Oregon’s progress toward integrating magic mushroom therapy has experienced a setback.

On Friday, Oregon marked a significant milestone in its groundbreaking approach to legalizing psilocybin therapy with the first cohort of students graduating from a training program designed to assist patients during psychedelic mushroom sessions. However, the bankruptcy of a company has left another group of individuals pursuing the same path without guidance.

The graduation ceremony, held by Portland-based InnerTrek, took place in a rustic retreat center and involved 35 students, while an additional 70 are scheduled to graduate on Saturday and Sunday. As part of the ceremony, the students committed to avoiding harming their patients.

The experts’ opinion

Tom Eckert, the program director at InnerTrek, emphasized the significance of facilitator training in the state’s pioneering initiative. According to Eckert, the success of the program hinges on the quality of training provided to facilitators.

To obtain certification from InnerTrek, the students are required to pass a final examination. Once they have received their certificates, they must also take a test administered by the Oregon Health Authority to obtain their facilitator licenses.

According to Angie Allbee, the manager of the psilocybin services section at the state health authority, the graduation of the first cohort of students from approved psilocybin facilitator training programs is a major accomplishment for Oregon. Allbee congratulated the graduates and the training programs responsible for their education, describing the occasion as a significant and historic moment in the history of psilocybin.

On Friday, the health authority disclosed the news that it had received a total of 191 license and work permit applications. These include applications for licenses from manufacturers of psilocybin, as well as service centers where individuals can consume and experience the psychedelic substance.

Allbee anticipates that the students will submit their license applications soon, bringing the state closer to opening service centers in 2023. The six-month, $7,900 course offered by InnerTrek included both online and in-person classes, with the latter being conducted in a building near Portland that resembled a mountain lodge.

What did the training consist of?

During their training, the students were informed that a dosing session at a licensed center should provide clients with a couch or mats to sit or lie on, an eye mask, comfort items such as a blanket and stuffed animals, a sketch pad, pencils, and a bucket for vomiting. These sessions typically last at least six hours and often involve music.

The trainers emphasized the importance of allowing clients to freely explore the emotions that arise during their inner journeys, without any restrictions or limitations.

Scientists posit that psilocybin alters the way the brain structures itself, thereby enabling users to more easily adopt new attitudes and potentially overcome conditions such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), alcoholism, and other related issues.

The mixed reviews

According to Eckert, graduating students are now equipped to help clients understand the advantages of psilocybin therapy. He believes that this moment marks a significant turning point for our society and nation as we begin to reassess and reconsider the nature of mental health and wellness while providing genuine healing to those who require it.

Meanwhile, a separate facilitator training program in southern Oregon has left its students dissatisfied, with a lawyer in the Netherlands attempting to determine the cause of the situation.

Students fighting for refunds

As per court documents from the Netherlands, the Synthesis Institute, a company with over 200 students in Oregon, was declared bankrupt on Tuesday. An article in Psychedelic Alpha reported this development. The company’s website, which was still active as of Friday, shows a tuition fee of $12,997. Consequently, the affected students are currently seeking refunds.

Conclusion:

Although Oregon voters approved the psilocybin measure in 2020, the drug was not legalized until January 1, 2023. The psilocybin therapy sessions are anticipated to be accessible to the public by the middle or end of 2023. In November News, Colorado voters passed a ballot measure permitting the regulated use of “magic mushrooms,” which will start in 2024.