Scott Shannon has been a student of consciousness since his thesis on that topic at the University of Arizona in the 1970s. Following medical school, MDMA assisted psychotherapy became part of his practice before this medicine was scheduled in 1985. He completed a psychiatry residency at a Columbia program in New York. Scott also completed a child/adolescent psychiatry fellowship at the University of New Mexico.
Scott has published four books on holistic and integrative mental health including the first textbook for this field in 2001. He founded Wholeness Center, the largest integrative mental health center in the US, in 2010.
Scott is a past president of two national medical organizations. He served as a site Principal Investigator and therapist for the Phase III trial of MDMA assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. Scott has also published numerous articles about cannabidiol in mental health. He is currently involved with 5-MEO-DMT and LSD research. Scott co-founded the Psychedelic Research and Training Institute (PRATI) to train professionals in ketamine-assisted psychotherapy. Scott served as the initial CEO for the Board of Psychedelic Medicine and Therapies in 2021. He lectures all over the world to professional groups interested in a paradigm shifting perspective about transformative care.