Paul Grof, MD, is a Canadian research psychiatrist, clinician and administrator. Dr. Grof has been involved in transpersonal activities since 1962. As of 1990, he practiced and utilized Holotropic Breathwork with groups of meditators and psychiatric residents and with clients suffering from severe depressions and bipolar disorders. He published the relevant observations in the literature and a video.

 

Paul Grof has also been using psychedelics in the treatment of mood disorders and participated in the development of recommendations on the appropriate use of them for treatment, spiritual advancement, and personal growth. Earlier, he also taught at the Prague Music Conservatory on the psychology of music and worked as a professional musician.

 

Dr. Grof has collaborated on numerous international clinical and research initiatives in the area of mood disorders. He has carried out a five-decade follow-up of clients with bipolar disorders and their families. For his research, he has received several international awards in the USA, Canada and Europe, in particular for his role in demonstrating stabilizing effects of lithium in bipolar disorders.

 

In addition to his therapeutic and research work in North America and Europe, he has worked in the National Institute of Mental Health, USA, and at the World Health Organization, Geneva (1985-2000), where he chaired the Committee on Psychotropic Substances. From l988 to 2005, he was initially Clinical Director of the Royal Ottawa Hospital and later Director of Mood Disorders Research.

 

Presently Paul Grof is a Professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto and Director of Ottawa Mood Disorders Center. He is actively involved in teaching the appropriate use of psychedelics for treatment and personal growth. He participates in the Website mdco.ca and has a YouTube channel. He has authored and co-authored 506 publications and three books. www.mdco.ca