#396: Marcela Ot’alora — How to Become a Psychedelic Therapist

"The only way to not be afraid of someone's suffering is if you're not afraid of your own." — Marcela Ot'alora G. Marcela Ot'alora G. is a psychotherapist and an installation artist. Her interest and focus on trauma has led her to understand the healing process as an intimate reconnection with one's essence through love, integrity, acceptance, and honoring of the human spirit. In addition to working with trauma and PTSD, she has dedicated her professional life to teaching and research. She uses art as a vehicle for deepening the relationship to self, others, and the natural world. Marcela worked as a co-therapist in MAPS' very first government regulated MDMA-assisted psychotherapy study in Madrid, Spain. She served as the principal investigator for MAPS' phase two MDMA-assisted psychotherapy study, and is currently in the MDMDA healthy volunteer study and phase three in Boulder, Colorado. She is also a trainer and supervisor for therapists working on MAPS studies for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. You can find additional resources from this episode in the show notes below. They are also separately curated on this page: tim.blog/therapyresources This episode is brought to you by Ring. You might already know about its smart video doorbells and cameras that protect millions of people everywhere. Ring helps you stay connected to your home from anywhere in the world. So if there's a package delivery or a surprise visitor, you'll get an alert and be able to see, hear, and speak to whoever is at your door—all from your phone. Ring's core mission is to make neighborhoods safer. I've used Ring for years now. It catches and records all the regular stuff like deliveries and so on, but it's also saved my ass a few times, catching weirdos and weird things. Ring is key to my peace of mind, and as a listener of The Tim Ferriss Show, you can get a special rate for your own Ring Welcome Kit — which includes a video doorbell and a Chime Pro — by going to Ring.com/Tim. (U.S. only)