In a thought-provoking online panel titled "Psychedelics and the Future of Religion: The Curious Case of Integration," hosted by the Center for the Study of World Religions (CSWR) on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, from 5:30 to 7 pm via Zoom, experts delved into the complex intersection of psychedelics, spirituality, and therapeutic integration. The event, part of the "Psychedelics and the Future of Religion, Transcendence, and Transformation" programming series, drew attention to the evolving landscape of psychedelic research and its potential impact on religious and spiritual practices.
Integration, a pivotal aspect of psychedelic therapy and spiritual experiences, took center stage during the panel discussion. Dr. Alexander Belser, Dr. Lisa Gezon, and Dr. Tomas Frymann presented insights into various integration approaches contributing to a multifaceted exploration of integration's nuances and applications. The panelists collectively addressed the diverse frameworks and methodologies used in integration, ranging from training models to ethnographic studies and psychometric scales. Their interdisciplinary dialogue underscored the need for comprehensive approaches to integration that consider psychological, spiritual, and relational dimensions.
Dr. Alex Belser, a distinguished researcher from Yale School of Medicine, emphasized the importance of integration in preventing suicide, improving mental health outcomes among LGBTQ youth, and addressing conditions like anxiety, depression, alcohol abuse, and post-traumatic stress through psychedelic-assisted clinical research. His presentation underlined the need for a nuanced approach to understanding the complexity of psychedelic experiences and criticized oversimplifications such as those from the neurobiological lens, noting that it is an oversimplification to reduce the psychedelic experience to merely something that "happens in the brain." As an alternative, Dr. Belser offered the "Embark" model, a psychotherapy approach developed based on lived human experiences with psychedelics. He outlined six clinical domains of the Embark model: existential and spiritual, mindfulness, body awareness, affective and cognitive, relational, and keeping momentum, emphasizing the importance of centering existential and spiritual experiences in psychedelic work, noting the "need to center existential and spiritual experiences in psychedelic work" and calling for ethical and trauma-informed care, cultural competence, and collective care as cornerstones of psychedelic therapy.
Dr. Tomas Frymann, a doctoral student in Clinical Psychology at Columbia University, shared his expertise in psychedelics, spirituality, and integration scales. His work delved into assessing what aspects are being integrated and by whom, shedding light on the intricate processes involved in transformative experiences. Highlighting the significance of integration, emphasizing its potential life-changing impact and its role in translating psychedelic experiences into positive changes in daily life, Dr. Frymann drew parallels between integration and nurturing a seed into a tree. “Every year around the world, around 700,000 People will die from suicide. [..] Psychedelics have an incredible capacity to transform intense states of despair, into a shining seed of hope, but without knowing that the seed needs to be nourished, that seed of hope can easily die.”
Dr. Lisa Gezon, Professor and Chair of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, provided valuable insights into cultural anthropology, health, and environmental sustainability, enriching the discussion of integration with perspectives on social justice and transformation. She presented compelling research on the intersection of psychedelic integration and religious experiences within a community setting, detailing her ethnographic study focused on an integration group where individuals shared and processed their psychedelic experiences, underscoring “the importance of extra therapeutic, community based social relationships as being critical to the efficacy of psychedelics in this context.” Dr. Gezon’s presentation revealed profound insights into the role of psychedelics in repairing religious ruptures and deepening spiritual connections.
The panel offered rigorous and well-researched perspectives on how psychedelic experiences intersect with existential, spiritual, and therapeutic realms, showcasing the evolving landscape of psychedelic research and the potential implications for religious and spiritual practices in integration. Panelists made a call for collaboration among therapists, spiritual leaders, and community members as an essential means to support integration journeys and facilitate lasting positive changes in the well-being of psychedelic practitioners and their communities.
Story by Tristan Angieri, MDiv '26