Sarah Long

Hear from Sarah

Since the beginning of my career, I’ve worked mainly with clients suffering from eating disorders and unresolved trauma. I truly believe in full recovery and the potential of healing for all. And I also know that eating disorder recovery can be a difficult and often long journey. Recovery rates are low and clients and families suffer when traditional treatment approaches are ineffective, insufficient, or even harmful. Although more research is needed, Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy, including KAP, offers a promising new intervention that has the potential for breakthroughs for clients, leading to lasting, full recovery. 

There are many reasons that psychedelics can aid in eating disorder recovery. In addition to the various neurochemical effects of psychedelics, these medicines help us access our ‘inner healer.’ For some that phrase may seem vague and even a bit ‘alternative,’ but I truly believe all of us have an inherent resilience and capacity for healing. No one is forever broken, even if it feels like that. Psychedelics, including ketamine, can help us access this innate healer. I’ve seen this with our clients and myself. 

Psychedelic-assisted therapy combines the relational aspects of therapy with neuroscience and often spirituality. An integrative practitioner at heart, I was excited to find an intervention that bridges these three worlds. I first became interested in psychedelic-assisted therapy after reading study after study that showed significant improvement with PTSD symptoms with the use of MDMA in a therapeutic setting. This led me to pursuing a yearlong certification as a Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Practitioner. Initially I was most excited about the potential of MDMA and psylocibin as adjunct treatments for eating disorders and associated concerns. To be honest, I was a bit suspect of ketamine, associating it with a party drug. After we started learning more about the biochemical effects of ketamine on the brain, not to mention the emerging research, I quickly realized the potential of ketamine as a powerful agent for healing. 

This was crystalized after my own ketamine journey during the guided experiential training weekend of our certification program. During this journey, there were insights gained, and release of things I wasn’t aware were still affecting me. With all psychedelics, there is a window of opportunity where the brain is primed for neuroplasticity and the default mode network is downregulated. During this critical period following my ketamine journey, I made some changes and noticed my pandemic/clinical burnout seemed to reverse, my work once again felt meaningful, and I found a renewed hope for healing, both for individuals and our society. Every client experiences ketamine and psychedelic healing in a unique way, but I truly believe it is an intervention worth considering for hard-to-treat conditions, such as eating disorders, trauma, treatment-resistant depression, severe anxiety, and burnout. I am honored to be able to provide support and a safe container during one’s journey, as well as work with clients while they integrate their insights and behavioral change into their lives. 

After completion of our certification, The Catalyst Center launched our KAP program. I am grateful to be part of a program and team that places our clients first, emphasizes an individualized and collaborative approach, and practices in an ethical manner and individualized way.

~Dr. Sarah Long