Modern medicine has long stigmatized psychedelic substances as drugs of abuse, and their possession and use were criminalized under federal law.
New Psychedelic Perspectives
A new gift is disrupting the conversation on psychedelic-assisted therapy at Penn Nursing
Published: November 17, 2022
New research has changed the medical establishment’s thinking on psychedelic-assisted therapy, a form of treatment that uses psychedelic substances partnered with talk therapy to help with conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance use disorders, and treatment-resistant depression.
A unique collaboration at Penn Nursing began when Sandy Beeber Samberg, Nu’94, GNu’95, approached the School about launching an initiative to educate nurses, faculty, and nursing students about the myriad of benefits of psychedelic-assisted therapy. This partnership is also advocating for nurses to be included in the conversation around healing from the start. “It is going to take a significant amount of public education to unlearn a lot of what we were taught about the war on drugs,” says Samberg. “Many of us still have the image of the fried egg from the ‘This is Your Brain on Drugs’ commercial etched in our minds. It’s important to shift our thinking and recognize that, when used with the right mindset, setting, and support, these substances can reduce suffering and promote healing.”
Psilocybin mushrooms are among the psychedelic substances that may hold tremendous potential for treating depression-related illnesses.
Samberg’s financial support and curricular involvement at Penn Nursing is helping to decrease the stigma associated with psychedelic-assisted therapy. One manifestation of Samberg’s support was the “Psychedelic Revival Series,” a six-part virtual seminar that took place in early 2022. The series introduced psychedelics and their uses, featured expert guests, showcased stories of transformation from patients, and allowed for robust discussions on inequities and barriers to care. The series was planned by a committee that included Penn Nursing’s Anita Iyengar, an advanced practice psychiatric-mental health nurse, along with Heath Schmidt, a professor of nursing and psychiatry at Penn Nursing. “Psychedelic-assisted therapy offers exciting possibilities for helping people heal,” says Iyengar.
The “Psychedelic Revival Series” was widely attended by a global audience of nurses, other healthcare professionals, students and members of the public. Penn Nursing students introduced speakers, facilitated questions, and shared their own experiences. “The students brought so much energy, enthusiasm, and knowledge to the learning series,” says Iyengar.
Through the Joe & Sandy Samberg Family Foundation, Sandy Samberg has made an ongoing commitment to support innovative, tangible, high-impact projects at Penn Nursing.
With the prospect of FDA approval for psychedelics on the horizon, we have the opportunity to educate and train a culturally diverse network of psychedelic-assisted facilitators from a wide range of disciplines. This will help to ensure that the treatment is safe, accessible, and affordable.”Sandy Beeber Samberg, Nu’94, GNu’95
Hardly new, psychedelics have been part of sacred medicine traditions of indigenous people for thousands of years, providing new perspectives and ideas. “We’re still in the early stages of seeing the tremendous potential for psychedelic-assisted therapy and educating our community of nurses and nursing students,” says Schmidt. “But it’s really exciting to return to these ancient methods of healing.”
Also in the works is an educational training pilot program with Penn Nursing and Columbia University’s School of Social Work. The Sambergs came together with the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation (Steven Cohen, W’78) to fund the program. “We’re developing a curriculum around psychedelic-assisted therapy,” says Samberg. “Our vision is to replicate it free of charge to other nursing and social work schools throughout the country.”
Read more about psychedelic-assisted therapy in the Penn Nursing magazine.
