Trainings & Community Education
Thank you for your interest in educational events and trainings with The Pearl Psychedelic Institute. Below please find those currently offered.
For more info, email info@pearlpsychedelicinstitute.org with specific course name & date of interest. Payment plans available upon request.​
Thursday, March 13th 2025
Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) Didactic training is a unique therapeutic approach used to address a variety of mental health conditions, including treatment-refractory depression, post-traumatic stress, obsessive-compulsive disorder and addictions.
It involves the use of the psychoactive substance ketamine combined with psychotherapy to enhance and deepen the therapeutic process. This training offers an overview of ketamine use in psychiatry, a review of current research, discussion of appropriate indications and uses in treatment, and education on the differences in varying models of ketamine treatment.
This training also provides discussion of unique ethical considerations, boundaries and abuse of power in the rapidly evolving field of psychedelic medicine.
At the conclusion of this training, participants will possess a basic understanding of this innovative model of treatment.
Presenters will utilize a lecture-based format.
March 14th - 16th 2025
Description of the Experiential Portion of KAP Weekend
The experiential component of the Introduction to Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) Weekend is intended to give participants valuable experience as both a journeyer/patient as well as a sitter/support person.
In order to fully understand the nature of working with
non-ordinary states of consciousness, it is an important part of training that prospective psychedelic-assisted therapists/sitters/support persons be familiar with these experiences from a personal level.
Ketamine is a legal Schedule III compound that is capable of stimulating these experiences in a controlled, safe, clinically-supervised manner.
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Day One of the Experiential component will consist of participants divided into treatment pairs where each person will have an experience as a journeyer/patient as well as a sitter/support person. The morning session will consist of the journeyer/patient using a troche or lozenge to create a non-ordinary state of consciousness while the sitter/support person will get experience holding space for and supporting their partner’s experience. Pearl staff will provide medical and clinical supervision throughout the session.
​​Following some time to practice integration skills as a pair there will then be some time for group integration for those who wish to voluntarily share their experiences. After lunch the afternoon session will be the same activities but with the treatment pairs switching roles. Another group integration session closes out the day.
Day Two is the same as Day One except participants will be divided into different pairs and the morning and afternoon sessions will be the same but for these sessions, an intramuscular (IM) injection will be the route of administration. We feel it is important that potential practitioners have experience with these two routes of administration because they are two of the most common routes of administration used in the field (with the exception of intravenous (IV)).
As with Day One sessions, these are closely monitored medically and clinically by trained Pearl staff and will include time for individual and group integration. At the conclusion of Day Two, participants will get to experience a Sound Bath from a local renowned musician to expose them to another potential aspect of the integration process.
Day Three has been recently added to focus more on both short-term and long-term integration strategies. The importance of integration when working with non-ordinary states of consciousness cannot be overstated and many training programs overlook this. This Day will begin at 10am and end at 3pm and will focus on nurturing participants in their own integration process as well as offering tools for sustaining integration work on a more long-term basis, both for themselves and their potential future patients.
There will also be time for appropriate closure before participants head home with a day off (Sunday) to assist in the transition back to their professional lives.
Full KAP Training Details HERE
Thursday, October 2nd 2025
Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) Didactic training is a unique therapeutic approach used to address a variety of mental health conditions, including treatment-refractory depression, post-traumatic stress, obsessive-compulsive disorder and addictions.
It involves the use of the psychoactive substance ketamine combined with psychotherapy to enhance and deepen the therapeutic process. This training offers an overview of ketamine use in psychiatry, a review of current research, discussion of appropriate indications and uses in treatment, and education on the differences in varying models of ketamine treatment.
This training also provides discussion of unique ethical considerations, boundaries and abuse of power in the rapidly evolving field of psychedelic medicine.
At the conclusion of this training, participants will possess a basic understanding of this innovative model of treatment.
Presenters will utilize a lecture-based format.
October 3rd - 5th 2025
Description of the Experiential Portion of KAP Weekend
The experiential component of the Introduction to Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) Weekend is intended to give participants valuable experience as both a journeyer/patient as well as a sitter/support person.
In order to fully understand the nature of working with
non-ordinary states of consciousness, it is an important part of training that prospective psychedelic-assisted therapists/sitters/support persons be familiar with these experiences from a personal level.
Ketamine is a legal Schedule III compound that is capable of stimulating these experiences in a controlled, safe, clinically-supervised manner.
​
Day One of the Experiential component will consist of participants divided into treatment pairs where each person will have an experience as a journeyer/patient as well as a sitter/support person. The morning session will consist of the journeyer/patient using a troche or lozenge to create a non-ordinary state of consciousness while the sitter/support person will get experience holding space for and supporting their partner’s experience. Pearl staff will provide medical and clinical supervision throughout the session.
​​Following some time to practice integration skills as a pair there will then be some time for group integration for those who wish to voluntarily share their experiences. After lunch the afternoon session will be the same activities but with the treatment pairs switching roles. Another group integration session closes out the day.
Day Two is the same as Day One except participants will be divided into different pairs and the morning and afternoon sessions will be the same but for these sessions, an intramuscular (IM) injection will be the route of administration. We feel it is important that potential practitioners have experience with these two routes of administration because they are two of the most common routes of administration used in the field (with the exception of intravenous (IV)).
As with Day One sessions, these are closely monitored medically and clinically by trained Pearl staff and will include time for individual and group integration. At the conclusion of Day Two, participants will get to experience a Sound Bath from a local renowned musician to expose them to another potential aspect of the integration process.
Day Three has been recently added to focus more on both short-term and long-term integration strategies. The importance of integration when working with non-ordinary states of consciousness cannot be overstated and many training programs overlook this. This Day will begin at 10am and end at 3pm and will focus on nurturing participants in their own integration process as well as offering tools for sustaining integration work on a more long-term basis, both for themselves and their potential future patients.
There will also be time for appropriate closure before participants head home with a day off (Sunday) to assist in the transition back to their professional lives.
Full KAP Training Details HERE
POSTPONED UNTIL WINTER 2025 due to Hurricane Helene
MDMA-Assisted Therapy for PTSD: Expanded Access and Beyond
In this three hour program, take an exciting deep dive with Dr. Raymond Turpin of the Pearl Psychedelic Institute into the history and promise of MDMA-assisted therapy for the treatment of PTSD. Dr. Turpin was an Investigator in the FDA's Expanded Access program and treated North Carolina patients that had been suffering from treatment-resistant PTSD for a minimum of 35 years.
This program will examine the story of MDMA, the research into its uses for treating PTSD, the brain chemistry behind MDMA's therapeutic effectiveness and a discussion of Dr. Turpin's experiences with this psychedelic-assisted approach to treating PTSD. Attendees will leave fully informed on this promising treatment and have a deeper understanding of why this and other psychedelic-assisted therapies demand serious consideration for safe, legal accessibility.
Continuing Education units (3 CEs) has been approved for 3 CEs from NBCC. Seating is limited.
Pricing:
Without CEs: $100
With CEs: $150
To reserve your seat, please email info@pearlpsychedelicinstitute.org.
*Graduate students are eligible for reduced fee entry so please include "Grad Student requesting reduced fee" in your email to us.
For more information, please email info@pearlpsychedelicinstitute.org with specific course name & date of interest.
Please see registration policies below:
Registration Policies
Tuition listed include administrative costs and educational materials. The Pearl has a pay-up-front policy for all programs. The only exceptions will be for pre-approved programs where an individual payment plan is appropriate. Registrations that are received without accompanying payment will not be processed and participants who have not paid the course fee will not be admitted into the program.
Unless otherwise noted in course materials, the following cancellation policy applies to all programs:
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Cancellations must be in writing (via email or mail)
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Cancellations received more than 2 weeks prior to the event will receive 100% refund
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Cancellations received between two weeks and two full business days prior to the first day of the event are refunded at 70% of the registration fee subject to a minimum $25 cancellation fee
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No refunds or credits will be given for cancellations received less than two full business days prior to the event
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Refund exceptions due to medical or family emergencies will be handled on a case by case basis.
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Partial credits for Continuing Education hours are not offered.
The Pearl assumes permission to use audio, video and still images from all programs for promotional and educational purposes. Please contact us prior to registering if you have any concerns.
If you require learning or accessibility accommodations during the training or have any questions, please contact The Pearl Marketing & Communications Director, Kim Turpin, at kturpin@pearlpsychedelicinstitute.org, 828-507-1421.
The Pearl CE, Training, & Workshop Handbook can be found here .
Presenters
Raymond Turpin
PsyD
Joel Chisholm
Medical Director
Star Rose Bond
Therapist
Jackie Dobrinska
Integration Coach
"Healing from trauma can also mean strength and joy. The goal of healing is not a papering-over of changes in an effort to preserve or present things as normal. It is to acknowledge and wear your new life – warts, wisdom, and all – with courage."
Catherine Woodiwiss