Dave MacDonald, MSW, LCSW

Dave is a trained provider of Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy using Ketamine through the Living Medicine Institute’s Certificate Program. He is a therapist in private practice in Asheville, NC, holds a BA Degree in Philosophy, an MSW Degree, and a Certificate in Artistic Blacksmithing. His clinical background is grounded in Psychoanalytic Oriented Psychodynamic Psychotherapy with complementary training in body-oriented models of psychotherapy and trauma processing. Prior to earning his MSW, Dave spent years as a Certified Addiction Counselor and has a strong understanding of addictions and their relationship to trauma.

He has focused most of his 35+ year clinical career on treating Traumatic Stress in adults. He is a Certified Consultant in EMDR and has advanced training in Internal Family Systems (IFS), Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, and HeartMath BioFeedback. His passion for learning drew him to study Attachment, Structural Dissociation, and Polyvagal Theories, which inform his work.

In 2019 he began formal training through MAPS to provide MDMA Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy for Complex PTSD. While awaiting FDA approval to use MDMA and other psychedelics for psychotherapy, Dave has acquired skills to provide Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy through the Living Medicine Institute’s Certificate Program and taken Ketamine/ Psychedelic trainings from Polaris Institute, Center for Self Leadership, EMDR International Association, and other providers. Finally, Dave is a mycophile, synthesizer lover, and Artist Blacksmith. He loves creating music to facilitate trauma processing and forges psychologically themed metal sculpture, which speaks of trauma and healing.