Grief, Psychedelics, and Hypnosis: A Personal Perspective

This webinar will discuss rapidly increasing use of psychedelics in psychotherapy, particularly psilocybin and MDMA, the application of these therapies to treating complicated grief, and how hypnosis is related to this new wave of therapies. The presenter has been a medical school-based psychology professor with an expertise in behavioral medicine and hypnosis for 40 years. The webinar will describe how the presenter became familiar with psychedelic therapies as on options for his terminally ill patients. We will then discuss how, after losing his 26-year-old son, the presenter turned to psychedelic therapies to manage his psychological challenges. In the course of undergoing psychedelic assisted psychotherapy himself, the presenter was able to realize how many parallels there were between the work he had been doing with the unconscious in hypnosis and psychotherapy and these innovative treatments. An example of this is the positive unconscious and the notion of creating a response set in psychotherapy that is internally generated by the patient, rather than structured by the therapist. In conducting this webinar, the presenter will review the literature on psychopharmacology of the psychedelic therapies discussed, as well as the clinical research associated with their efficacy. This course will be partially based on the 2nd edition of Clinical Hypnosis for Pain Control, American Psychological Association by D. R. Patterson and E. M. Mendoza.

After attending this intermediate-level program, participants will be able to:

• Articulate the modern science of unconscious processing as it relates to hypnosis.
• Describe the positive unconscious as it relates to hypnosis and psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy.
• Articulate findings from outcome research as it relates to coping with death and dying.

This program meets APA’s continuing education STANDARD 1.3: Program content focuses on topics related to psychological practice, education, or research other than application of psychological assessment and/or intervention methods that are supported by contemporary scholarship grounded in established research procedures.

This program meets APA’s continuing education GOAL 1: Program is relevant to psychological practice, education, and/or science.

General Admission: $65.00

SCEH Members: $55.00*

Students: $15.00*

(*Please email [email protected] for coupon code)

Refund Policy: 100% of tuition is refundable up to 48 hours before the program. Within 48 hours of the program, and at any point in Homestudy format, tuition is nonrefundable.

David R Patterson PhD, ABPP, ABPH; Professor Emeritus of Psychology

David R. Patterson, PhD, ABPP, is a professor emeritus in the Departments of Rehabilitation Medicine, Surgery and Psychology at the University of Washington School of Medicine. He is the former head of the Division of Psychology for his home department and cochair of the ethics committee at Harborview Medical Center. Dr. Patterson worked as a clinical psychologist at Harborview Medical Center since 1983 to 2023, particularly in the burn unit and the psychology consultation and Liaison service he created. Over the past 10 years his career has focused on psychotherapy for patients with pain, disability, and terminal illness. He holds diplomate degrees in the areas of psychological hypnosis and rehabilitation psychology. Dr Patterson was instrumental in creating psychology intern and postdoctoral training programs for and mentored hundreds of clinical and research students. His research has funded by the National Institutes of Health since 1989 for 30 years and he has published over 150 articles and chapters in the areas of hypnosis and pain control. His articles can be found in such journals as Psychological Bulletin, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Pain, American Psychologist, and the New England Journal of Medicine. His most recent work has emphasized combining hypnosis with Zen Buddhism and the neurophysiology of consciousness. His book on Clinical Hypnosis for Pain Control (2nd edition) with Elena Mendoza (American Psychological Association) is scheduled for publication.

Anand, A., Mathew, S. J., Sanacora, G., Murrough, J. W., Goes, F. S., Altinay, M., Aloysi, A. S., Asghar-Ali, A. A., Barnett, B. S., Chang, L. C., Collins, K. A., Costi, S., Iqbal, S., Jha, M. K., Krishnan, K., Malone, D. A., Nikayin, S., Nissen, S. E., Ostroff, R. B., Reti, I. M., … Hu, B. (2023). Ketamine versus ECT for nonpsychotic treatment-resistant major depression. The New England Journal of Medicine, 388(25), 2315–2325. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2302399

Jensen, M. P., Mendoza, M. E., Ehde, D. M., Patterson, D. R., Molton, I. R., Dillworth, T. M., Gertz, K. J., Chan, J., Hakimian, S., Battalio, S. L., & Ciol, M. A. (2020). Effects of hypnosis, cognitive therapy, hypnotic cognitive therapy, and pain education in adults with chronic pain: a randomized clinical trial. Pain, 161(10), 2284–2298. https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pain.0000000000001943

Patterson, D. R., & Mendoza, M. E. (2024). Clinical hypnosis for pain control: psychotherapy, hypnosis and meditation (2nd Edition). American Psychological Association.

Price, C. M., Feduccia, A. A., & DeBonis, K. (2022). Effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor use on 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: A review of the evidence, neurobiological plausibility, and clinical significance. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 42(5), 464–469. https://doi.org/10.1097/JCP.0000000000001595

Raison, C. L., Sanacora, G., Woolley, J., Heinzerling, K., Dunlop, B. W., Brown, R. T., Kakar, R., Hassman, M., Trivedi, R. P., Robison, R., Gukasyan, N., Nayak, S. M., Hu, X., O’Donnell, K. C., Kelmendi, B., Sloshower, J., Penn, A. D., Bradley, E., Kelly, D. F., Mletzko, T., … Griffiths, R. R. (2023). Single-dose psilocybin treatment for major depressive disorder: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA, 330(9), 843–853. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2023.14530

von Rotz, R., Schindowski, E. M., Jungwirth, J., Schuldt, A., Rieser, N. M., Zahoranszky, K., Seifritz, E., Nowak, A., Nowak, P., Jäncke, L., Preller, K. H., & Vollenweider, F. X. (2022). Single-dose psilocybin-assisted therapy in major depressive disorder: A placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomised clinical trial. EClinicalMedicine, 56, 101809. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101809

Williams, R. M., Ehde, D. M., Day, M., Turner, A. P., Hakimian, S., Gertz, K., Ciol, M., McCall, A., Kincaid, C., Pettet, M. W., Patterson, D., Suri, P., & Jensen, M. P. (2020). The chronic pain skills study: Protocol for a randomized controlled trial comparing hypnosis, mindfulness meditation and pain education in Veterans. Contemporary Clinical Trials, 90, 105935. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2020.105935

Target Audience: Mental health providers, medical providers, hypnosis practitioners, researchers, and students in mental health and healthcare fields.

Psychologists. This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 1.5 continuing education credits. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology maintains responsibility for this program and its content. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is committed to accessibility and non-discrimination in its continuing education activities. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is also committed to conducting all activities in conformity with the American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles for Psychologists. Participants are asked to be aware of the need for privacy and confidentiality throughout the program. If program content becomes stressful, participants are encouraged to process these feelings during discussion periods.

Counselors/Clinical Counselors. This program, when attended in its entirety, is available 1.5 hours of continuing education. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) to provide continuing education programming for counselors and clinical counselors. License Number: 197.000159

Social Workers. This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 1.5 hours of continuing education. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) to provide continuing education programming for social workers. License Number: 159.001036

MFTs, LPCCs, and LCSWs. Course meets the qualifications for 1.5 hour of continuing education credit for MFTs, LPCCs, and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences. If you are licensed outside of California please check with your local licensing agency to to determine if they will accept these CEUs. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is approved by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) to offer continuing education programming for MFTs, LPCCs, LEPs, and/or LCSWs. The Chicago School of Professional Psychology is an accredited or approved postsecondary institution that meets the requirements set forth in Sections 4980.54(f)(1), 4989.34, 4996.22(d)(1), or 4999.76(d) of the Code.

Non-Psychologists. Most licensing boards accept Continuing Education Credits sponsored by the American Psychological Association but non-psychologists are recommended to consult with their specific state-licensing board to ensure that APA-sponsored CE is acceptable.

*Participants must attend 100% of the program in order to obtain a Certificate of Attendance.

If participants have special needs, we will attempt to accommodate them. Please address questions, concerns and any complaints to [email protected]. There is no commercial support for this program nor are there any relationships between the CE Sponsor, presenting organization, presenter, program content, research, grants, or other funding that could reasonably be construed as conflicts of interest.