Multidisciplinary research at the crossroads of psychology, physiology, and neurobiology.

Because the map is not the territory

Charted expanses (concluded studies)

The study, Travel Far Enough, Meet Yourself: Subjective Interoception, Emotion Regulation, and the Psychedelic Experience—Implications for Crisis Management in Middle Adulthood, investigated if certain experiences in midlife are associated with an ability to better manage episodes of crisis/stress and prompt general improvements in mental health and well-being. Middle adulthood (~ ages 35 to 60/65) is full of complex, overlapping, and compounded chronic and/or concurrent stressors that can decrease interoceptive tone (Infurna et al., 2020), dampen cognitive coping mechanisms like resilience (Kabat-Zinn, 2013; Lutz et al., 2016), and increase negative emotional affect to cause maladaptive thoughts and behaviours (Aldwin, 2021; Daly & Robinson, 2021; George et al., 2021; Ong et al., 2009; Wickrama et al., 2021). The rise in negative trends in high-income countries—from death by suicide amongst White, middle-aged men in the United States (Hu et al., 2008; Infurna et al., 2020) to ‘diseases of despair’ like drug and alcohol addiction (Berkovitch et al., 2021; George et al., 2021), depression and anxiety (Berkovitch et al., 2021; Blanchflower, 2020; Hendricks et al., 2015; Moreton et al., 2020)—challenge conventional ideas that well-being is at its apex in middle adulthood (Arnett, 2018; Galambos et al., 2020).

A broad methodological approach was used to fill gaps in knowledge regarding the cause and management of crisis/stress in middle adulthood. Secondary investigations investigated if a higher prevalence of maladaptive traits is associated with an increase in crisis episodes in middle adulthood and if positively perceived psychedelic experience(s) in midlife are associated with a decrease in the incidence and/or intensity of crisis states and related emotive/interoceptive loads.

Results? In short: Almost all respondents stated they were currently in crisis or had experienced one, with most crisis episodes taking place between the ages of 41 to 50 with multiple existential and physical drivers as causes. Many participants experienced changes to their interoceptive and emotive capacities. Psychedelic experiences had marginal impact on crisis management for a small number of participants.

Explorations (research in progress and on the horizon)

Research collaborator on projects affiliated with labs at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School: Investigating cognitive behaviour, brain activity, and physiology of high-performing individuals in various ICE environments. * Interpersonal relationships and problem solving in ICE settings. * PTSD and stress in emergency responder (firefighter) populations. * Diet, psychophysiology and gut microbiome in genetic isolate populations. * Operational performance and psychoneuroimmunology in partial gravity. * Associations between interoceptive processing and emotion regulation in unique populations functioning in extreme, confined, and isolated environments to affect mental health and behavioural outcomes.