Wednesday, March 15th, 2023 from 12:00-1:30pm PST

Often touted in Western culture as the “model minority,” people of Asian descent have endured and survived myriad traumas ranging from wars and famines; to loss of land, language, and livelihood; to cultural erasure and bereavement resulting from forced and voluntary migration and colonization. In the Global North, both microaggressions and direct anti-Asian hostility and violence have compounded these traumas. This community forum will explore these impacts of harm, as well as ways Asians have been overlooked or “othered” (seen as foreign no matter what their nationality or upbringing), and highlight how psychedelics can help pave a path to healing for the individuals, families, and community who are connected with the most diverse and populous continent in the world. This forum will also address how trappings of Asian spirituality and philosophy are commoditized or decontextualized in psychedelic spaces, and ways all practitioners can better and more respectfully honor Asian culture and clients. Join a group or researchers, activists and visionaries from The Asian Psychedelic Collective and allies for this event.

Jay Louie 雷貽丰 LMFT (they/them) provides transformative therapies for folks wanting breakthroughs. They specialize in working with complex PTSD amongst queer and 3rd culture clients. For Jay this work is not theory. Growing up in multilingual immigrant communities in Hong Kong, Canada, US, and Central America, Jay experienced multiple cultures, but also traumas resulting in c-PTSD that resisted conventional treatments. Through talk psychotherapy and psychedelic therapy, Jay was able to access holistic healing that inspired them to share it with others professionally. Jay also assists healing through climbing and art therapy. They serve as President and Board Chair of a nonprofit for the queer climbing community.

Sadaf Lotfalian, PhD, is a Clinical Psychologist & Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapist (PAP). She is the Education Lead & Integration Facilitator at the Asian Psychedelic Collective and a grant awardee at the Psychedelic Medicine Coalition (PMC). She serves on the Advisory Board for Nectara, a psychedelic support ecosystem, and Niroomand Foundation, a mental health organization for Iranians. As an Iranian woman tackling sexism and the ethno-racial traumas of immigration, she hopes to support underrepresented communities, in psychedelic spaces and beyond. Dr. Lotfalian has trained in PAP with institutions including COMPASS Pathways, and Johns Hopkins where she co-facilitated psilocybin sessions. She has provided education about the therapeutic use of psychedelics at UCLA. She has published research validating yogic breathwork as an efficacious tool for addictions such as smoking. Her grant from the PMC is titled “Reclaiming Safe Psychedelic Spaces.” It focuses on bringing awareness to the ongoing neglect and harm that exist in psychedelic communities.

Simran Sethi (she/her) is a narrative practitioner and independent scholar focused on personal, social, and environmental change. Her current research as a visiting academic at PUFIN Centre at The Open University in Milton Keynes, UK is on the biocultural diversity of earth medicines and communities and lands that steward them. She is the founder of the Asian Psychedelic Collective, an emerging space of belonging and support for Asians working with and in psychedelics. She is also a member of the first Fireside Project equity cohort, ensuring culturally responsive peer support for psychedelic experiences and integration, and serves on the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion team at the American Psychedelic Practitioners Association. Named one of the “50 Most Influential Global Indians” by Vogue India and the “environmental messenger” by Vanity Fair, Simran has written for outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, National Geographic, Smithsonian, Guernica, and The Guardian.

Psychedelic Healing for Ethnoracial Trauma in the Asian Community