Intensive Therapy Retreats

Preparation: It is important to note that your ketamine-assisted intensive retreat can be a challenging and emotionally exhausting experience. Please plan on providing yourself with as much self-care as you need to support yourself while working through the retreat. The work we do in session will continue to integrate for days and months after the end of your retreat, but may feel most acute within the space of the retreat itself.

Some self-care ideas to consider during your retreat:

• Prioritize nutritious meals to support your body and mind during this intensive work. Explore our healthy dining options located within downtown Northampton for recommendations.

• Allocate time for relaxation in a calm environment, with the knowledge that you may feel extra sensitive to external stimuli.

• Ensure you get adequate rest to facilitate the formation of new neural pathways in your brain.

• Share your plans with a trusted individual for additional support if needed.

• Engage in gentle activities like walking or light hiking in nature for grounding.

• Avoid the consumption of drugs or alcohol, as they may impede the processing and integration of your experience.

Day 1: Intake, Establishing Resources & Worst Things List

On the first day of your ketamine-assisted intensive retreat, you will spend the morning going through a comprehensive orientation, your where you and your therapist will delve into your personal history, current life circumstances, strengths, challenges, and prior therapeutic experiences. Together, you'll outline short-term and long-term goals for the retreat and beyond. By midday, provided you are ready to get started, you will have the opportunity to initiate the profound work of addressing core traumas utilizing EMDR and other proven modalities.

Before delving into trauma processing, you'll embark on visualization exercises aimed at creating internal resources to support you through challenging memories. Techniques such as envisioning a "safe place" or cultivating a sense of "secure attachment" with a mentor figure will provide grounding and resilience. Additionally, you'll collaboratively construct a chronological "worst things list," rating each memory's subjective distress level so we can see how your subjective discomfort shifts through your retreat. This step serves as a foundation for trauma processing, with the ultimate goal of minimizing distress associated with traumatic memories.

If you and your therapist complete intake during the morning session, you will have the opportunity to begin the profound work of trauma processing in the afternoon. Each therapist utilizes their own unique combination of modalities to help you achieve your goals, including EMDR, ART, IFS and more.

Day 2: Medicine Session & Integration

Your first medicine day, you will have your ketamine session in the morning. Your therapist will be present with you throughout the entire session as well as for the time afterwards, which will be used for insights, integration, and the opportunity to do more EMDR processing should you feel up for it.

Day 3: Trauma Processing

You will continue the processing of your past experiences with EMDR, ART, IFS and other techniques, allowing time for reflection and integration.

Day 4: Medicine Session & Integration

Returning to medicine-assisted therapy, you will have another opportunity to enter the non-ordinary realm of ketamine, reaching deeper levels of yourself for profound healing and exploration. You will have the opportunity to engage in more trauma processing in the afternoon

Day 5: Trauma Processing & Wrap-Up

Your final day makes space to engage in further processing and wrap-up activities. Emphasis will be placed on integrating healthy coping mechanisms and revisiting your trauma list to gauge progress. The goal is to significantly reduce or eliminate distress associated with all of your target memories.