🤯 Want to coach with psychedelics? Know what’s legal – and what’s not.

Several coaches have asked me lately about working with clients around psychedelics.

It’s a topic that’s coming up more and more often.

If you want to coach clients using psychedelics, legally what are you allowed – and NOT allowed – to do?

This is Part 1 of a 3-part series so return to the blog all week for more to come!

There are a lot of different types of psychedelics on the rise in the personal development space, like:

❇️ ketamine
❇️ psilocybin
❇️ cannabis
❇️ MDMA
❇️ LSD
❇️ ayahuasca
❇️ peyote (mescaline)
❇️ bufotenine (Sonoran Desert Toad)

Some are legal. Some aren’t.
Some are allowed for “medical” reasons and require a prescription. Some aren’t.
Some are taken by microdosing. Some aren’t.
Some are administered under supervision by a doctor or therapist. Some aren’t.

Know there’s a lot of conflicting information out there – and varying state laws.

✔️ I know you like to be on the cutting-edge of health and wellness.
✔️ I know you want to expand ways to help people.
✔️ I know you may believe in the healing power of psychedelics.

I totally get it.

So you may be wondering…

Can I coach around psychedelics which require a prescription or medical supervision – like intravenous ketamine?

❌ No, please don’t “coach” around psychedelics requiring a prescription.

I don’t want to break your heart, but if you’re a coach and you want to help a client “process” what has come up for them after their intravenous ketamine session… please don’t.

Why? There are several reasons.

Reason #1. Because certain psychedelics – like ketamine – are considered approved for “medical” use – and legal only in certain states.

This means a prescription is required with supervision by a licensed medical practitioner in a patient relationship.

In other states, it’s not even legal to use them at all.

There’s a reason why ketamine clinics staffed by physicians and therapists refer patients to THERAPISTS after a session. It’s to process the trauma which comes up during a session which legally needs to be managed by a licensed medical practitioner in a patient medical relationship. (More on that coming later this week….)

Reason #2. You could be accused of the unlicensed practice of medicine or therapy.

If you’re a coach, you’re not legally authorized to supervise the use of prescribed medications or substances. Only licensed medical practitioners can do so.

You already know this…

It’s just like how you can’t legally coach people around their mental health meds for “depression” or “anxiety”.

Or meds for physical health like “diabetes”.

Or ANY medical disease or condition for that matter outside of a physician (or other licensed practitioner)-patient relationship.

I teach this concept all the time…

Legally, you can’t diagnose, treat, prevent, cure, heal or manage medical and/or mental health diseases, conditions, symptoms, or issues – or dosages or types of medications – unless you’re a licensed medical practitioner operating in scope in a patient relationship in the states where you are licensed. Otherwise, it’s considered the “unlicensed practice” of medicine and/or therapy.

Remember…disease management or treatment (including meds) requires a medical license. Optimizing healthy living (aka health coaching) does not.

Reason #3 – You could be liable because you’re working with a client around an illegal substance.

Worse than anything else, an adverse reaction could happen to the client while taking psychedelics (heaven forbid!) during your coaching session or program.

If you’re thinking, “Well, can’t I just avoid liability if something goes wrong by using a disclaimer which says they are working with me at their own risk?”

No. Not in this case.

You can’t use a disclaimer to block you from liability around ILLEGAL activity. It doesn’t work that way when it comes to illegal substances or actions.

If you’re also thinking, “Truly, Lisa, some of these substances shouldn’t even BE illegal.” I get it. But that’s an entirely different matter altogether. At the moment, many ARE illegal and so in the current legal world we’re living in, I recommend following the law.

✅ Please leave working with psychedelics which require a prescription or medical supervision to the licensed professionals… for all kinds of reasons.

I can’t stress this enough. (Don’t say I didn’t warn you….)

As always, know you can always take whatever level of risk you want in your own business. It’s your choice.

But, my job is to help educate you about areas of risk in your business based on where the laws are RIGHT NOW. #legallove 💗

🛑 For now, please use caution and refrain from putting your clients, yourself and your practice at risk – and stay on the legal side of all things psychedelics.🛑

Stay tuned on Wednesday for my next FAQ around coaching with psychedelics when it comes to another popular topic… microdosing.

Here’s to expanding the realm of holistic health and healing – but also to staying legally safe!

Want to know more about how to stay away from making a medical claim or getting in trouble for the unlicensed practice of medicine/therapy? Grab my quick & easy 1-hour DIY Legal Master Class on “How Not To Make Medical Claims….And What to Do Instead” HERE.