A Safer Trip: Fireside Project's Psychedelic Support Line Shows Promising Results in Study

Fireside Project, the nation’s foremost provider of compassionate, accessible, and culturally responsive psychedelic peer support services, is pleased to announce the publication of the first-ever peer-reviewed research into the efficacy of harm reduction services for reducing the risks of psychedelic use.

The study, titled “Reducing the Harms of Non-Clinical Psychedelic Use Through a Peer-Support Telephone Helpline,” appears in the inaugural issue of the journal Psychedelic Medicine, and is the result of a two-year collaboration and analysis by Mollie M. Pleet, PsyD (Portland VA Research Foundation), Joshua White (Fireside Project), Joseph A. Zamaria, PsyD (University of California, San Francisco), and Rachel Yehuda, PhD (Mount Sinai Hospital).

The study analyzed data from 884 callers to Fireside Project’s Psychedelic Peer Support Line, in an effort to determine the impact of the service on reducing overall risks associated with non-clinical psychedelic use. Data came from anonymous post-call surveys completed by callers 24 hours after their conversation, and from support line volunteers who completed anonymous call logs after every conversation.

The study found that 69.5% of callers who responded to a post-call survey indicated that the service provided by Fireside Project volunteers de-escalated them from a state of psychological distress. 29.3% of callers indicated they may have been harmed; 12.5% indicated that they may have called 911; and 10.8% indicated they may have gone to the emergency room without the harm reduction interventions offered by the helpline.

“My hope is that our study findings help to expand the awareness and utilization of psychedelic peer support in ways that not only fill a gap in our mental healthcare system, but also help todismantle generations of marginalization and stigma towards people who engage in non-clinical substance use,” says lead author Dr. Mollie Pleet of the Portland VA Research Foundation.

“Having strong outcome data on the positive effects of a peer-support telephone helpline is crucial,” says contributing author Dr. Rachel Yehuda of Mount Sinai Hospital. “It’s our hope that this study helps address concerns about meeting community needs and reducing harm when psychedelics are used without the benefit of a therapeutic infrastructure.”

“Fireside Project was born out of a desire to serve a community in need of harm reduction support during a time when interest in non-clinical psychedelic use is accelerating,” said Joshua White, founder and executive director of Fireside Project. “Our operations are based on the tried and tested model of peer support and crisis intervention helplines, which we are very pleased to have validated here with the help of some of the finest researchers working in psychedelics.”

For the purposes of this study, callers using psychedelics in non-clinical settings included not only recreational consumers, but also those who sought to self-medicate with psychedelics to address mental health conditions without the support of a clinician.

As Fireside Project continues to expand its services and reach, the organization remains committed to conducting further research and refining its approach to ensure the highest quality of support for individuals seeking assistance during their psychedelic experiences. Fireside Project is grateful for the ongoing collaboration with leading researchers and is excited to contribute to the growing body of knowledge on the safe and responsible use of psychedelics.

For more information, background, or media interviews, please contact:

Brad Burge
Integration Communications
brad@integrationcommunications.org

Fireside Project is a non-profit organization that operates the Psychedelic Peer Support Line, providing free, confidential support by mobile app, phone, and text message to people who are in the midst of psychedelic experiences or processing past psychedelic experiences, whether those experiences occurred yesterday or 25 years ago. Fireside Project can be reached by phone and text at 62-FIRESIDE (623-473-7433) and through its mobile app, which is now available on iPhone and Android.