#12: Dr. Gita Vaid: The Future of Psychotherapy

Welcome back to The Trip Report Podcast, a production of Beckley Waves, a Psychedelic Venture Studio.Today, we’re joined by Dr. Gita Vaid, an NYU-trained psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and founder of The Center for Natural Intelligence in New York City.Dr. Vaid has been working with the likes of Richard Schwartz, Phillip Wolfson, and Deepak Chopra over the last several years to train healthcare providers on psychedelic-assisted therapies and to develop novel psychotherapeutic protocols.Dr. Vaid’s Innovation Project at the Center for Natural Intelligence is a think tank and incubator that aims to develop novel Psychotherapy modalities suited for working with psychedelics and altered states. One such approach she is developing with Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk, author of The Body Keeps the Score, the canonical book that really kickstarted the movement for trauma-informed, somatically based approaches that are gaining traction in the treatment of trauma and other mental health conditions.This conversation came at the perfect time, as my work at The Trip Report and Beckley Waves is focused on the development of suitable and tailored “wrap-around” support for psychedelic-assisted therapies.As psychedelic-assisted healing continues to gain traction across the culture and as we inch closer to FDA-approved psychedelic substances, the need for innovative, effective, and tailored approaches to support and therapy is a top priority for the field, and Gita’s work is a great example of innovation in this area.In this episode, we discuss* Freud’s interest in non-ordinary states of consciousness* The similarities and differences between hypnosis and psychedelic experiences* The importance of the body and feelings in the body for emotional regulation* The therapeutic utility of ego dissolution* And, of course, what the future of psychotherapy looks likeI hope you enjoy it, and without further ado, I bring you my conversation with Gita Vaid.Listen to the episode on Substack, Spotify, Google or Apple.Credits:* Hosted by Zach Haigney * Produced by Zach Haigney, Erin Greenhouse, and Katelin Jabbari* Find us at thetripreport.com* Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube* Theme music by MANCHO Sounds, Mixed and Mastered by Rollin Weary This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thetripreport.com