How to Talk to Your Clients About Psychedelics: A Brief Guide for Psychotherapists

Interest in psychedelics is at an all-time high, with increasing media coverage, research studies, and personal anecdotes highlighting their potential benefits for mental health. Many therapists are finding themselves in conversations about psychedelics, whether initiated by clients or driven by their own curiosity. Here are some practical considerations for both scenarios while keeping ethical responsibilities at the forefront.

1. Responding to Psychedelic-Curious Clients

Clients may bring up psychedelics for a variety of reasons: they’ve read about promising studies, know someone who’s had a transformative experience, or are actively considering using them. As therapists, our role is not to promote or discourage but to provide informed, nonjudgmental guidance. Here’s how:

a) Stay Curious and Open-Minded

Clients will feel safest sharing their thoughts and experiences when met with openness rather than immediate skepticism or enthusiasm. Respond with curiosity:


“What has led you to be interested in psychedelics?”
“What are you hoping a psychedelic experience would provide?”

b) Understand the Evidence and Its Limitations

It’s crucial to be informed about current research while recognizing its limitations. Psychedelics show promise for conditions such as PTSD, depression, and addiction, but most studies have been small, tightly controlled, and involve structured therapeutic settings. Many substances remain illegal, and not all experiences are beneficial.

Provide clients with balanced information:

  • Potential Benefits: Enhanced emotional processing, new perspectives, reduction in depressive or anxious symptoms.

  • Risks and Uncertainties: Psychological distress, increased vulnerability, potential for worsening mental health symptoms, and legal implications.

  • Context Matters: Set (mindset, expectations), setting (environment, support), and skill (preparation, navigation) significantly influence experiences.

c) Assess Risks and Safety

If a client is considering psychedelic use, explore their mental health history, support system, and motivations. Key questions include:

  • Mental Health History: Do they have a history of psychosis, mania, or severe trauma? Certain conditions may heighten risks.

  • Current Stability: Are they in acute distress or crisis? Psychedelics can be destabilizing.

  • Integration Plan: Have they thought about how they will process the experience afterward?

  • Legal and Ethical Boundaries: Be clear that while you can discuss their thoughts and plans, you cannot encourage illegal activity or participate in underground psychedelic facilitation.

2. Bringing Up Psychedelics as a Therapist

Some therapists, aware of the potential benefits of psychedelics, may wonder if or how they should bring up the topic with clients. Here’s how to navigate this ethically and professionally:

a) Consider Your Motivations

Before introducing the topic, reflect: Why do I want to bring this up? If it’s out of personal enthusiasm rather than clinical relevance, pause. Psychedelics should be discussed in response to client needs and interests, not therapist curiosity.

b) Identify Appropriate Contexts

It may be clinically appropriate to discuss psychedelics when:

  • A client expresses feeling stuck in traditional therapy.

  • They mention past or upcoming psychedelic use.

  • They’re exploring existential or spiritual themes relevant to their healing.

  • You work in harm reduction and integration settings.

Use gentle, exploratory language: “Some people have explored non-ordinary states of consciousness, including meditation, breathwork, or psychedelics, in their healing journey. Have you ever thought about that?”

c) Acknowledge Legal and Ethical Constraints

  • Stay Within Your Scope: Unless trained in psychedelic-assisted therapy, you are not a psychedelic therapist.

  • Avoid Recommendations: Do not suggest or direct clients to specific substances or underground providers.

  • Emphasize Harm Reduction: If a client is set on exploring psychedelics, help them think through safety, mental health risks, and post-experience integration.

  • Consider Legal Options: Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) is a legal option that some clients may explore in a safe therapeutic container. If a client is interested, referral to a therapist or medical provider with expertise in KAP may be beneficial.

3. The Role of Harm Reduction and Integration

Whether discussing a client’s past, planned, or hypothetical psychedelic experiences, harm reduction and integration are key frameworks.

  • Harm Reduction: If a client plans to use psychedelics, help them minimize risks (e.g., safe setting, trip-sitting, knowing substance purity).

  • Integration: Support clients in making sense of psychedelic experiences, translating insights into meaningful life changes rather than fleeting highs.

  • Exploring Legal Pathways: If a client is interested in psychedelics but concerned about legality and safety, discussing Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) as a structured, research-backed option could be valuable. A referral to a clinician experienced in KAP might help them explore this approach more safely.

Ask questions like:

  • “What stood out to you about the experience?”

  • “How do you want to carry this forward in your daily life?”

  • “What challenges have come up since your experience?”

Final Thoughts

Therapists don’t need to be psychedelic experts to hold meaningful, ethical conversations about them. By staying informed, practicing curiosity, and respecting legal and ethical boundaries, we can help clients navigate their psychedelic interests with nuance and care.