Chris welcomes back licensed professional counselor Maura Nolan, who is pursuing her passions in nature-based and wilderness therapy and working towards licensure as a psychedelic-assisted therapist and facilitator in Colorado. This conversation centers on the many facets of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy: What exactly is it? How does it work? What are the pros and cons? How do you find a provider? and more. This is an incredibly fascinating discussion that helps shed light on this new form of therapy and the overwhelmingly positive results following its recent research and implementation.

Links:

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/

Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com

Connect with Maura: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/maura-r-nolan-durango-co/369024

Resources Mentioned:

Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies – MAPS – Psychedelic Research for Psychological Healing

Integrative Psychiatry Institute

Board of Psychedelic Medicine & Therapies

American Psychedelic Practitioners Association

Quotes:

[8:27 - 9:08] Maura: You know, something that I, I do want to say in going into this question and something I’m really passionate about when it comes to psychedelic-assisted therapy, is that the brain does all of the healing. So, in that way, it can be so incredibly self-empowering to know that the individual is going into the experience and honestly the facilitator isn’t, isn’t really hands-on. So, the individual, their brain is unlocking the trauma, doing the healing - so that I think is one of the most profound things about the experience as a whole, is that it just, it falls back on the individual's brain to do the healing.

[14:43 - 15:22] Maura: While the research specifically to Autism and psilocybin and ketamine is fairly new, there is a lot of research already around ketamine and psilocybin for co-occurring mental health issues, right, that a lot of folks with individual, or, that a lot of folks with Autism, right, may have. Anxiety, depression, PTSD, CPTSD, trauma, right? So, an individual with Autism might also really benefit from having a psychedelic experience and being able to process some of the trauma, right, that is at the root, right, and core of some of their experiences.

[28:00 - 29:13] Maura: Clinical trials with psilocybin, two sessions: significant reduction in depressive and anxiety symptoms - this is actually a study done out of John Hopkins that found with two doses of psilocybin, significant decrease in depressive symptoms. MDMA, three sessions: 98% reduction in symptoms of depression and PTSD, okay? So you look at three MDMA sessions, two psilocybin sessions compared to, that’s something that might take 3 months when I do EMDR with somebody and like, 3-5 years in talk therapy. So, this works and it’s also new and edgy and I encourage people to like, do your own research. Be skeptical about it, question it all, see what you come up with. But the results can be astounding and healing - like truly healing. Getting to the root of symptoms and trauma and it changes people’s lives and it totally relies on you, your brain to do the healing.

Chris welcomes Brenna, an autistic 28-year-old math teacher for middle schoolers in Boulder, CO, and one of his clients. Brenna shares her story of receiving her ASD diagnosis late in life, what the diagnosis meant for how she now understands and loves herself, how she navigates the beauty and complexity of relationships, and how she engages with the children she teaches. This is a beautiful interview of Brenna’s journey to self-discovery.


Links:

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/

Email: info@autismlearninglab.com

Quotes:

[4:25 - 5:16] Brenna: I felt like I was finally able to stop wondering what to do with all the other things in my head and all the guesses, and I was able to start focusing more so on, now that I have this information, what can I do with it? How can I learn some social skills, figure out how to do something like small talk, getting off of my couch and going and seeing the world because I know how to talk to people now, and maybe it doesn’t have to be so scary. So I, I know that for sure I was stuck for a long, long time and I think this diagnosis helped me embrace myself more, love myself more, and be able to learn more, to be able to interact with others.

[10:04 - 10:56] Brenna: I think the big thing is, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Schools and working in the classroom and working with young people in general can get overwhelming and it can get really loud and when I learned that some of my overwhelm and overstimulated symptoms from ASD, were, well, when I learned they were from ASD, that was when I was able to feel more comfortable asking for help. And sometimes that looks like having another person just step in for a minute so I’m not the only adult in the room, sometimes that looks like me being able to, like take a step out, just take a breath for a second, and also knowing that I feel more comfortable in my own skin to know what’s going on for me helps me to be able to get through the day…

[24:45 - 25:10] Brenna: I would say that it’s okay to be yourself. Don't be afraid to be yourself with the diagnosis or without the diagnosis. I spent so much of my life not knowing how to be me, and if I could get any of those years back, I’d definitely spend it accepting who I was and who I am - so don’t be afraid to be yourself.

Chris welcomes Maura Nolan, a licensed professional counselor who specializes in working with young adults, families, and adults with PTSD, neurodivergence, and psychosis spectrum disorders. She is currently pursuing her passions in nature-based and wilderness therapy and is working towards licensure as a psychedelic-assisted therapist and facilitator in Colorado. Together, Chris and Maura discuss Autism Learning Lab’s family retreat model and the specific benefits that parents and other family members can expect to experience through their unique program structure.

Links:

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/
Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com

Quotes:

[3:45 - 4:26] Maura: The other piece to this, beyond diagnosis, is that I’ve found psychological testing can be a lot about empowerment. So, when individuals and families are understanding more of the why behind certain struggles or behaviors, they can start to make more informed decisions, right? So it can shift this narrative from, what’s wrong, to how do we support this moving forward, right? And ultimately, individuals becoming the experts on their brain and it can also really help with individuals feeling seen and understood, right? So with this knowledge, they can advocate for themselves, develop new strategies that truly work for their unique experience and their brains.


[5:25 - 5:49] Maura: That’s why these retreats are designed not just around psycho-education but a lot of experiential learning as well, right? So, we want to be able to address family dynamics as they’re happening in the moment, give parents and families opportunity to practice new skills to better communicate - so they feel like they’re walking away with knowledge of how to handle maybe difficult situations moving forward.


[19:05 -19:57] Maura: It’s really, really important for parents to explore their own emotions, parenting styles, the ways that they communicate when navigating their child’s Autism diagnosis. This self-awareness will directly impact how they support their child, right, and foster that stronger parent-child connection. So Autism shapes, right, how an individual experiences the world. Whether it’s through communication, social interaction, sensory processing - so for parents, there’s such an importance of them understanding how Autism influences their child's functioning, right? Because that is key to how they respond from an understanding, empathic, and also an effective, and productive place. So, the retreat will support parents in a couple of different ways.

Chris welcomes Dr. Jenn Brown, the Director at Psychological Solutions. Dr. Brown has over 10 years of experience in psychological assessments in wilderness and residential treatment programs with adolescents and young adults and has written well over 700 evaluations covering a range of topics including bipolar disorders, high-functioning autism, and personality disorders, to name a few. Together, they focus on the evaluation process between men and women and how masking or differing social skills affect the ease of an official diagnosis.

Links:

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/

Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com

Dr. Jenn Brown: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/our-group/jenn-brown/

Psychological Solutions Website: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/

Chris welcomes Amy Wood, the Executive Director of Cottonwood Day School, and Michelle Bjelland, the Director of Cottonwood Day School - the first and only private non-profit elementary school for students with learning challenges in Bozeman, MT. Amy and Michelle discuss how they’ve developed a unique learning environment to cater to each student and how they partner with families for long-term success. This episode is a great resource not only for teachers working with individuals on the spectrum but also for parents looking for practical tools to assist the neurodiverse child in their life.

Links:

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/

Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com

Cottonwood Day School: https://www.cottonwooddayschool.org/

Contact Cottonwood Day School: info@cottonwooddayschool.org

Chris welcomes Dr. Aaron Wallis, a licensed psychologist with a background in college counseling and outdoor behavioral health. Dr. Wallis is currently partnered with Psychologist Solutions and is passionate about how substance use ties into attachment and trauma, specifically with those on the Autistic spectrum. Chris and Dr. Wallis discuss the trends they are starting to see between those on the spectrum and severe substance abuse, why overgeneralization is a dangerous practice, and how “typical” treatment may need to be adapted to fit the unique needs of the neurodiverse individual.

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/

Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com

Dr. Aaron Wallis: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/our-group/aaron-wallis/

Psychological Solutions Website: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/

Chris welcomes back Dr. Melissa Horne, a licensed psychologist with Psychological Solutions to discuss the science of sleep and how those on the spectrum can improve their sleep experience. This fascinating episode covers the importance of sleep for your brain and body to function at their optimal ability and also how to improve your quality of rest with some simple implementations.

Links:

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/

Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com

Dr. Melissa Horne: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/our-group/melissa-horne/

Psychological Solutions Website: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia Info: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/insomnia/in-depth/insomnia-treatment/art-20046677

Chris welcomes Dr. Melissa Horne, a licensed psychologist working with Psychological Solutions. A self-proclaimed psych testing nerd, Dr. Horne covers everything from the basics of psychological testing (what it is) to finding a professional to work with, what testing entails, and what to expect when you’re presented with the results. As Chris and Dr. Horne explain, comprehensive psychological testing is more than a “rubber stamp” label of you as a person - it’s an insight into your wonderful and complex story - ideally resulting in a thorough understanding of your unique makeup and how this knowledge can shape your future.

Links:

Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/

Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com

Dr. Melissa Horne: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/our-group/melissa-horne/

Psychological Solutions Website: https://www.psychologicalsolutions.org/