Why Patience is Key to Seeing Results in Psychedelic Therapy
Psychedelic therapy is a marathon – one that doesn’t have a finish line.
As public opinion of psychedelics improves, advocates increasingly portray them as a miracle cure.
We’ve all seen the headlines…
“Like 10 years of therapy in one night.”
“Can magic mushrooms cure depression?”
“How psychedelics rewire your brain”
Don’t get me wrong, psychedelics can certainly feel miraculous when we’re peaking on five grams of mushrooms, or meeting entities in the DMT dimensions.
But the reality is that they are not a shortcut to healing. In my 20+ years of psychedelic exploration and 6+ years of experience working as a psychedelic therapist and ceremonial guide, what I overwhelmingly see is that real, sustained results require… real, sustained effort.
The Illusion of the Quick Fix
Our culture craves instant results. Convenience. Minimal effort for maximum results.
And while this may be possible to reach when it comes to getting your groceries delivered, psychedelic therapy works in a different paradigm. Healing with psychedelic medicines is not linear, not predictable, and certainly not immediate.
Like many things in life, we get out what we put in. Just as building a healthy, strong body takes consistent effort, with each workout adding to overall well-being, healing works the same way: there are no shortcuts.
The Unfolding Nature of the Healing Process
It’s crucial we break away from seeing psychedelic therapy as a journey with a fixed destination. While you may set an initial intention for this work, it often unfolds in unexpected ways, taking you deeper into yourself and your existence.
The good news is that this process of self-exploration and uncovering of wounds allows for more opportunities for healing. It paves the way for your life to blossom into something richer and more beautiful, all the while revealing complexities you never knew existed.
When people ask me, “How long until I heal my [depression/childhood trauma/attachment wounds, etc.]?”
I tell them there’s no timeline. While one person may be ready for psychedelic therapy the moment they reach out to me, another individual might require years of preparation before the moment is right.
What's more, integration – the process of weaving psychedelic experiences and insights into your everyday life and way of being – is a lifelong journey. Studies show that integration is not just a post-trip reflection or checklist. It’s an ongoing process that’s essential for translating psychedelic insights into lasting change.
What Progress Really Looks Like
Contrary to the ‘breakthrough’ experiences we hear from online trip reports and celebrity stories, psychedelic healing is formed of subtle shifts in awareness that build up to meaningful change over time.
Imagine a plane taking off from LA – a few degrees of difference at the start can mean landing in New York or Miami.
The process of healing and transformation is similarly made up of small, one-degree shifts. This can look like progressively becoming aware of your inner world, whether it’s noticing fewer self-critical or negative thought patterns, or simply taking the role of an observer of your mind.
Maybe it’s slowly integrating self-care habits that allow you to nourish your mind and body. Starting to cook food at home instead of eating out. Building a relationship with the nature you have around you. Introducing mindful movement or a meditation practice to your daily routine.
Psychedelics create a window of opportunity post-journey to implement new habits and ways of being. But they don’t do the work for us.
After working with over 150 people over the years with psilocybin, I estimate that less than 40% of people have had a ‘breakthrough’ experience during a psychedelic session. And those who don’t still experience profound results through this gradual unfolding. One thing that is key, though, in creating these shifts is support.
The Power of Support Systems
When taken in a container that provides support before, during, and after journeys, psychedelic experiences result in deeper, more enduring positive changes and significantly fewer adverse effects.
Support can look many ways. In psychedelic therapy, you should have a trained professional who helps you prepare and understand your intention going into the experience. During the journey, your therapist provides support and safety so you can let go and receive the wisdom of the medicine.
In the aftermath, your therapist or an integration specialist can help you unpack what happened and decipher your experience into concrete insights and changes for your life.
Without this support, psychedelic experiences can remain unintegrated, as standalone journeys that hold no impact in your day-to-day life.
Connection to a wider community can also support long-term healing with psychedelics. One study found that community-based non-therapeutic integration groups play a vital role in the positive integration of psychedelic experiences, improving mental health and quality of life for users.
These circles offer a safe space to feel seen and held in the presence of a supportive group, allow us to learn from one another’s journeys, and build meaningful relationships with others on the path of psychedelic healing.
Stories of Transformation Through Patience
I once worked with a woman I met at a retreat I hosted, where she had her first mushroom experience without therapeutic support. She struggled to integrate it at the time.
Later, she began therapy with me, but after about a year, she paused when we touched on deep early attachment wounds. Six months later, she returned, ready to dive deeper.
Over the next two years, she engaged in ongoing therapy, supported by a few mushroom journeys and a series of ketamine-assisted sessions.
By the time we ended our work together – nearly three years later – her inner world had transformed. Her outlook on life had shifted dramatically, her relationships had deepened, and she was following the wisdom of her own healing process.
Another client spent five years in therapy before ever touching psychedelics. When he felt ready to dive in, his healing journey deepened – beginning with ketamine sessions, followed by mushrooms a year later, and another ketamine series after that. When we ended our work, he was healthier, more connected to himself, others, and his spiritual path.
These stories just go to show how – yes, psychedelics can help facilitate profound healing and transformation – but to access the depth of those benefits, they are best combined with a sustained therapeutic process.
Choosing the Long Road
If you're considering psychedelic therapy, I invite you to reflect on where you are now and what you're willing to invest in creating the changes you desire.
Healing is a sacred and complex process and deserves time and patience.
Have you built the foundation to truly receive the full gifts of the psychedelic journey?
Or would you be better off spending time first laying the foundation, with the support of a psychedelic therapist or coach?
We are not far away from legal psilocybin therapy here in Colorado, and right now there’s no more important message than this one: this is not a quick fix or a shortcut to healing. But if you’re ready to do the work, the blessings can feel infinite.
Ready to start your process of psychedelic healing?
Schedule a consultation with Reflective Healing today. We would be honored to support you on this path.