Working with Erotic Feelings in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy: A psychodynamic approach with Dr. Pat Song and Sarah Tilley
Sexual boundary violations by therapists and sitters are a recurring and serious issue in the field of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Psychedelics induce a profoundly open and emotionally vulnerable state in participants. At the same time, the setting itself can stir unexpected and disorienting erotic feelings or energy in practitioners themselves.
These experiences are often misunderstood, avoided, or pathologised. Yet they hold valuable clinical information about nonsexual needs, feelings, and experiences of the patient. Learning how to safely and ethically navigate these emotional states is therefore essential for any practitioner working in this field.
In this free online conversation, psychedelic-assisted therapist Sarah Tilley is joined by clinical psychologist Dr Pat Song, who will offer a psychodynamic framework for understanding and working with erotic transference and countertransference in psychedelic-assisted therapy. Drawing on clinical research and interviews with therapists and participants, Dr Song will explore how to recognise and safely navigate these intense emotional states.
In this session, you will learn how to:
Understand erotic transference as a communication of nonsexual needs and history
Recognise and manage countertransference, including erotic responses in the practitioner
Identify red flag behaviours and attitudes in yourself and others
Apply strategies for reducing the risk of boundary violations
Develop clinical formulations that are developmental, intrapsychic, and relational
Use psychodynamic thinking to work safely with intense and vulnerable feelings
Case material from ongoing interviews with psychedelic therapists and participants will also be presented.
This session is designed for psychedelic therapists, guides, and practitioners committed to working with greater emotional awareness, relational depth, and ethical responsibility.
There will be a live Q&A, + a recording of the talk will be sent out to all ticket holders.
About Dr Pat Song
Pat Song, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist practising in Vermont. She conducts qualitative research on experiences of erotic transference and countertransference in psychedelic-assisted therapy. She has clinical and research training in addiction and trauma and has conducted provider trainings across the US. Most recently, Dr. Song has presented on psychedelic literacy and on working with erotic feelings in psychedelic-assisted therapy. She graduated from the psychedelic-assisted therapy programs at CIIS, Fluence KAP Program and PRATI.