Tessa Cowley-Court

Thesis Title

Life after ayahuasca: Exploring the psychedelic integration process following ayahuasca consumption

Description of Research Project

Western interest in the therapeutic use of ayahuasca has increased significantly in recent decades. While evidence of ayahuasca’s therapeutic potential is growing, little is yet known about how ayahuasca consumers “integrate” or make sense of their experiences in the post-treatment period. This post-ayahuasca integration process is important to understand, as it has been shown to influence subsequent mental health and wellbeing outcomes. This thesis aims to: (a) explore the lived experience of integration from the perspective of ayahuasca consumers; (b) describe the psychedelic integration process in the context of ayahuasca use; and (c) investigate challenges, barriers and enablers of post-ayahuasca integration. The evidence generated in this project will contribute to an understanding of how ayahuasca can be used safely in Western-oriented, therapeutic contexts, and how therapeutic benefits may be sustained in the longer term.

Supervisors

Principle Supervisor: Prof Richard Chenhall

Co-Supervisor: Dr Daniel Perkins

Biography

Tessa is a graduate researcher at the Centre for Health Equity in the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health (MSPGH). Her research focuses on the therapeutic use of the Amazonian plant medicine, ayahuasca, which is classed as a "classic psychedelic" and the subject of increasing Western interest (and possibly a bit of hype). Tessa also works with a group of researchers planning Phase I and Phase II clinical trials of an ayahuasca-type drug product, which is a collaboration between UoM and St. Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne. Prior to joining MSPGH, Tessa was studying psychology at the University of Melbourne, and even before that she spent seven years in corporate consulting (which she is still recovering from)!

Funding/Scholarships

Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship (Stipend)

ORCID ID:  https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5060-365X