“Helping those who help others isn’t just my passion—it feels like what I’ve spent my life preparing to do”
Yale University – B.A. in Psychology
Stanford University – Medical Degree and M.A. in Education Policy, Organizational Theory, and Leadership Studies
San Mateo County BHRS - Psychiatry Residency (the program that wrote the book on Community Psychiatry in the community that founded the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI))
California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) – Certificate in Psychedelic Therapies & Research (inaugural class)
Jung Institute of San Francisco – Advanced training in depth psychotherapy
The Psychotherapy Institute in Berkeley – Advanced training in group therapies
MAPS, Zendo, White Bird, Rock Med, and Subtle Winds – Training in harm reduction and psychedelic-assisted therapies
Dr. Alex Cardenas' work is rooted in both rigorous training and extensive experience. He has trained across leading institutions in psychology, medicine, psychotherapy, policy and psychedelic research, including:
For over 25 years, Dr. Cardenas has worked on the front lines of the mental health crisis in America. With the exception of nursing, he has held nearly every role within mental health systems—from research assistant to behavior technician, patient advocate, therapist, psychiatrist, and administrator—across acute inpatient units, emergency rooms, residential programs, outpatient clinics, and both public and private settings.
He has supported individuals at all stages of life, from parent training and school-based interventions to working with adults of all ages, including end-of-life care. Whether helping people navigate severe mental illness, big “T” or little “t” trauma, burnout and moral injury, or performance-driven challenges, Dr. Cardenas remains committed to delivering the highest standard of care with deep authenticity and presence.
Balancing direct patient care with systemic impact, Dr. Cardenas has worked at the intersection of clinical practice, community advocacy, and policy reform. Early in his career, his dedication to addressing both immediate community needs and larger structural barriers led him to work in child and family mental health, school-based interventions, and Social and Emotional Learning initiatives. Over the past decade, this passion has expanded into community organizing, teaching, mentorship, and state and national policy development in psychedelic healthcare.
Dr. Cardenas co-founded and served as the Executive Director of the American Psychedelic Practitioners Association, helping to establish professional and ethical standards in psychedelic medicine. He was an integral part of the teams that gave rise to the CPTR Alumni Academy, now the largest network of certified psychedelic-assisted clinicians in the country, and the Board of Psychedelic Medicines and Therapies, which is setting national competency standards for practitioners. He has taught at Naropa, Heal Ukraine Trauma and CPTR (where he continues to mentor), and Subtle Winds, where he serves as a lead educator, mentor, and supervisor. He has spoken at Horizons and Harvard conferences, has contributed to white paper reports by Brain Futures, and is recognized as an expert on psychedelic safety in both practice and policy.