Beyond the Narrow Life – A Guide for Psychedelic Integration and Existential Exploration – buch

Autor: Kile M. Ortigo, William A. Richards (Geleitwort)

Beyond the Narrow Life seeks to ‘thread a needle’ by addressing profound themes elicited by psychospiritual and therapeutic use of psychedelics while avoiding merely ‘preaching to the choir.’ This book explores common topics that emerge during psychedelic journeys by integrating several frameworks, spanning evidence-based cognitive-behavioral therapy, Jungian depth psychology, existential philosophy, compassion and mindfulness practices, comparative mythology, pop culture, film, and scientific understandings of the cosmos. Instead of a dry overview of big ideas, Dr. Ortigo gently guides readers through an awe-inspiring journey that confronts the deeper questions and concerns we all face as humans in this modern time.

“I’d like to heartily recommend Dr. Kile Ortigo’s Beyond the Narrow Life to you as a unique work that offers a thoughtful and well-developed map and user’s guide for exploring one’s psyche – from preparation through encounter through integration into the activities of daily life. The field of psychotherapy will very much benefit from the availability of this material.” — David Presti

Kile M. Ortigo, PhD, is a clinical psychologist and founder of the Center for Existential Exploration, which supports people exploring profound questions about identity, meaning, life transitions, and psychospiritual development. He also serves on advisory boards of Psychedelic Support, an online training and clinician directory for legal, psychedelic-informed care, and Project New Day, a non-profit organization providing harm reduction resources for people using psychedelics in their addiction recovery process. For several years, Dr. Ortigo worked at the National Center for PTSD (NC-PTSD) where he collaborated on technology development and implementation projects, ranging from apps like Mindfulness Coach to online programs like webSTAIR. With colleagues at NC-PTSD, NYU, and Harvard, Dr. Ortigo coauthored Treating Survivors of Child Abuse & Interpersonal Trauma: STAIR Narrative Therapy (2nd Edition), which was released in June 2020.

William A. Richards (Bill) is a psychologist in the Psychiatry Department of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, a consultant/trainer at sites of psychedelic research internationally, a teacher in the Program of Psychedelic Therapy and Research at the California Institute of Integral Studies, and a clinician in private practice in Baltimore. From 1967 to 1977, he pursued psychotherapy research with LSD, DPT, MDA and psilocybin at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, including protocols designed to investigate the promise of psychedelic substances in the treatment of alcoholism, depression, narcotic addiction and the psychological distress associated with terminal cancer including their use in the training of religious and mental-health professionals. He is the author of Sacred Knowledge: Psychedelics and Religious Experiences released in 2015.