83. EMBARK: A Groundbreaking Framework for Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy with Dr. Bill Brennan

The Psychedelic Mom

Bill Brennan, PhD, is clinical psychologist, psychedelic researcher, educator, and author in New York City with over two decades of interest and involvement in psychedelic therapy. He has played a variety of roles across several psychedelic clinical trials, including lead trainer, core faculty, curriculum developer, clinical supervisor, and lead author on 8+ treatment manuals. He currently serves as a consultant to Cybin and Gilgamesh, two prominent psychedelic research companies, where he is involved in the development and delivery of their psychedelic treatment approaches.

Bill developed the EMBARK model of psychedelic therapy with Dr. Alex Belser, which has been used on four clinical trials to date. He and Dr. Belser authored a comprehensive guide to psychedelic treatment in this approach entitled ‘EMBARK Psychedelic Therapy for Depression: A New Approach for the Whole Person’, published by Oxford University Press. Bill has taught and presented on psychedelic therapy in other contexts, including as a speaker at the 2022 Interdisciplinary Conference for Psychedelic Research, as a lecturer with Psychedelics Today, and as a trainer with Fluence, Naropa University, and other organizations.

He serves as an advisory board member for New Yorkers for Mental Health Alternatives, a group that works to expand access to psychedelic medicines, and he has previously served on the ethics working group of the American Psychedelic Practitioners Association.

Episode Highlights

• Exploring the role of a psychedelic therapist
• The EMBARK model of psychedelic therapy
• The new book EMBARK as a comprehensive guide to psychedelic therapy
• Bill Brennan's personal and professional journey into psychedelic therapy
• Insights from Bill’s psychedelic experiences
• Understanding the domains within the EMBARK model
• Ethical and trauma-informed care in psychedelic therapy
• The role of music in psychedelic sessions
• Screening and assessment for psychedelic therapy
• Exciting developments in psychedelic research
• Should underground knowledge help inform the design of psychedelic clinical trials?
• Challenges and future directions in psychedelic therapy
• Integration and personal growth post-psychedelic experience

Dr. Bill Brennan

• Linktree: Bill Brennan PhD

Resources Mentioned in This Episode

• Book: EMBARK Psychedelic Therapy for Depression: A New Approach for the Whole Person by Bill Brennan and Alex Belser
• Book: Swimming in the Sacred: Wisdom from the Psychedelic Underground by Rachel Harris
• Article: ‘Psychedelic Therapy as Form of Life’ by Nicolas Langlitz & Alex K. Gearin
• Joe Welker’s Essays: Psychedelic Candor
• Clinical Trial: ‘A Phase 2b Randomized Double-blind Placebo-controlled Multi-center study of the Effects of Psilocybin-assisted Psychotherapy on Psychiatric and Existential Distress in Advanced Cancer’
• Clinical Trial: ‘Leveraging Biomarkers for Personalized Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder Comorbid With PTSD’