Facilitator Portland VA Medical Center-Vancouver Vancouver, Washington
In 2001, Zach had his first experience with psilocybin while stationed in Okinawa, Japan in the United States Marine Corps. Not long after this experience, he found himself invading Iraq, navigating combat operations and post traumatic stress, which ultimately led to a transformative journey as a therapist helping veterans within his community. As a former Marine and Iraq veteran, Zach’s pursuit as a doctor of psychology serving veteran communities are of personal and professional significance. His skills have been dedicated foremost to mindfulness-based trauma-related treatments and psychotherapy within multiple VA Healthcare Systems and private veteran-centered wellness programs, like The Mission Within. Further developing these practices led to facilitating psychedelic-assisted therapies for individuals and groups within the veteran community. As a postdoc with the Translational Psychedelic Research program at UCSF, Zach is studying the impact of psilocybin in veterans managing methamphetamine addiction, while building a network of VA researchers throughout the country actively studying psychedelics within different veteran populations. He also acts as an educator and advocate for the Fireside Project, promoting accessibility and equity for veterans within the psychedelic space. Zach continues to utilize the wisdom from his elders and his experiences to better inform professionals as an affiliate with UC Berkeley’s Center for the Science of Psychedelics and ethics committee members of the American Psychedelic Practitioners Association.