness can be characterized as a disease of disconnection at cellular, personal and social levels.

Through action on the glutamate system, ketamine induces changes in the quality and quantity of connections between neurons. This improves functioning of the brain circuits impaired by depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress. An increase in neural functioning leads to enhanced psychotherapeutic gains.

 

The TRIP protocol is a 5-step process:

 
 

 
 

STEP 1

Consultation

The first step in Psychedelic Enhanced Psychotherapy (PEP) is the initial consultation.

This includes being assessed by a physician and a clinical psychologist in order to determine your suitability to undergo ketamine-enhanced psychotherapy.

 
 

During the assessment, we will:

  • Identify any physical or psychological contraindications for ketamine use

  • Conduct a personality assessment

  • Determine severity of major depressive, generalized anxiety, obsessive-compulsive or post-traumatic stress disorders

  • Appraise your position along the continuum of the stages of change

STEP 2

Treatment Planning

Next, you and your therapist will engage in a treatment planning session to set you up for success during your PEP session.

 
 

Your planning session will last about 1 hour, and will consist of:

  • Relaxation skills and necessary training

  • Mindfulness skills and necessary training

  • Identification of short term and long term goals

STEP 3

Ketamine Therapy Session

After your consultation and treatment planning, your therapist will guide you through a psychedelic enhanced psychotherapy session.

 
 

Your session will last about 2.5 hours.

First, you will self-administer the prescribed dose of oral ketamine.

Then, for the first 20-45 minutes of your session, you’ll listen to specially selected music while wearing an eye mask.

Following this, the talk therapy will begin. Your therapist will engage you in a psychotherapy session while carefully transcribing notes to refer back to during your integration sessions.

STEP 4

Analysis of PEP transcript

Your therapist will carefully analyze the notes from your PEP session using established psychological theories.

 
 

Informed by insight-oriented theory, cognitive-behavioural principles, and constructivist grounded theory, your therapist will analyze the transcript of your PEP session.

Your therapist will extract key themes, core beliefs, and stimulus-response associations, and present a summary of these findings during the integration session.

STEP 5

Integration Session

The fifth step of the TRIP Protocol is integration, which often happens over multiple sessions.

 
 

During integration, you will share your reflections, thoughts, and experience of the PEP session, and your psychologist will present their analysis.

Based on this, you and your psychologist will co-construct further interpretations of the experience and data.

This information will be used to inform behaviour modification strategies and ongoing psychotherapy leading to emotional, cognitive, and behavioural change.