Fusing ketamine with holistic wellness

People have turned to psychedelics for a number of reasons: in pursuit of enlightenment, ecstasy, the divine,  or escape. In recent years, these hallucinogens have been embraced for reasons beyond recreation in the form of psychedelic-assisted therapy.

As the first psychedelic-assisted therapy centre in Africa, Equanimity Wellness opened at the end of 2022 as the brainchild of clinical psychologists Brad Kallenbach and Anthony Townsend. Here, the focus doesn’t lie solely on the ketamine-assisted therapy on offer but extends to holistic wellness, encompassing services of psychology, sexology and relationship coaching, physiotherapy, aesthetics and life coaching. You can also book a session of breathwork or cold exposure and roll out a mat — or slip into a hammock — in the yoga studio, where traditional and aerial yoga classes are on offer.

“We’re trying to create a scientifically robust approach to psychedelic therapy while still honouring the long tradition of shamanic psychedelic-assisted therapy. For thousands of years, shamans have understood the power of setting pure intention [and] holding space. These are learnings we’ve derived from traditions. We want to interface modern science and ancient wisdom,” says Kallenbach.

Only two psychedelics are legal in South Africa, ketamine an ibogaine synthetic. The latter can be taxing to the heart and is impractical, with  effects that last up to 24 hours. Ketamine, on the other hand, has proven to be safer and more practical in the treatment of depression, anxiety, PTSD, trauma, pain and even OCD.

Townsend and Kallenbach ran psychedelic-assisted therapy retreats in Jamaica between 2021 and 2023 where they fine-tuned their therapeutic framework. “Eventually we realised we want to offer this treatment in an accessible and practical way because, for a lot of people, it’s not feasible to fly to Jamaica for five days, and it’s expensive,” explains Kallenbach.

“We wanted to integrate the treatments into people’s lifestyles practically. Ketamine is a slightly different medicine to what we had worked with, but we realised that the therapeutic framework is identical, no matter what medicine you use because, we say, the magic isn’t in the medicine, it’s in the therapeutic framework. The medicine is just the catalyst.”

Coupled  with this, Kallenbach curated what he calls a musical narrative which takes patients on an emotional journey while undergoing their infusions. “Over years of working with music and psychedelic medicine, I’ve got a good sense of the music that suits different medicines. Music elicits grief and emotion in all the right ways. The idea is to ease you in gently and build up to an emotional crescendo and then taper off gently,” he says.

What makes their framework effective is the addition of therapy in the form of a preparation and screening phase before the infusion, or ketamine journey, and what they call integration sessions afterwards.

“Rather than treating people’s emotions like they are pathologies that we must suppress, shut off and get rid of, we try to reintroduce people to the idea that their emotions are meaningful indicators in their lives,” says Townsend. “When you’re anxious, it may be a reflection of certain needs you have in your life, and when those needs aren’t met, the consequence can be a painful emotion rather than switching it off, suppressing it, running away from it.

“At Equanimity, the goal is to help people become curious about what that emotion is telling you, help link it to the underlying need, and shift your behaviour to better meet that need in the hope of living a more fulfilling life.”

It’s part of a movement away from the idea of “medication”, as something you need to continuously take to stay well, to “medicine” you take once, or a few times, to act as a catalyst in the healing process so that you don’t need to continue taking it.

Most people benefit sufficiently from between three to six infusions, with therapy sessions in between. In this case, the therapeutic framework is built on the idea that the medicine gets you well and the therapy you seek afterwards will keep you well.

Cost is always a consideration. An infusion will set you back about R2,500. But because the therapy component forms part of an infusion journey, the vast majority of this can be claimed back through medical aids.

People who are intrigued by the idea and want to explore their mind and world more deeply may want to consider their day retreats, which take attendees on a compressed version of the five-day retreats they offered in Jamaica, including medical screening and preparation beforehand, breathwork, cold exposure, yoga, meditation, workshops, a one-off ketamine infusion and integration circle the next day.

“Within the course of a day, you can experience a deep transformation, unlike anything you’ve experienced in the heart of Sandton, without having to stay overnight. That’s the goal,” Townsend says.

 equanimitywellness 

This article was originally published in the Sunday Times Lifestyle