We sat down with Denise Rue LCSW and Stephanie Field LCSW, LCADC of the New Jersey Psychedelic Therapy Association (NJPTA) – an organization with a mission to create a community of therapists, advocates, and educators dedicated to advancing the field of psychedelic therapy.
The establishment of the NJPTA emerged quite organically; Denise first created the organization on Meetup, and soon, a group of passionate individuals joined her in brainstorming and shaping its mission. The organization’s structure emerged naturally, with individuals stepping up to offer their talents and skills in advocacy, education, networking, and more. They now meet monthly for advocacy work, peer support and consultation groups, article discussions, book clubs, and webinars.
“Back in April, I just created the organization on Meetup and then all these lovely people came to me and we brainstormed and decided that why we’re here is to create community and support for therapists doing this work to educate anyone in the state and outside of the state about psychedelic assisted therapy and psychedelic medicines and to advocate.
So specifically, we’re doing advocacy work for passage of the Psilocybin Behavioral Health and Access Bill, which is in the legislature now and could very well be voted on after the election. Down the line in a year, the FDA may reschedule MDMA and Psilocybin, so we wanted to get therapists’ voices out there because we’re the ones doing the work. We’re in the trenches. Not that physicians and business people and cannabis representatives shouldn’t have a voice, but we believe that we should have an incredibly strong voice in this conversation.”
— Denise Rue LCSW
When asked about the challenges the NJPTA faces, Denise and Stephanie explained that despite robust clinical research supporting the efficacy of these treatments, many therapists remain unaware or misinformed. NJPTA recognizes the importance of education and aims to bridge this knowledge gap within the mental health field.
We’re incredibly proud that many of the board seats of the NJPTA are held by our very own Journey Clinical member KAP providers. The NJPTA stands as a testament to the power of collaboration and community-driven leadership within the Journey Clinical network and beyond. In taking the leap to offer KAP, our member KAP providers become leaders in their own communities, paving the path ahead for other psychotherapists to do this work.
Congratulations to all who were involved in the founding of the NJPTA on this major achievement. We hope this story will inspire other Journey Clinical members to build community in their local areas and carry out key advocacy work.
For more information about Journey Clinical’s platform and membership , which enables licensed mental health professionals to offer Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy in their own practice, visit www.journeyclinical.com.