The Radical Idea Changing Mental Health Treatment
Why Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Deserves Serious Attention
Mental health care is facing a profound challenge. Rates of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and trauma-related disorders continue to rise, yet many people find themselves cycling through medications and conventional therapies with limited or incomplete relief. This growing gap between need and effectiveness is why psychedelic-assisted therapy is now being examined with renewed seriousness by researchers, clinicians, and policymakers.
In this episode of The Empowering Neurologist, I’m joined by Will Van Derveer, MD, a psychiatrist and psychotherapist who brings rare depth, rigor, and clinical responsibility to this evolving field.
Dr. Van Derveer has practiced integrative psychiatry in Boulder, Colorado since 2002, focusing on trauma, PTSD, and holistic approaches to healing. He is a study physician and psychotherapist on multiple MAPS-sponsored clinical trials, evaluating MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. In these trials, he has worked directly with participants, providing preparation sessions, MDMA psychotherapy, and integration, the critical components that distinguish therapeutic use from unsupervised or recreational exposure.
His credentials reflect the bridge he builds between conventional medicine and emerging therapies. Dr. Van Derveer earned his MD from Vanderbilt University, is certified by the American Board of Integrative and Holistic Medicine, and completed training through the MAPS MDMA Therapy Training Program. He is also experienced in ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, psychedelic integration, and holistic psychiatric diagnosis.
What makes this work especially compelling is its relevance to trauma. Trauma often becomes embedded in the nervous system, shaping perception, emotional reactivity, and behavior in ways that are difficult to access through talk therapy alone. Research suggests that psychedelic-assisted approaches may temporarily reduce fear-based defenses, increase psychological flexibility, and allow individuals to revisit painful experiences with a greater sense of safety and perspective.
Dr. Van Derveer emphasizes that these therapies are not about replacing one drug with another. In fact, he is deeply committed to teaching psychiatric providers how to help patients heal without relying solely on medications. Psychedelic medicines, when used responsibly and legally, are best understood as catalysts, tools that can open a window for insight and emotional processing, while the real work of healing unfolds through skilled therapy and integration.
Beyond clinical trials, Dr. Van Derveer has several years of experience participating in indigenous shamanic medicine ceremonies abroad and has facilitated integration work for retreat participants during and after programs with Dr. Gabor Maté. This background gives him a nuanced understanding of both the promise and the limits of these medicines.
As mental health challenges grow more complex, it is reasonable, and necessary, to explore therapies that address root causes rather than symptoms alone. This conversation with Dr. Will Van Derveer invites us to move beyond stigma and hype, and toward a more thoughtful, ethical, and science-informed understanding of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
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Will Van Derveer, MD is a psychiatrist and author of Psychedelic Therapy: Restore Your Mental Health and Reclaim Your Life which will be published by ShambhalaPublications in the Spring of 2026.
He is co-founder of Integrative Psychiatry Institute, which has provided comprehensive training for 2500 mental health professionals in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy several thousand professionals in other continuing education programs.
He is medical director of Integrative Psychiatry Center of Boulder, CO, providing integrative psychiatry for a broad range of conditions and ketamine-assisted psychotherapy for treatment-resistant depression and PTSD.
In addition to his clinical practice and teaching, he has staffed clinical trials sponsored by MAPS, investigating MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for chronic, treatment-resistant PTSD.
Dr. Van Derveer is co-host of the Higher Practice Podcast, where he explores what it takes to achieve optimal mental health.
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