Adaptogens in Psychiatry
Learn how to use adaptogens in clinical practice to complement conventional care, and strategies for addressing the underlying causes of psychiatric illness with these incredible plant medicines.
Course Description
Course Fee: $170
Adaptogens are natural plant materials with a variety of pharmacologic compounds that can cultivate and enhance the human body’s innate ability to adapt to changing circumstances and maximize survival potential, particularly under conditions of stress. These fascinating substances, with a history of medicinal use that spans millennia, optimize the body’s natural defense systems at the organismal, extracellular, and intracellular levels through a variety of biochemical pathways, and can enhance treatment outcomes as elements of integrative interventions for psychiatric disorders.
This two-part series, presented by naturopathic physician Peter Bongiorno, ND, LAc, offers registrants a unique opportunity to go beyond the prescription pad and explore some of Mother Nature’s most valuable bequests to modern integrative medicine. A brief history of the use adaptogens will segue into an analysis of the pharmacologic properties for which adaptogens have been sought after through the centuries, and the elucidation of biologic pathways through which they modulate the stress response. Recommendations for clinical intake and laboratory testing strategies to facilitate effective adaptogen prescriptions for unique symptomatic presentations will be detailed. Finally, literature regarding the most commonly utilized plant adaptogens will be reviewed, and the therapeutic benefits of using adaptogens concomitantly with psychotropic medications discussed.
Upon completion, registrants will have gained a bench to bedside knowledge of how to use adaptogens in clinical practice to complement conventional care, strategies for addressing the underlying causes of psychiatric illness with these incredible plant medicines, and a working understanding as to the unique properties and clinical applications that distinguish members of the Panax genus (American, Asian, and Siberian ginseng).
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, registrants will be able to:
- Elucidate the biologic mechanisms through which adaptogens promote homeostasis and modulate the physiologic stress response
- Utilize adaptogens in clinical practice to complement conventional and integrative psychiatric care
- Elucidate the distinguishing characteristics and clinical applications of American, Asian, and Siberian ginseng
- Identify safe and effective dosing parameters for a variety of adaptogens in accordance with the principle of biochemical individuality
- Enact evidence-based and scientifically informed strategies for clinical intake and lab testing so as to implement the most effective adaptogen prescription for each individual patient
All refunds must be requested within seven (7) days of enrollment. In order to qualify for a refund, learners must have progressed through less than 10% of the educational content in question. All refunds will be processed minus a 10% transaction fee.
Peter Bongiorno, ND, LAc
Dr. Peter Bongiorno is a naturopathic doctor and acupuncturist and serves as co-medical director of InnerSource Natural Health and Acupuncture, a thriving practice with two clinics in New York (New York City and Long Island). He specializes in using integrative care to heal mood disorders. Dr. Bongiorno researched as a pre-doctoral fellow at the National Institutes of Health, at the National Institute of Mental Health’s department of Clinical Neuroendocrinology, where he first studied the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis response to stress. He also researched at Yale University in the department of pharmacology before training at Bastyr University in naturopathic medicine and acupuncture.
Peter is a sought after thought leader in the field of integrative medicine for mental health. He has spoken at the Integrative Medicine for Mental Health conference, for general session at A4M, at the Integrative Health Care Symposium in New York City, the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, Council for Responsible Nutrition, American Academy of Environmental medicine, as well as to medical schools and functional medicine physician groups across the country. He is the immediate past president of the NY Association of Naturopathic Physicians and, was chosen naturopathic physician of the year in New York State in 2008. For more information, please visit www.DrPeterBongiorno.com
