PUNK Therapy | Psychedelic Underground Neural Kindness (Dr. T, The Truth Fairy)
Explorez tous les épisodes de PUNK Therapy | Psychedelic Underground Neural Kindness
| Date | Titre | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 Oct 2023 | 24 - The Healing Power of Human to Human Touch with Shirley Dvir | 00:44:45 | |
Dr. T hosts this episode solo and has a wonderful conversation with guest Shirley Dvir, founder and lead teacher of Relational Somatic Healing. Dr. T and Shirley both started in social work but are now pursuing careers in healing and they share their views on human to human healing touch and the psychedelic field. Shirley talks about how she sees the nature of healing as really being about deep listening and receiving the other person. She notes how people rarely get really truly listened to and when we do listen and simply meet people as humans where they are, when we can receive people as they are, it opens up an experience for deep healing. Dr. T and Shirley address how part of experiencing healing is the human to human contact we crave and how we have lost the healing art of touch in our modern modalities. They acknowledge how touch is so taboo and often tied to so much trauma but that the healing touch is something we need to foster again. They discuss the need for learning on consent to touch, of knowing when to offer touch and when not to, and how the psychedelic experience can heighten either need for refusal of touch. “There's a lot of abuse of touch in general in the world of physical touch and sexual touch and touch can be so dangerous too. And that can be so harmful, and at the same time so medicinal when it's being done right…. The boundaries are so important and the training of the therapist is so important.” - Shirley Dvir Resources discussed in this episode:
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| 16 Jan 2025 | 39 - The Pillars of Psychedelic Guiding and Ethical Training with Gil Bar-Sela | 00:53:43 | |
Dr. T and Truth Fairy welcome guest Gil Bar-Sela to the podcast to talk about his work as a psychedelic guide, facilitator, and trainer working with individuals, couples, and groups. Gil weaves modalities like generative somatics, compassionate listening, and archetypal work into the more ancient medicine ceremonies. Gil shares his personal journey with Dr. T and Truth Fairy and engages in thoughtful discussions about psychedelics and healing. Gil shares that when he moved to the United States after being raised in Tel Aviv, Israel, he had his first opportunity to deal with the trauma lodged in his body. That led him to ask questions about conflict, the root causes of conflict, trauma, and intergenerational trauma which put him on track to explore all those issues. He also began his own personal healing process around his queer identity. This experience and questioning led him to the studies and practices he engages in today. Truth Fairy, Gil, and Dr. T talk about how self-awareness is what first leads to healing work. Having a sense of what we need can lead us to the right kind of work to be doing. Gil talks about the building blocks necessary to become a good guide which include ethics, pharmacology, and onboarding clients in a responsible way. The conversation highlights Gil’s own strong sense of guidance and understanding of the different types of medicine available for healing individuals which also includes psychedelics. “You have the psychiatrist, you have the psychotherapist moving into the space that are very rooted in the Western psyche, but are also lacking usually in terms of connection to spirit, to more expansive practices, to ancient wisdom. And so I think, in particular, the role of the underground guide can be to merge the two worlds. Because we're not here and we're not there. We can be bridge builders. The training that I lead is very much focused on that.” - Gil Bar-Sela __ About Gil Bar-Sela: Gil has trained teams and businesses to invoke a thriving work culture. He has inspired audiences of thousands by speaking at colleges across the country on topics such as the power of listening and gender equality. He has collaborated with the leadership team of Seattle’s Restorative Justice Initiative, creating community-based, non-punitive solutions to conflict. He co-leads annual delegations to Palestine and Israel with The Compassionate Listening Project, an organization dedicated to empowering individuals and communities to transform conflict and strengthen cultures of peace. He also coaches privately, and leads workshops and retreats globally. Gil is a Certified Trainer with the Heart Math Institute and a Certified Facilitator with The Compassionate Listening Project. He has also trained at Susan Scott’s Fierce Conversations, Dominic Barter's Restorative Circles, Core Energetics, META (Mindful Experiential Therapy Approaches), Cortiva’s 1,000-hour massage therapy program, and shamanism. Website: GilBarSela.com __ Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com | |||
| 16 Jul 2023 | 21 - Moral Distress, Ethics, and Psychedelic Therapy with Michelle Gagnon | 00:49:58 | |
CW: End of life care and distress Dr. T and the Truth Fairy welcome Michelle Gagnon, a registered nurse with a background in medical assistance in dying. She is currently pursuing her PhD at the University of British Columbia where her research focuses on ethics, therapeutic psychedelics, and health care practices, specifically where they intersect. Michelle shares a wealth of health care experience and knowledge with Dr. T and Truth Fairy. Michelle’s masters’ research examined moral distress among intensive care nurses losing patients. She explains what moral distress encompasses and how she is researching the potential for psychedelics to help treat folks struggling with it. Dr. T shares a related personal experience that lends perspective to what Michelle is exploring. In conversation with Michelle Gagnon, Dr. T and Truth Fairy learn about Michelle’s work with non-profit association TheraPsil, her hopes for the legalization of psychedelics like psilocybin for medical use, the limits of the current health care structure, and how ethics must factor into every aspect of research and practice. There is a lot of insightful information imparted about Canadian research into psychedelics and the individuality of approach necessitated by each person’s reaction to medicines in this episode. “I think sometimes with psychedelics as it's framed now, there's a lot of excitement about it and sometimes we can get lost in the hype that this could change things drastically. And it could, but it's not an easy cure, like you said, it's not necessarily even a cure or an assist for everybody. It's not right for everyone. It's just the way I kind of see it is it's another potential tool under our umbrella of other tools. And it's so unique in so many ways. And I think it is, like you mentioned, disrupting potentially a lot of the way we do things, which is exciting.” - Michelle Gagnon About Michelle Gagnon, RN: Michelle Gagnon is a registered nurse with a background in emergency critical care and medical assistance in dying. As a by-product of her master's research, which focused on moral distress in pediatric critical care nurses related to the death and dying of child patients, Michelle became interested in the use of psychedelic medicine for distress. She is currently a PhD student at the University of British Columbia with a research focus on the intersection of ethics, therapeutic psychedelics and health care practices. Michelle worked for nonprofit TheraPsil to support Canadians seeking access for medical psilocybin through Health Canada. She also spends time volunteering with the Psychedelic Association of Canada's Ethics Working Group to draft and disseminate articles related to pressing ethical topics in the psychedelic field. In her free time, Michelle is an avid baker and enjoys reading mystery and fantasy. Through mud and snow she enjoys mountain biking the trails where she lives in the traditional territories of the Blackfoot Confederacy, the Tsuut'ina, the Stoney Nakoda nations and the Metis Nation, and all who make their homes in the treaty seven region of Southern Alberta. Resources discussed in this episode: --- | |||
| 16 Mar 2025 | 41 - The Role of Psychedelic Medicine in Current Events and Unresolved Trauma with Truth Fairy and Dr. T | 00:58:45 | |
In this episode, Dr. T and Truth Fairy have an in-depth conversation about current global and political concerns, particularly focusing on the drastic actions taken by Donald Trump in his recent return to power. Truth Fairy details how his executive orders have dismantled key institutions, targeted marginalized communities, and damaged international relations. They talk frankly about the trauma of living in this time and the role of psychedelics, exploring powerful examples of reclaiming the traditional powers of medicine for healing. Truth Fairy explores how Western psychedelic culture has often become self-focused, neglecting to address larger societal issues. Dr. T reflects on how ancient examples of dominance and control still shape the world, and they discuss the need to reclaim group wisdom, relational healing, and embodied awareness in psychedelic work. Part of that work must include a balance to both hemispheres of the brain—logic and intuition—to effectively deal with the challenges of the modern world. Truth Fairy shares a powerful case study of a client who had endured extreme childhood trauma and how psychedelics, when used with intentional intervention, helped him break free from dissociative loops. She and Dr. T discuss the overlooked trauma of men, the need for deeper empathy in therapy, and the responsibility of practitioners to guide clients with wisdom. This episode is a raw and powerful look into the current news, where Truth Fairy and Dr. T urge us to become critically aware of media narratives and integrate psychedelic healing within the social context. “It's not Trump. He's just a figurehead, a representation or a mirror [held] up to us of our own situation as a culture. You know, I mean, I can't help but wonder if Trump was stood down for some reason, would another leader just like him emerge? Because it's not actually him that is the sickness. It's the culture that has decided to elect a leader of that nature that's reflective of trauma, that's not resolved for so many people.” - Dr. T __ Contact Punk Therapy:
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| 16 Nov 2024 | 37 - Poly Roles and Relationship in Psychedelic Healing with Dottie, Part 2 | 00:44:57 | |
Dr. T and Truth Fairy return with the second half of their talk with guest Dottie, a highly experienced therapist specializing in Gestalt psychotherapy, somatic experiencing, and trauma-informed work. Dottie and Truth Fairy resume the story they were sharing in the first part about a rupture in a medicine session that they had to navigate together. The story leads to a vulnerable discussion about emotional regulation, acknowledgement of feelings, the importance of touch in medicine sessions, and a host of other vital variables to consider when working through the surfacing and healing of people’s trauma. Dr. T, Truth Fairy, and Dottie explore the complexities of relational dynamics, trauma, and healing, and Truth highlights the importance of understanding the multiple factors at play in any relationship, emphasizing that true repair involves mutual learning and deep understanding of the other person’s experiences. She explains how her own work with trauma, particularly infant trauma, has taught her to recognize the small gestures and subtle cues that can create or repair ruptures in neural connectivity. This attentiveness allows her to approach therapy with greater sensitivity and presence. Dottie and Truth Fairy each share personal experiences that stress the significance of creating safe spaces for emotional regulation and healing, especially in moments of fear and dissociation. Dottie explains her hypervigilance toward abandonment and how this affects her relationships. She stresses the importance of a therapist’s full presence to help clients feel secure. Dr. T brings up the potential risks in psychedelic therapy if practitioners fail to integrate a developmental trauma lens, urging more training and awareness in this field. This episode touches on how therapists, through their own healing, can better support clients in addressing trauma, ensuring safe and effective therapeutic experiences. “... the journey that we both have been on in the last couple of months has just been profound in being so committed to this process of repair. And I know that I keep banging on the word repair. But for me, I think that what's becoming clear is, is something that I really hold of high value as a therapist working with clients is in relationships with other people, the importance of holding space for others when there has been a rupture, and to hold that space of repair. And to be honest, this is what I have really learned from you” - Dottie __
__ Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com | |||
| 16 May 2022 | 07 - The Therapist and Substance | 00:46:04 | |
Content Warning: Trauma, fear, physical pain memories Dr. T and The Truth Fairy discuss a book by Tim Read and Maria Papaspyrou called “Psychedelics and Psychotherapy: The Healing Potential of Expanded States”, and really dig into two chapters in particular. One of these chapters involves the topic of therapists and substance use in underground psychedelic work: should the therapist take medicine with the client, and if so how much and when? They address chapter four of the book which involves the excluded and repressed unconscious and how integration, through therapy and medicine, can assist when the unconscious is carrying an immensity of experiences. The Truth Fairy shares insightful stories from her practice and Dr. T refers to what Jung called ‘the transcendent function’. This is a thoughtful and informative episode exploring a very wonderful book. “I think that it really, as therapists doing psychedelic assisted therapy, I know that there, I'm sure there's some clinical situations where it's an absolute no-no for therapists to do the medicine, a booster dose. And I do think it has its rightful place. But if you're in a period that you're very sensitized, and there's a lot coming up for you, or you've done a lot of your own medicine work recently, and you are quite open and raw, and you're still integrating yourself, I think those are the times to be wise and perhaps hold off and not do any.” - The Truth Fairy Resources mentioned in this episode:
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| 16 Apr 2024 | 30 - Regulation and Psychedelic Therapeutic Practice | 00:57:32 | |
| 16 Jun 2023 | 20 - Dr. Sharon Stanley and the Power of Somatic Transformation | 01:04:33 | |
CW: Physical assault, trauma, and suicide Dr. T and the Truth Fairy welcome Dr. Sharon Stanley - renowned psychotherapist, author, and developer of the psychotherapeutic model of somatic transformation - to the show. They have a searching and revealing conversation with Dr. Stanley about her career and the decades of work she has done with humans and trauma. Sharon Stanley describes her work as “relational to the core” and explains how her somatic work uses relationship to at times discern a particular technique. She shares the personal story of how she first became interested in trauma and how her study moved into the idea of somatic transformation from there. Dr. Stanley also names many foundational figures whom she has drawn insight from along the way. The discussion Dr. T and the Truth Fairy have with Sharon Stanley involve how Sharon keeps boundaries in the relationship formed through trauma bonding, what the intersubjective field is, and the six steps of somatic transformation. Sharon describes what ‘meaning making’ encompasses and she invites Dr. T and Truth Fairy into a brief thematic reflection. This episode sheds light on how much Truth Fairy has learned from Dr. Stanley and why she has been mentioned so frequently on PUNK Therapy. It gives insight into her intentions and careful trauma healing methods. “When we do have an experience of going through something together, we can have an experience called trauma bonding. And the trauma bonding is a kind of an enmeshment where I feel what you feel, you feel what I feel. And we don't have clear boundaries. And that kind of leads me a little bit further into your question that working professionally with trauma, it's relational, but the boundaries are very clear. And how to make sure [in] those boundaries that there's a time, there's a place, there's a way we will, it's almost like a ritual that we will follow.” - Dr. Sharon Stanley About Sharon Stanley, PhD: Over the past 17 years Sharon Stanley has developed and taught an emerging curriculum for healing trauma to thousands of mental health practitioners. The educational experience of ST actively engages psychotherapists in exploring emerging research and practices in their own professional and personal lives. Sharon then applies their findings to the ongoing development of Somatic Transformation. As an instructor for Somatic Transformation, Sharon has had the privilege of teaching psychotherapists from Canada, United States, Middle East and Europe. Her doctoral studies at the University of Victoria involved research into the development of empathy in caregivers working with traumatized children and identifies the transformative effects of ST as an amplification of empathic connection. Sharon has been engaged in a small study group with Dr. Allan Schore, a well-known neuroscientist, for 18 years. She lives and practices psychotherapy on Bainbridge Island, just outside of Seattle. Her book, Relational and Body-Centered Practices for Healing Trauma: Lifting the Burdens of the Past was published by Routledge in 2016 and is used by psychotherapists interested in a humanistic, developmental, body-centered, relational approach to healing trauma. Resources discussed in this episode:
--- Dr. Sharon Stanley: somatic transformation website | email | |||
| 16 Aug 2023 | 22 - Queering Psychedelics and Sex Positivity Within Medicine | 00:45:01 | |
CW: sexual content, trauma Dr. T and the Truth Fairy welcome Temptress (she/her they/them), sex worker and advocate for psychedelics, to the show to discuss sex positivity and queerness in the psychedelic ecosystem. Temptress shares psychedelic healing and sexual experiences from their own past and addresses the need to define safe and sensitive psychedelic care for trans and queer individuals. Temptress explains the gender trauma that defined much of her formative years and how psychedelics started her on the path towards healing. She did a lot of solo work, exploring on her own, until she was able to connect with a partner with whom she connected and could share psychedelic exploration. The experiences allowed them to reunify aspects of themselves that had been disconnected due to trauma. Temptress, Dr. T and Truth Fairy talk about sex positivity within psychedelic healing, psychedelics in rave culture, queer connection and expression, and the need for language in psychedelic healing to shift to better support trans and queer folks as well as gender trauma. Temptress has a lot of personal insight and advocacy knowledge that opens valuable conversations that the psychedelic community needs to have. “You know, cisgender folks tend to be able to access health care with much more ease than transgender folks do and queer folks do. Cisgender folks and straight folks alike are able to access employment opportunities, as well as just the sexual economy, a lot easier. And so as practitioners, being educated on these differences can I think really help with establishing a sense of safety for other trans folks and queer folks who are entering those spaces.” - Temptress Resources discussed in this episode:
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| 16 Apr 2023 | 18 - Special Edition | Behind Synthesis Institute: A Conversation with James Clifton and Daan Keiman | 00:59:01 | |
Truth Fairy appears solo for this special episode in conversation with guests James Clifton, former Lead Facilitator, and Daan Keiman, former Lead Facilitator and Director of Program and Product Development, of the Synthesis Institute. This conversation aims to shed more light on the recent headlines surrounding the termination of employees and contractors by Synthesis as reported recently in psychedelic outlets like Lucid News. James Clifton and Daan Keiman introduce themselves and get in depth about their own stories of how they came to psychedelic therapy and the formational time period in discussion with Martijn Schirp. They each give much-needed context to discussions about Synthesis - its origins, how the retreats came together, the thought and care put into the approach. They also note when some tensions started and what was behind the tension. Truth Fairy leads a very probing and insightful conversation with James and Daan in which they explore the truths and requirements for working with psychedelics, how the attitude of potential clients changed after the release of “How to Change Your Mind” by Michael Pollan, the complexities with diverse practitioners and educational considerations the leadership team constantly considered as Synthesis grew, and the challenge of balancing psychedelic reality against capitalist needs. James and Daan give context and meaning to the headlines, unpacking the impetus behind Synthesis and truths of its journey. “I think this may be something that I want to emphasize, because in a lot of what has been published, this is a perspective that is missing, it is that the leadership team itself struggled with the complexity. They had this monumental task ahead of them of bringing together this very diverse group of practitioners with their own perspectives on how to do this work, of navigating all these legal challenges, not to mention all the financial constraints and financial commitments that they made to investors, and to then ride this wave of this massive hype that started to started to emerge. I think it's within that sort of vast growing field - adding a corona pandemic that locked everything down and that required the organization to really make a radical shift in orienting themselves now towards the practitioner training - there's this challenge that comes with both asking yourself as an organization, who are we and what do we do and what do we offer as services.” - Daan Keiman About James Clifton: James Clifton has been a guide and ally for hundreds of individuals and groups in a variety of complex settings and environments, including hospice care, conflict zones and navigating non-ordinary states and realms of consciousness in psychedelic spaces for over 35 years. As a clinically trained, trauma and integrally informed psychotherapist, he works in professional practice with individuals and their direct experiences that come with all the varieties that an extra-ordinary state demands and as it unfolds. He was part of the core faculty and also retreat team lead at the Synthesis institute from 2019. He continues to consult internationally, advise, lead, supervise and support developing teams and organizations committed to the best emergent practices in psychedelic care. He lives mostly in the UK on the South Coast and sometimes you’ll find him in the wilds of the South West Coast of Cornwall. About Daan Keiman: Daan holds an MA in Spiritual Care and is the co-founder of Guild of Guides Netherlands: an organization that seeks to professionalize psychedelic sitting services. His experience with guiding and caring for people in altered states of consciousness spans over a decade; ranging from psychedelic harm reduction work on festivals to his private practice as a Psychedelic Chaplain. Daan draws from his personal Buddhist practices, psychedelic research and his professional experiences to create compassionate and powerful containers for personal and relational transformation. As an avid explorer of consciousness, he is highly capable of supporting others who are traversing the landscapes of the mind. Resources discussed in this episode:
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| 16 Nov 2023 | 25 - Dr. T and Truth Fairy: The Together In Real Life Episode | 00:52:12 | |
In this very special episode, Dr. T and Truth Fairy meet in real life for the first time. Truth Fairy travels to Australia and the two hosts are united in person at last! Their conversation happens organically from the moment of meeting as they discuss what they’ve been doing and what plans they have. Dr. T fills Truth Fairy in on the clinical trial he has finally received permission to engage in. A trial with mushrooms for treatment-resistant depression. Truth Fairy reveals that Dr. T will be taking part in her five-day training while she is in Australia which both are extremely excited about. They reflect on the strangeness of finally being together in person and yet the familiar sense of recognizing each other as a kind of family. Dr. T and Truth Fairy dive into the three-day medicine session Truth Fairy just before their meeting. Truth Fairy recounts what made her say yes to that session and how it went. They talk about prayers of gratitude offered before sessions, being drawn to work with people in trauma, the mentors they have found in the field, and finally reflect again on how wonderful it is to meet each other in real life and make the connection beyond Zoom. “It's like when I first saw you, a part of me recognized you and a part of me didn't recognize you because you were no longer the person just behind the screen. You were a real fully in-flesh person. And as I'm sitting here watching you, it's like the connections are being made and the recognition is coming and I'm sinking back into like, Oh, okay, I know this person.” - Dr. T Resources discussed in this episode: --- | |||
| 16 Sep 2024 | 35 - Corey Hirsch (former NHL hockey player) removing the stigma of medicine in the sports community | 00:48:19 | |
Content Warning: Talk of death by suicide, suicidal ideation, and sexual abuse Dr. T and Truth Fairy welcome former NHL hockey player Corey Hirsch to the podcast to talk about medicine and mental health. Corey was drafted by the New York Rangers and played many seasons for the Vancouver Canucks but after retiring from playing hockey and becoming a coach and Sportsnet analyst, he turned his life and his focus to mental health. Corey is a firm believer in psychedelic medicine and wants to remove the stigma of its use in sports communities. Corey shares his mental health journey and his battle with OCD with Dr. T and Truth Fairy and describes how he ventured into psychedelics two years ago after not finding the right therapeutic fit in other modalities. He found his way “back to his life”, as he puts it, and ascribes a great sense of hope and relief to psychedelics. The different perspective he gained and his positive experience led him to his fight against stigma today. Corey also talks openly about how death by suicide has impacted him personally and the peace medicine gave him around that trauma. Truth Fairy describes how she met Corey and Corey shares the story behind that meeting, in which he experienced an intense journey into self-love after some medicine. One of the things Corey stresses is how working with medicine has opened him up and given him compassion and more love in life. Dr. T, Truth Fairy, and Corey discuss the intricacies of OCD and where it stems from, examine the emotional abuse inherent in a hockey player’s career, and examine Corey’s newfound purpose in life. This episode shines a light on how useful psychedelic medicine can be as applied to mental health and how the stigma only hurts people’s opportunities to experience this type of healing for themselves. “It gives me a different perspective. You know, it's amazing when you sit with psychedelics and you think, oh, this person screwed me over or this happened or that happened, and it shows you a different angle of it. And it's like, wow, I did not even think of that perspective, right? And it's taught me to venture into things with kindness and love.” - Corey Hirsch About Corey Hirsch: By the time he was 21 years old Corey Hirsch had drunk from the Stanley Cup and won a silver medal at the Winter Olympics, but these accomplishments no longer mattered to him. Born in Medicine Hat and raised in Calgary, he was drafted by the New York Rangers and played for many seasons with the Vancouver Canucks. After retiring from play, Hirsch became an NHL coach for elite goaltenders and prospects, and later an analyst with Sportsnet. Dedicated to ending the stigma of mental health, he is also a co-host of The Players’ Tribune podcast, Blindsided. In October 2022 Corey released his first book—The Save of My Life—a compelling look behind the mask of a professional hockey player that offers both understanding and hope to anyone living with mental illness. Website: CoreyHirsch.com Book: “The Save of My Life” by Corey Hirsch Podcast: Blindsided __ Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com | |||
| 16 Feb 2022 | 03 - Touch | 00:43:07 | |
Content Warning: references to sexual abuse Dr. T and The Truth Fairy explore the revelatory benefits that can emerge from the use of therapeutic touch in psychedelic healing practices, while always keeping caution and care in the forefront. The Truth Fairy’s career and life journey have been grounded in touch therapy, starting with Shiatsu Therapy and incorporating such practices as craniosacral, visceral manipulation and somatic relational trauma-informed practices. Touch is healing in her path but she and Dr. T acknowledge that touch is very divorced from psychotherapy. Together, they explore why. They analyze how touch is currently controversial in psychedelic therapy in light of abuses in psychedelic culture. They discuss the importance of using touch with neutrality and uncoupling it from fear. The Truth Fairy explains the concept of self touch in a larger way than the taboo sense we grow up with, and details how being in tune with your physical self can contribute to healing. They break down the concepts of safety, containment, processing, and the use of touch for focusing, and discuss ways in which careful, judicious touch therapy can help externalize psychological pain. “We really have coupled touch and sexuality and we really need to uncouple that…. We have to find a respectful way to uncouple sexuality and touch and create possibilities for neutral touch.” - The Truth Fairy Resources mentioned in this episode: --- Punk Therapy: website | |||
| 16 Jan 2024 | 27 - Journeying Through Grief Tending and Trauma with Cami | 00:54:23 | |
Truth Fairy and Dr. T welcome Cami Barton, author and practitioner dedicated to social change through embodied practices, to the show. Truth Fairy reads a poem on pain by Kahlil Gibran that emphasizes the intertwining of pain and joy, suggesting that embracing pain can lead to a deeper understanding of life, which highlights many of the themes of Cami’s work. Cami discusses their work in psychedelic therapy, grief, pleasure, and drug policy, rooted in black feminism and harm reduction. They share personal experiences, including an abortion in 2017 that sparked the project for their upcoming book, "Tending Grief: Embodied Rituals for Holding Our Sorrow and Growing Cultures of Care in Community". The book explores grief and healing rituals, drawing from Cami's journey and broader societal patterns. The conversation delves into Cami's work in designing a master's program, teaching psychedelic therapy, and collaborating with MAPS to ensure accessibility to MDMA psychotherapy for marginalized communities. Truth Fairy and Dr. T discuss various aspects of Cami's expertise and personal journey, including childhood trauma and the surfacing of dissociated memories during their healing process. It is a meditation on grief and healing that holds deep insight to benefit all listeners. “And so the Dagara people are indigenous to what we now call Burkina Faso in West Africa. And they have a very specific relationship to communal grief tending, where everyone in the community is expected to tend their grief in the communal ritual once a month because there's an understanding in their cosmology that unattended grief will actually become harm in the society. So rather than being taboo as it is in the West to grieve publicly and be with that, it's actually taboo to avoid your grief in the Dagara context.” - Cami Resources discussed in this episode:
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| 16 Feb 2022 | 02 - Social Engagement | 00:45:36 | |
Content Warning: discussion of ayahuasca ceremony/reactions The hosts explain polyvagal theory and explore how it relates to psychedelic ceremony and experience; how it leads to deeper understanding of neural states when working with different medicines. The understanding of fight or flight, sympathetic and parasympathetic responses built into humans comes into sharp examination as Dr. T and The Truth Fairy dissect the polyvagal theory and how they deem it necessary, from an ethical standpoint, for doing medicine work. The neural states and innate responses we live with are key to understanding trauma responses and the sort of high arousal fear that can emerge in a medicine session. The Truth Fairy relates how she properly prepared for an ayahuasca ceremony by first orienting and grounding all participants, building community and sensation awareness within individuals and between each participant. She touches on how the grounding of these traditional medicines in community and relationship is what will help bridge back into Indigenous roots and practice, removing it from a strictly colonizing therapeutic model. “We need social engagement to come out of dorsal vagal. This is where we can, I think make the mistake of, in medicine, is to leave someone stuck there. Because it’s through social engagement that people come out and it’s what they haven’t gotten.” - The Truth Fairy Resources mentioned in this episode: --- Punk Therapy: website | |||
| 10 Jul 2022 | 09 - Life Partnership Teamwork Makes the Psychedelic Co-Therapy Dream Work | 00:49:11 | |
Content Warning: Sensitive topics Dr. T and The Truth Fairy welcome special guests “Sid” and “Nancy”, two life partners who work as a co-therapy team in the underground psychedelic assisted therapy space. Dr. T and The Truth Fairy delve into what qualities Sid and Nancy possess that help them attune to the work and what advantages and disadvantages come from being life partners in psychedelics. Sid and Nancy found each other through a dating app and together continued their individual experiences by working with plant medicines on a deep dive. The co-therapy work came to them rather naturally and was not necessarily something they pursued. The pair sat with a growing number of friends, guiding them through medicinal experiences, and they truly enjoyed the work. The feedback regarding their intuitive energy and supportive abilities was encouraging and positive. The Truth Fairy and Dr. T learn how advantageous Sid and Nancy find their life partnership during ceremonies. They speak to each other’s calm connected strengths and how they rely on each other’s empathetic sense of what is needed for clients. They do not assign roles but work off intuition in each ceremony. Sid and Nancy report very few disadvantages to being life partners in the work and they offer some real life examples of how they pushed through difficult situations and had rewarding sessions partnering with therapists for client breakthroughs. “And it was something that I just felt, it was just really natural, like attuning to what was helpful and what wasn't helpful, and how to let someone have an experience and be in some really dark places and just see that they are absolutely okay, that they could trust psychedelic medicine. And not telling them that but just being near them, and helping them feel safe and helping them feel just really okay. And so that kind of lit this fire in me of holding space for people in this way.” - Nancy --- | |||
| 16 Sep 2023 | 23 - Solo Journeys in Psychedelic Medicine with Gam and Rachael | 00:54:35 | |
CW: talk of rape and sexual dysregulation Dr. T and the Truth Fairy welcome guests Gam, a sociologist, activist, and soon-to-be craniosacral therapist from Scandinavia, and Rachael, a somatic sex educator, intimacy guide, and body worker in Canada, to the show to talk about solo psychedelic medicine journeys. Both Gam and Rachael have worked in cohorts with Truth Fairy and come from experiences in guiding themselves on solo journeys, and they share what the solo journey is like. Gam embarked on solo journeys out of necessity, due to a lack of support and community in psychedelic therapy in Scandinavia. He admitted he also wasn’t particularly comfortable in groups so decided to start a long exploration into solo work and appreciates the deep understand he got from both good and bad experiences on his own. Rachael began in group work but explored solo work through the pandemic. Through that she found a certain strength in having external support she could reach out to if solo work became rough. Dr. T., Truth Fairy, Gam, and Rachael discuss the benefits of ceremony and community, the necessity of inner work and preparation to precede solo journeys, relationship with the erotic self in solo work, and how our systems respond to psychedelics according to need. The conversation sheds light on how bodily integration and internal work are part of psychedelic medicine and the nature of support even within solo journeys. “Psychedelics are an opportunity to open up our trust in our erotic bodies, to trust that we can hold that incredible life force and not inflict pain or desire in unwelcome spaces, not open ourselves to violation, and just be in the pleasure of our erotic body in community.” - Rachael Resources discussed in this episode: --- | |||
| 16 Jun 2024 | 32 - Matt Russell Interviews Rita Bozi on her novel When I Was Better, exploring ancestral trauma | 01:09:12 | |
In this episode, Dr. T hosts an interview between author Rita Bozi and guest interviewer Matt Russell, as Truth Fairy is unfortunately absent. Rita Bozi is a highly experienced trauma-informed facilitator, psychedelic therapist, author, and director of Brilliant Healing, In. Matt Russell is a private practice psychotherapist and scholar with a background in Spanish Literature and intergenerational trauma studies. Matt interviews Rita about her novel “When I Was Better” which is based on her parents' experiences during and after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, blending personal and historical narratives to explore themes of trauma, survival, and healing. Rita shares her journey in writing the novel, describing it as a complex and healing process that took nine years and ten drafts to complete. Initially, she was loyal to the real-life events of her family's history, struggling to fictionalize the story, but eventually embraced creative freedom which allowed her to deepen her characters and more fully explore their experiences. The process also involved confronting and processing her own anger and trauma, facilitated by psychedelic therapies with ayahuasca and ketamine. Through these experiences, Rita was able to soften her portrayal of her parents, bringing a more nuanced and empathetic view to their characters in her novel. Matt, Rita, and Dr. T delve into the significance of the Hungarian Revolution and Rita explains the profound impact of these events on her family and her need to understand and portray this historical and emotional landscape accurately. The interview touches on broader themes of intergenerational trauma and the resilience of the human spirit in the face of oppression, highlighting the importance of kindness and empathy in healing. Through the novel, Rita aims to honor her parents' struggles while exploring the broader human capacity for both cruelty and compassion. “But it wasn't until I sat with ketamine that I felt into my essential nature and that my essential nature was kindness. And from there I started to build a practice around kindness and I started to decolonize. I started to understand what does it mean to decolonize this brutality, so that then I could, instead of commanding people or … demanding change and demanding that people heal or demand that people behave a certain way, I started to understand more deeply that we behave the way we do because of what's happened to us. In understanding that and understanding, you know, what really happened to my parents, what really happened to my brother, what really happened to my ancestors, and embodying that… then I could start developing a sense of kindness, you know?” - Rita Bozi __ About Rita Bozi: Raised by Hungarian refugees, Rita is a Somatic Relational trauma and psychedelic-informed Facilitator, a multidisciplinary creator, playwright, and retired professional actor and dancer. For 25 years, her co-written play ‘52 Pick Up’ was staged in Canada, the US, England, Australia, France, Iceland and New Zealand and translated into French and Icelandic. Rita has been published in The New Quarterly, FFWD Weekly, WritingRaw.com, and Unlikely 2.0. THIS Magazine awarded her 3rd Prize in their Great Canadian Literary Hunt in 2012. Her travel stories have been broadcast on CBC Radio Calgary. She is an Alumna of The Humber School for Writers and a graduate of The National Ballet School. Her life practice is kindness and her life partner is Ken Cameron. Website: BrilliantHealingSystems.com Book: “When I Was Better” by Rita Bozi
About Matt Russell: Matt Russell is a graduate of the MAPS MDMA Assisted Therapy Training. As a certified Compassionate Inquiry Practitioner, he trained with world renowned addiction and trauma expert Dr. Gabor Maté. He is also part of the facilitation team supporting Dr. Maté in the year-long Compassionate Inquiry training for therapists. Matt has trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT), and Buddhist Chaplaincy. He teaches Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and his therapeutic work incorporates mindfulness and somatic/body-based methods of inquiry. Prior to becoming certified as a psychotherapist, Matt earned a PhD in Spanish Literature from UC Davis, where he researched intergenerational trauma, and taught at various universities. __
Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com | |||
| 16 Aug 2022 | 10 - Self Development and Personal Growth in the Training Arena | 00:58:40 | |
Content Warning: Sensitive topics including trauma, addiction, and regression memories Dr. T and The Truth Fairy welcome three special guests to the podcast, a surprise from the Truth Fairy for Dr. T. The three women - ‘Mama Bear’, ‘Sticky Tac’, and ‘Mon Petit Chou’ - were part of Truth Fairy’s first training cohort and they share insight into psychedelic training and the personal revelations they each had along the way. The Truth Fairy encourages each of the guests to share their own story on why they sought psychedelic therapy and what their training journeys were like. In turn, Sticky Tac, Mon Petit Chou, and Mama Bear each reveal the struggles and deep injuries they carried into training and how their journeys, together and under Truth Fairy’s guidance, helped them each release pain and connect to deeper relationships with each other and their inner selves. Dr. T takes the opportunity to ask the guests what they thought were the most important parts of their training and what insight they might share with anyone wondering which psychedelic course to take. The women are beautifully vulnerable and reveal how the course of training confronted them with questions about their own journeys, taught them to trust their intuition, and how container thinking, connectivity, and integration of self really informed their own abilities to assist others through medicinal explorations. “I'm hearing, I guess, a theme from the three of you - and I hope I'm right in saying this - that one of the most important things from your training is to be taught how to make contact with your own sort of inner healing intelligence and intuitive wisdom that lives within you and in your body, by choosing a trainer who has done that themselves and has their own contact with that, so that they can mentor you and apprentice you into that relationship.” - Dr. T Resources: --- | |||
| 16 Feb 2022 | 01 - Clinical Meets Lived Experience | 00:48:15 | |
Content Warning: Eating disorders, sexual assault, & psychedelic-induced trauma memory. Hosts Dr. T and The Truth Fairy are here to explore the important world of psychedelic therapy from both clinical and underground knowledge based perspectives. Having met at the suggestion of Dr. Rosalind Watts, Dr. T and The Truth Fairy (their chosen pseudonyms) explain how they come from different backgrounds to the same desire for a deeper understanding of the potential in psychedelic therapy. While Dr. T comes from a more clinical background, The Truth Fairy has extensive lived experience in the rather underground world of psychedelic therapy and thus functions as a type of supervisor or mentor to Dr. T. PUNK Therapy, soon to also be a book, derives its name from Psychedelic Underground Neural Kindness, the model they both aspire to. In this first episode they explain their connection, the possibilities inherent in the psychedelic therapy model not just for clients but also for the therapists and practitioners, and The Truth Fairy shares a client story of a journey on MDMA that opened up trauma history and allowed for a revelatory emergence from the pain into being present in hope with the therapists. “People who are in the really clinical spaces, the people who are doing the formal trainings that are going to legalize and legitimize psychedelics, tend to actually know a little bit less or quite a bit less than the people who are in the underground scene who have been doing this work for the past 20, 30 years.” - Dr. T Resources mentioned in this episode: --- Punk Therapy: website | |||
| 16 Feb 2023 | 16 - The One Year Anniversary of PUNK Therapy | 00:59:53 | |
Dr. T and the Truth Fairy celebrate their one year podcast anniversary! A return to their original format of just them in an enlightening conversation marks the occasion. In an open and heartfelt discussion, they share new discoveries about medicine use in their personal and professional journeys. Truth Fairy tells of her recent ayahuasca medicine sessions with a shaman friend and how she pushed through a difficult year and deep-set trauma revelations. She arrived at a very beautiful place of realization for herself. Dr. T dives into more detail about what his PhD studies are focused on and the insights he is gaining from the studies. This episode is a wonderful example of the bond between Dr. T and Truth Fairy and the intimate conversations they share with their listeners. They reveal personal moments, discuss new understandings of medicine, unpack therapy in general as well as their own therapeutic approaches to healing, and even reveal some of the exciting guests who will join the show in future episodes. “That idea that allowing thoughts to come in, allowing them to simply be there and not try to push them away or pretend they're not there or pretend that the fear isn't there, but to invite it in and invite it closer and get curious about its energy, you know?” - Truth Fairy “Yeah. To be a witness to the transference without kind of getting totally caught up in the enactment and without rejecting what's happening and just getting curious with yourself like, wow. Oh, wow. Okay. I'm feeling a bit of resentment here, a bit of anger or something.” - Dr. T Resources discussed in this episode:
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| 18 Dec 2022 | 14 - Embrace Wildness in Earth and in Ourselves: A Conversation with Sky Otter | 01:18:18 | |
Dr. T and The Truth Fairy welcome special guest Sky Otter, founder of Sacred Earth Network and author of “Wild Earth, Wild Soul: A Manual for an Ecstatic Culture”, to the podcast to share his teaching and experience. Sky leads listeners into Siberian shamanism, the raw vitality of the environment, and the connectedness of our healing journeys. Sky tells Dr. T and the Truth Fairy about his awakening into realizing the power of life when he was on the New York subway en route to a peace rally in Central Park. He has pursued peacefulness, connectedness to the natural world, and the embracing of wildness in soul since. Sky believes we need to embrace Indigenous and Aboriginal teachings far more deeply. The discussion Dr. T and the Truth Fairy have with Sky Otter is soul-searching and beautiful. They explore the dominator worldview and the need to regain connectedness with each other and the earth, they discuss Sky’s time in Russia and the ongoing situation in Russia and the Ukraine now, and Sky describes the awe of a Siberian shamanic fire circle. Healing and connectedness truly are the focus of this episode and many vulnerable and inspiring moments are shared. “Us smart Westerners need to sort of put aside those big brains a little bit and, not losing our faculty for critical thinking, but just saying, wait a minute, I don't really know everything here and all that stuff I was taught, you know, I'll take it with a grain of salt. And I'll just humble myself before Mother Earth and the Aboriginal people and learn from the earth and learn from them.” - Sky Otter About Sky Otter: Sky Otter formerly known as Bill Pfeiffer is the founder of Sacred Earth Network (SEN) which implemented leading edge visions for over 25 years. In that time, Sky made Russia a second home having traveled there 44 times assisting the environmental and indigenous movements through SEN. This has given him a rare cross-cultural perspective. He has also led hundreds of spiritual ecology workshops, including men’s and breath work. He has 25 years of experience in Re-evaluation Counseling and Vipassana meditation, and has undergone extensive training with Siberian shamans. Sky has partnered with and designed experiential workshops with Joanna Macy, John Perkins, Llyn Roberts, Cathy Pedevillano, and John Seed. He has also spent much time in the US Southwest learning about Native medicine ways and the crucial importance of the petroglyphs and pictographs. His book, “Wild Earth, Wild Soul: A Manual for an Ecstatic Culture” has been met with high acclaim. Resources discussed in this episode:
--- Sky Otter: website | |||
| 16 May 2024 | 31 - Somatic Sexual Education and the Joy of Ecstasy with Caffyn Jesse | 00:58:43 | |
CW: This episode contains talk of sex and genital touching. In this episode, Dr. T and Truth Fairy welcome guest Caffyn Jesse to the show. Caffyn is an author, queer elder, and teacher of somatic sexual wellness. In their latest book, Caffyn describes an ongoing inquiry into somatics, the erotic, and psychedelic medicine. Caffyn refers to themselves as an outlaw who cherishes other outlaws. They are a queer person who was born in the days when “it was illegal to be one,” who is involved in the outlaw realms of sex work and psychedelic medicine. They find belonging in intimacies outside the rules and expectations of the ordinary world. The conversation around sex and sex education explores the sacred contract between a client’s voice and the practitioner. Understanding the neuroendocrine system helps the world of somatic sex education and opens the door to empowering the client to request wanted touch rather than submitting to touch they think the practitioner requires. Caffyn feels called to bring a more sophisticated understanding of ethical practices involving the erotic and sexual body touch to practitioners. Dr. T and Truth Fairy both discuss the concept of slowing down and welcoming asking for something over demanding it while exploring the openness of Caffyn’s work. Caffyn encourages bodies to manifest superpowers and for a deeper connection to the soma, the body, by way of sensation, breath, and massage. The themes of somatic sexual understanding that Caffyn studies and teaches lean towards the natural and ecstatic, they can encompass psychedelic work and trauma healing, and focus on alignment of being. There is so much queer exploration, sexual navigation, and ecstatic understanding touched on and talked about with openness and care in this episode. Caffyn provides a caring and studied perspective on topics not often discussed openly enough. “... this rhythm of going, like going for ecstasy, going for the ecstatic, finding that place that's as far as possible from equilibrium and then experiencing the orgasmic return to equilibrium, that is actually a practice that we're constantly doing. We can tune in to doing it with every breath where we go into this arousal, this aliveness.” - Caffyn Jesse __ About Caffyn Jesse: Caffyn Jesse is a queer elder, sacred intimate, teacher and writer who revels in the power and pleasures of the erotic. They are a renowned teacher of sex, intimacy and healing trauma with pleasure. Encouraging neuroplastic change to support sexual healing and expanded pleasure, unwinding sexual trauma, exploring the intersection of sex and spirit, creating erotic community are all core to their work and play. Caffyn is a tireless advocate of embodied love. Caffyn offers an online program on The Art and Science of Sacred Intimacy. They host regular “office hours” where you can meet, connect and ask questions. They also offer a program on psychedelic medicine integration. Caffyn explores a weave of Psychedelic Medicine, Somatic Sexual Wellness, Queer Ecology and Transformative Justice. Their many books include Ecstatic Belonging, Love and Death in a Queer Universe, Elements of Intimacy, Sensual Man, Science for Sexual Happiness, Intimacy Educator: Teaching with Touch, Orientation: Mapping Queer Meanings and Pelvic Pain Clinic. Caffyn taught for many years at the Institute for the Study of Somatic Sex Education, as well as offering workshops on topics ranging from pelvic pain to sex in long-term relationships, and a trauma training for professionals who touch. __ Contact Punk Therapy:
Contact Caffyn Jesse:
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| 16 Sep 2022 | 11 - The Potential of Psychedelics for Healing Within Eating Disorders | 01:02:41 | |
Content Warning: Eating disorders (including bulimia and anorexia), hospitalization, body image trauma, and sexual assault Dr. T and The Truth Fairy welcome two guests to the show - BC, a guest of Dr. T, and Nightingale, mentee of Truth Fairy - to discuss the complexities of eating disorders and the host of possibilities psychedelic medicines can offer in terms of healing pathways. The Truth Fairy, BC, and Nightingale each share their own very frank and personal journeys with eating disorders or “complex or developmental trauma” as Truth Fairy prefers to call them. They fearlessly detail their own struggles, the roots of the traumas and mental illnesses they’ve uncovered, and the ways in which different therapeutic modalities gave them each insight. The discussion touches on addiction, rebellion from patriarchal structures, developmental trauma, and biology as the group unravel the enormity of disordered eating and all the struggles such illness embodies. They share which particular medicines they have found successes through but also address that recovery is a long journey and requires a multi-disciplinary team of carers to facilitate. Their final words for listeners are ones of encouragement for anyone the conversation personally affects. “You know, often we sort of think about recovery as a destination and we have to get there like a highway. And I often sort of stop and think about how recovery, to me, it's like a windy road. And it's like, you know, going for a country drive and sometimes you might stop and have to take a break and pause for a moment. And then you get back on that road and it's windy, it's hilly, it's up and down. And as long as you're always just moving forward, that's what recovery is.” - BC --- | |||
| 16 Jun 2022 | 08 - Family Constellations with special guest Lara | 00:53:07 | |
Content Warning: Sensitive topics and trauma memories Dr. T and The Truth Fairy welcome their very first guest to the show. Lara is studying to become a systemic integration practitioner and a psychedelic therapist and was The Truth Fairy’s first medicine therapy client. Lara not only shares the story of that first medicine therapy session with The Truth Fairy but takes Dr. T and The Truth Fairy on a journey into what Family Constellations are and the benefits that can arise from such sessions. Lara explains how Family Constellations derives from the work of Bert Hellinger in Germany, which she calls systemic integration, and lays out the connective tissue of the process for Dr. T and The Truth Fairy. They discuss how all the information comes through the client, through what the group will feel and unravel for the client with assistance from the therapist. Lara shares that she has wondered about the potential for combining psychedelics with constellation work and the benefits that could bring to a client. The Truth Fairy and Lara both tell versions of the story of how their first medicine therapy session came to be. Lara opens a quite deep glimpse into some of the revelations from that session and what it taught her. They share how the experience sealed their friendship, revealed some profound truths about Lara’s mother and motherhood, and how it set each of them on a specific journey. The three address how medicine therapy is a journey and how revelations must be revisited and worked through after the medicine fades. Much valuable insight and knowledge is shared in this episode. “And I think it's so important for our listeners to understand that, you know, some of us are coming with high expectations for what the medicine can do, and it may just be opening the window, right?” The Truth Fairy Resources mentioned in this episode:
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| 16 Feb 2024 | 28 - Stepping Into the Light of Psychedelic Healing with Brett | 00:47:39 | |
Truth Fairy and Dr. T welcome Brett to the podcast to talk about his journey in “coming out from under the rocks”, which is to say emerging from the underground. Brett has studied, refined, and used a broad range of substances and practices and he helps people find a framework for holding their experience in both the mind and body. Dr. T, Truth Fairy, and Brett have a very open discussion about the path of a psychedelic therapist. Brett shares how he approaches working with a client and what medicines he recommends to open their journey with a calm headspace and a clear mind. He encourages time in nature during the treatment and describes walking close to a beautiful river. He has spent almost twenty years, ten of which have been with his wife and partner, developing a framework for working with various medicines that is uniquely suited to each client's needs. This methodical yet flexible approach allows for slowing thoughts down and opening consciousness to true understanding. The conversation includes breaking down the different consciousness states, child consciousness, adult consciousness, and somatic consciousness, how to translate experiences had on medicine into daily non-medicated life, and how to stabilize clients. Brett approaches his psychedelic therapy practices from a Buddhist-influenced perspective with a focus on sourcing his own medicines. Truth Fairy, Dr. T and Brett connect in very real ways over shared theories and beliefs about healing. “I have actually asked [my trusted peers] if this gets off the rails, if I look like I'm not being authentic and acting with integrity, I expect you to tell me. I think there's a chance if you don't have that structure, that safety net, then it can get weird. We can create ideas that are just not helpful for ourselves and our clients. I think that there's a real opportunity when we're self-taught and self-directed to cultivate our own personal strengths and really to find that approach, that unique gift that we bring to the table.” - Brett --- | |||
| 16 Oct 2024 | 36 - Poly Roles and Relationship in Psychedelic Healing with Dottie, Part 1 | 00:49:39 | |
In this episode, Dr. T and Truth Fairy talk with guest Dottie, a highly experienced therapist specializing in Gestalt psychotherapy, somatic experiencing, and trauma-informed work. Dottie shares her journey of learning and collaboration with Truth Fairy, who is a close mentor who has influenced her work. After appearing on a previous Punk Therapy episode, Dottie was inspired to seek out Truth Fairy for supervision. This sparked a profound partnership that led to training sessions in Australia with Dr. T. Their collaboration has fostered a deep relationship, with Truth helping Dottie navigate challenges and bring important psychedelic and somatic healing practices to a wider audience. Dottie describes how Truth Fairy's mentorship has been a transformative experience, both personally and professionally. She was initially overwhelmed by the idea of organizing training in Australia and benefited greatly from Truth Fairy’s guidance and commitment to community building. It was Truth Fairy’s experience in establishing a community in Canada that helped Dottie create one in Australia. Their relationship exemplifies a reciprocal dynamic, where Dottie has both contributed to Truth Fairy’s professional endeavours and received support in overcoming her own insecurities. The discussion Truth Fairy, Dottie, and Dr. T have highlights the importance of mutual respect and open communication in professional relationships, especially in such a complex field. The conversation also delves into the nuances of dual relationships in therapy, particularly in the context of psychedelic work. Both Dottie and Truth Fairy reflect on the need to redefine traditional therapeutic boundaries, emphasizing the importance of relationship, trust, and vulnerability when working with altered states of consciousness. By advocating for fostering transparent and empathetic communication, this episode presents a way for a therapeutic approach that allows for deeper healing and connection, challenging traditional norms in therapy, and promoting a more humanized, relational model of care. “I guess this theme of relationship is probably, you know, going to sort of weave throughout this conversation because I think in my relationship with Truth over the last two years and the various roles that we've had, the most fundamental thing that I've been taught and am continuing to learn is the absolute value of relationship. And that in life we're not supposed to do these things alone.” - Dottie __ Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com | |||
| 16 Feb 2022 | 04 - Touch: Part 2 | 00:41:48 | |
Content Warning: Sensitive stories and themes that include abuse. In Part Two of ‘Touch’ in psychedelic therapy, Dr. T and The Truth Fairy explore touch from the perspective of the theory of ‘temporary celibacy’ and the idea of sublimating sexual energy into creative or sublime energies for therapeutic purposes. Touch and connection are key elements in human thriving: as The Truth Fairy notes, one of the worst traumas we can suffer, especially at an early age, is touch starvation and emotional starvation. We are all seeking intimacy, relationship, and connection. It is how to use touch in a consensual and therapeutic way that Dr. T and The Truth Fairy explore in depth. How to, as therapists, adopt a notion of ‘temporary celibacy’ when approaching clients. They discuss the Wheel of Consent and share experiences and stories from their own learning and practices where open lines of communication and observation regarding consent and comfort are established between therapist and client. Dr. T notes that the therapist must role model healthy boundaries within the relationship. And The Truth Fairy details how she addresses what Dr. T terms the ‘shame hangover’ when a client feels they’ve been too vulnerable in emotional disclosure upon a session’s conclusion. “Temporary celibacy. A vow that we as therapists and practitioners and guides need to take every single time we embark on a medical journey or ceremony. … To vow never to cross lines, never to touch without deep intention, never to touch without consent, never to touch without profound neutral intention.” - The Truth Fairy Resources mentioned in this episode: --- Punk Therapy: website | |||
| 16 Jul 2024 | 33 - Johnny | 00:41:31 | |
| 16 May 2023 | 19 - Psychedelic Chaplaincy with Daan Keiman | 00:55:42 | |
Truth Fairy flies solo again for a deep conversation with Daan Keiman, co-founder of Guild of Guides Netherlands, to explain what a Psychedelic Chaplain is. Daan himself is a Psychedelic Chaplain and guides listeners through what that means, as well as discussing education and training in the realm of psychedelics. Daan shares details of how he views the work of a Psychedelic Chaplain and what informs his practice. He is trained as an interfaith spiritual caregiver and has a Master’s of Arts in both theology and religious studies. He was trained as a Buddhist chaplain so approaches his role with more of an existential questioning stance. He has psychedelic experiences to share, ones that helped shape his journey. Truth Fairy and Daan Keiman explore their experiences as instructors, in education capacities, and what it means to be trained in psychedelic healing. They address psychedelic apprenticeship, legalization, the bottleneck problem, and what Daan will be talking about in his upcoming conference. Their conversation explores crucial ideas at the heart of psychedelic medicine and approaches questions from a healing and helping perspective, informed by their combined experiences. “The profession of spiritual care, of offering spiritual care to people while they prepare for or move through or seek to integrate psychedelic experiences, can really provide a lot of pointers, practices and approaches on how to do that ethically, how to do that well. And a term that we could use is existential integrity, which might be understood as, I'm a client, I have a sort of right to be supported in understanding a psychedelic experience, in an existential language and through existential practices that I either consent to and/or that are deeply familiar to me.” - Daan Keiman About Daan Keiman: Daan holds an MA in Spiritual Care and is the co-founder of Guild of Guides Netherlands: an organization that seeks to professionalize psychedelic sitting services. His experience with guiding and caring for people in altered states of consciousness spans over a decade; ranging from psychedelic harm reduction work on festivals to his private practice as a Psychedelic Chaplain. Daan draws from his personal Buddhist practices, psychedelic research and his professional experiences to create compassionate and powerful containers for personal and relational transformation. As an avid explorer of consciousness, he is highly capable of supporting others who are traversing the landscapes of the mind. Resources discussed in this episode:
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| 16 Dec 2023 | 26 - Sapha on Ayahuasca | 00:57:23 | |
Dr. T and Truth Fairy welcome guest Sapha to the show to talk about healing through ayahuasca. When Sapha reached out via email, Truth Fairy realized she has friends in common with him, and, being touched by his email and story, invited him to be on the show. The details of his advocacy and journey are inspiring to hear. Sapha shares his father's story of emigrating to Canada from Tehran, Iran, during the Islamic Revolution. Pain, abandonment, and confusion that went with Sapha’s story led to a need for escapism through substance abuse. The addiction lasted through Sapha’s career in the oil and gas industry until age 29 when he realized he needed help. But after being denied assistance from the BC government, Sapha’s salvation came from an aunt who connected him with the Leipzig Serenity Retreat, a holistic recovery centre in Saskatchewan. Dr. T and Truth Fairy talk with Sapha about how he found ayahuasca and his early psychedelic experiences, the need to really heal the underlying causes of addiction and not simply the addiction itself, and the benefits of small group work that Sapha embarked upon. Sapha also addresses how he now does a lot of work with men who have suffered at the hands of the patriarchal system and through the expectations placed on men. This episode reveals a lot about the benefits of working with ayahuasca and the healing possibilities of being on a psychedelic-assisted recovery journey. “And that's a big part of the teaching here with what we do and the way that we work with men, it's like ayahuasca is a tool. You know, psychedelics are tools. They're not a cure for addiction. They're an opportunity to get a really close look from a different lens. How to uncover and unravel this bundle of emotions and these layers of pain that as men or as people we've been born with,” - Sapha Resources discussed in this episode: --- | |||
| 16 Dec 2024 | 38 - Sexual Health and the Integration of Psychedelic Experiences in Therapy with JF | 00:53:28 | |
Dr. T and Truth Fairy welcome guest JF to the podcast to talk about sexual health, relational difficulties, and the integration of psychedelic experiences in therapy. JF is a psychotherapist with a double PhD, one in EI and one in clinical psychology, and he approaches therapy from a holistic perspective, integrating mind, body and heart in the healing process. Dr. T and Truth Fairy delve into how JF’s psychological insight shapes his approach to helping individuals and couples navigate life challenges. JF describes part of his conventional clinical specialties as focussing on human sexual health and relationships, and he works with patients who struggle with sexual issues. That part of his work is often conventional. But he also works in psychosomatic therapy with breathwork, movement, visualizations, and more. Dr. T and Truth Fairy explore exactly what sexual issues a person or couple could experience, how those may relate to being queer or having kinks, and how sexuality changes with age as well. JF talks about common themes in his conventional and psychosomatic work and discusses his approach to the client’s troubles. The body speaks more slowly than the mind, according to JF, and as such he discusses the innate differences between processes in conventional and psychosomatic therapies. Dr. T, Truth Fairy, and JF all relate personal stories about psychosomatic treatments and experiences within their bodies. The conversation opens wider to include the roles of psychedelics in healing and which ones help in which ways. JF recounts his training in Gestalt, what he explores through cannabis work, and how he fundamentally approaches trauma work. The conversation is an elegant deep dive into sexual health and healing. “There's something fundamental in contact improv. It's contact. And I'm convinced the more I work that we are contact starved. And of course, our basics are contact through touch. It's not the only way we connect. We contact through emotional synchrony. We contact through speaking. But we are, I believe, contact starved.” - JF __ Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com | |||
| 02 Nov 2021 | Coming Soon: PUNK Therapy | Psychedelic Underground Neural Kindness | 00:01:33 | |
This podcast is dedicated to the exploration and communication of somatic relational trauma-informed practices woven with psychedelic and earth-based medicines. We welcome from the underground the experience of practitioners dedicated to the ethical, creative and embodied use of medicines in therapeutic and ceremonial settings. Our kindness seeks to bridge the lived experience of the underground, the indigenous ways, the institutional studies, and the direct knowledge of those humans seeking to expand their consciousness and heal on all levels. Be sure to subscribe now so you don't miss the upcoming launch of the podcast! https://www.punktherapy.com | |||
| 16 Nov 2022 | 13 - Vetting Clients and Trusting Instinct | 01:03:10 | |
Dr. T and The Truth Fairy welcome special guests Night Owl and Aqua Belle, friends and therapeutic colleagues of The Truth Fairy, to the show to talk about how they approach the vetting of clients. Dr. T takes the hosting lead in this conversation on the process of choosing which clients to work with. Aqua Belle and Night Owl both share how important instinct is to the vetting process. Despite having a drive and desire to just help people, not every client will be right. Meeting the client’s needs may require a different therapist and both guests describe having an internal sense of whether or not they feel they will be able to collaborate and establish trust with the client. Listening to their instincts is an important part of the decision. The discussion Dr. T has with Truth Fairy, Aqua Belle, and Night Owl explores vetting clients based on existing medicine complications, a client’s willingness to do the preparation and work, how comfortable the exchanges between the therapist and client are, how immediately the client pushes for psychedelics, and truly trusting therapeutic and personal instincts. Each guest shares revealing stories and the motivations behind their chosen modalities in this insightful conversation. “When I first started working with psychedelics, as you know, there are a lot of people that would like to have the experience. And at first, and of course wanting to help and serve because it was so amazing for me, and wanting to continue to offer that, what I did feel was I've come to understand who I would be best for and who would be best for me. And I do find, because it's such a relational thing, I feel that that's really important.” - Aqua Belle Resources discussed in this episode:
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| 16 Mar 2023 | 17 - Psychedelics, Parents, and Punk with Seth Lorinczi | 01:00:25 | |
Dr. T and the Truth Fairy welcome writer Seth Lorinczi to the show to talk about his writing focus on psychedelics, Jewish intergenerational trauma, and the punk scene of the eighties and nineties. Seth also shares insights from his new book, Fatherland, coming out in Fall 2023. Seth opens up about all the real life experiences that informed his new book; his marriage crisis, family trauma, how his father left Hungary after the Holocaust and the journey after. There were many disconnected moments of struggle and searching for truths throughout Seth’s story. He found that psychedelic medicines and a connection to the punk scene gave him a much-needed creative outlet and lightness. The discussion Dr. T and the Truth Fairy have with Seth Lorinczi is honest, raw, and deeply interrogative of his father-son dynamic, what he views as the link between psychedelic healing and punk, the truths about the Holocaust confronted in his father’s story, and what the journey through psychedelic therapy looks like. It’s a powerful episode, not to be missed. “I mean, some people who've researched ayahuasca and DMT in particular, the active molecule suggests that those who drink it are essentially disconnected from time’s forward flow. That time can sort of pool and eddy around you. And any of us who have worked with that medicine know that there is a sense of forward-looking and backwards-looking through the generations, connecting with those who came before, connecting with those who will come later. It's sort of like time has been suspended.” - Seth Lorinczi About Seth Lorinczi: Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin but raised in Washington, D.C., Seth Lorinczi is a writer and musician. In the ‘80s and ‘90s, he participated in the punk scene that centered largely around Dischord Records. In addition to writing for nonprofits and the music, food, and cannabis industries, Seth writes nonfiction. He’s currently at work on a memoir exploring the threads embedded in his family by anti-Semitism, the trials of immigration, and the Holocaust. Resources discussed in this episode: --- | |||
| 10 Oct 2022 | 12 - The Evolved Nest, Community, and Connection with Darcia Narvaez | 00:55:06 | |
Content Warning: Childhood trauma and violence. Dr. T and The Truth Fairy welcome Dr. Darcia Narvaez to the show to discuss her work on the neurobiology of moral development. They specifically address her Evolved Nest theory and shed light on how greater connections can heal. Dr. Narvaez explains in detail how the Evolved Nest is the set of developmental provisions we give to the young. There are nine components that affect development and which Dr. Narvaez studies. The first components specifically refer to infants but the rest involve adults with themes like nature, immersion and connection, and healing practices. The discussion The Truth Fairy and Dr. T have with Darcia Narvaez delves into how psychedelics can assist in feeling connected to the universe, but Dr. Narvaez adds that it’s ideally accompanied by immersion, community, and being in touch with your body. They address how Indigenous culture has a greater connection to nature and self that we are disconnected from to greater and greater degrees in Western society. “I think we have to get back to the Indigenous worldview. So Indigenous worldview is this perspective of connection. But it's also respect and humble awareness of our limitations, and that we have so much to learn from the animals and plants who have been around as species much longer than we have. We’re pretty young on the planet. And so the Native Americans have all sorts of practices and ceremonies of gratitude and thankfulness.” - Darcia Narvaez, PhD About Darcia Narvaez, PhD: My life has been an adventure through many careers. I am still growing. My academic scholarship has moved from work on nonconscious moral rationality (in the 1990s), to moral character education in the schools (late 1990s- early 2000s), to the neurobiology of moral development (mid 2000s to present), to the study of evolved parenting practices (presently), and the study of small-band hunter-gatherers who represent the type of society in which humans evolved (presently). All this comes together in a moral developmental systems theory that emphasizes the ongoing epigenetic plasticity of how we develop our humanity and our morality. We are co-constructed by our families and our experiences. My concerns are for developmental optimization and fulfilling human potential—actionable communal imagination. I put some of this together in various articles and chapters but mostly in my 2014 book, Neurobiology and the Development of Human Morality: Evolution, Culture and Wisdom. Resources discussed in this episode:
--- Darcia Narvaez, PhD: website | |||
| 16 Mar 2024 | 29 - Breaking Free from Pornography Addiction with Tyson | 00:50:56 | |
Content Warning: Graphic discussions of pornography, sexual situations, male genitalia, and masturbation. In this episode, Dr. T and Truth Fairy delve into the world of using psychedelics in a deliberate process for healing pornography-related trauma. Their guest, Tyson, a trauma-informed men's coach, somatic bodyworker, and psychedelic facilitator, shares his personal journey from a 20-year addiction to pornography to his current passion for helping men master their life force energy. The conversation takes listeners through Tyson's personal story and explores shame, sexuality, and the impact of traumatic experiences. Tyson reveals his commitment to assisting others in overcoming challenges related to intimacy. His determination emerged from his story of the influence of early exposure to pornography and the subsequent struggles he faced. The dark aspects of Tyson's journey, including his experience with violent and non-consensual content, shaped his perception of sexuality. Dr. T and Truth Fairy talk through Tyson's insights, shedding light on the broader themes of psychedelic healing and overcoming addiction. The conversation explores Tyson's journey in adulthood after he uncovered the trauma embedded in his early experiences and his ultimate transformation away from addiction. Tyson's expertise and openness create a platform for listeners to gain valuable insights into psychedelic healing on a sexual level, trauma and addiction recovery, and mastering life force energy. This is a very frank discussion of deeply personal experiences and subjects usually pushed away from public discourse. Tyson provides Dr. T and Truth Fairy with his unique perspective on using psychedelics for intimate healing and healthy sexual growth. “I realized that I needed to go back in and I needed to start doing some psychedelic work around watching pornography. So what I've learned through this process is that we're not just watching something on the screen. We are absorbing the energies of whoever it is we're watching. So whatever their journey is, whoever it is we're watching, and the things that they carry, their beliefs, their traumas, their wounding, even though there's a buffer, which is technology, there still is a porousness of energy that gets transmitted through this technology that comes into us. And it's not just a program, psychological, but it's also an actual energenic that we take on.” - Tyson --- | |||
| 16 Jan 2023 | 15 - An Interview with Dr. T About His PhD | 01:01:20 | |
It’s just Dr. T and the Truth Fairy, like in the early episodes, and the two reconnect with Truth Fairy interviewing Dr. T about his PhD. Now in his third year, he dives into what he’s researching and working on in response to Truth Fairy’s insightful questions. Dr. T tells Truth Fairy that the current working title of his PhD subject is “Psychedelic Healing and Interpersonal Neurobiology: A Qualitative Integration”. Truth Fairy digs into what the subject means and how Dr. T views interpersonal neurobiology. Their conversation reveals Dr. T’s thoughts and the purpose behind his study in a very honest way. The discussion Dr. T and the Truth Fairy have through the course of the interview weaves through topics of psychedelics and manifestations, relationship with one’s body, the burden placed on therapists, schema therapy, Dr. T’s term of “embeddedness”, and beyond. This is a revealing discussion between friends that opens up truly fascinating things to ponder. “That speaks to that aspect of embeddedness which is that we're embedded in a natural environment, and that our system mirrors and reflects the systems around us as well, like the shell and the inner ear and also just the biology of ourselves. You look at a plant cell, you look at a human cell, and there is a lot of similarity there. There's some uniqueness, but we share a common ancestry with all life on earth, and we are so, so connected.” - Dr. T Resources discussed in this episode: --- | |||
| 16 Apr 2022 | 06 - Interview With The Truth Fairy | 00:52:36 | |
Content Warning: Trauma and abuse memories Dr. T interviews The Truth Fairy as part of his research and together they explore the value of somatic therapy as well as how a therapist must be prepared for the journey when combining somatic with psychedelics. Dr. T presents The Truth Fairy with some questions he has developed as part of his research, questions she’s not heard ahead of time. What results is a conversation on what somatic means and its importance to the therapeutic process. The Truth Fairy explains the differences between right and left brain tendencies and how somatic healing seeks to tap into the more creative and connective abilities of the right brain. Dr. T addresses the idea of the relational in therapy and the concept of “relationship over outcome” which leads to questions about including medicine in the work. The Truth Fairy relates experiential stories on how somatic therapy looks very different when working with psychedelics and lays out things the therapist must prepare for themselves and their client before embarking on that journey. “The body is an extraordinary, complex organism with so many systems, organ systems, all working in synchrony and collaboration on the best of days and working out of synchrony and out of collaboration on more difficult days. We have history inside us.” The Truth Fairy Resources mentioned in this episode: --- | |||
| 16 Mar 2022 | 05 - Nine Perfect Strangers | 00:45:10 | |
Content Warning: Sensitive stories that include uninformed consent / sexual abuse Spoiler Alert for ‘Nine Perfect Strangers’ Dr. T and The Truth Fairy discuss accuracies and controversies within the portrayal of microdosing on Hulu’s ‘Nine Perfect Strangers’ show. With a nod to the fact that spoilers regarding the plot of ‘Nine Perfect Strangers’ are revealed in this episode, the character of the therapist Masha (Nicole Kidman) and the choices she makes regarding nondisclosure and microdosing with her clients at Tranquillum are under scrutiny and criticism from the psychedelic therapy community. While some things portrayed are not inaccurate, Dr T and The Truth Fairy discuss how Masha’s sense of urgency to rush the dosing and her decision not to inform her clients about the medicines she’s given them go against the best ideals of their practice. The concept of informed consent is not abstract, rather it is the foundation from which therapy must proceed. The Truth Fairy reveals the potential dangers contained in urgency on the part of the therapist and in continuous dose increase. She and Dr T agree that careful preparation of clients is essential care, which Masha does not do. However, not everything rings untrue. They break down the facts and follies contained in the portrayal and share their own experienced-based best practices regarding psychedelic therapy. “To bring serious trauma out of dissociation we have to be very very prepared on how we work with someone, how prepared they are to meet information, and we have to be so careful about how they meet their trauma.” - The Truth Fairy Resources mentioned in this episode: --- | |||
| 16 Feb 2025 | 40 - Radical Approaches to Mental Health and the Future of Psychedelic Therapy with Robert Laurie | 00:54:26 | |
Dr. T and Truth Fairy welcome guest Robert Laurie to the show to talk about radical approaches to medical health and the ongoing fight for the recognition and legalization of cannabis and psychedelic medicines. Robert is a pioneer in psychedelic law and policy, the founder of Ad Lucem Law Corporation, and has been instrumental in advancing medical access to cannabis and psilocybin internationally. Robert shares his insights on the future of psychedelic therapy with Dr. T. and Truth Fairy. Robert discusses how he has represented many cases in the psychedelic space but the focus of his work has primarily shifted to looking at constitutional arguments. He points out such areas as opening dispensaries, operating psychedelic healing centers, and making psychedelics available on reserves through retail dispensaries. He explains that he collaborates with and represents academics, scientists, MDs, researchers and elders in his quest to shape policy in favour of cannabis and psilocybin. Truth Fairy, Dr. T, and Robert examine the history of cannabis prohibition, how cannabis use compares to tobacco and alcohol use in terms of lethality rates, the rigidity of government views on psychedelics, and how policy aims to combat the ingrained structures that stand against the proliferation of psychedelic medicines. Robert’s opinions and outlook are shaped by personal experience, years of study, and legal expertise in the realm of psychedelic use. He sheds light on what he believes is the innate right of humankind to access plant-based medicines and why governments tend to oppose that right. “I mean, I think it's fair to say that there's probably been tons of scientific research by both military and medical and pharmaceutical. But what it boils down to is, you know, just take smoking cessation and psychedelics, for example. I mean, psychedelics, you know, promise major disruption to these well-established and entrenched hallowed halls, including tobacco, alcohol, pharmaceuticals, and the government isn't, I think, sure what to do with all of this.” - Robert Laurie __ About Robert Laurie: Robert graduated from the faculty of Political Science and International Relations at the University of British Columbia and earned his law degree from the University of Oxford. He has been practicing law since 2006, and is recognized as an accomplished lawyer, international consultant, and public speaker. Part of Robert’s practice is committed to improving medical patient access and facilitate drug laws for cannabis, psychedelics, and sacred plant medicines. Robert advised Dr. Bruce Tobin and the TheraPsil Alliance litigation team (first Section 56 CDSA medical exemption for psilocybin in Canada). He was one of the Decriminalize Nature Canada Petition drafters, part of a national campaign to decriminalize restricted plant medicines and fungi in Canada. His goal is to help provide more options for doctors and treatments for anxiety, depression, addiction, and PTSD. Robert is a Special Advisor to Gateway Proven Strategies (GPS Global), [JB1] a Denver-based cannabis management consultancy firm operating globally, and serves as a board advisor to MAPS Canada, the Last Prisoner Project, and the Psychedelic Association of Canada. He is an advisor to the Heroic Hearts Project UK, a founder in the McKenna Academy of Natural Philosophy, and a director with the Ecuador Amazon Restoration Project. Website: AdLucemLaw.com Robert Laurie on LinkedIn __ Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com
Contact Truth Fairy: Email: Truth@PunkTherapy.com | |||
| 16 Aug 2024 | 34 - SPECIAL EDITION episode with SPECIAL GUEST Rachel Harris, PhD (author of Swimming in the Sacred) | 01:16:25 | |
Dr. T and Truth Fairy are delighted to welcome a very special guest to the show in this episode. Rachel Harris, PhD, the author of Swimming in the Sacred, joins them for an intimate conversation about what led her to write the book and what it contains. She details how wise women are largely left out of the larger conversation on psychedelic potential and shares knowledge from the women guides she talked with who had never been interviewed before. One of the points Rachel makes is that the women guides are not therapists and do not refer to themselves as therapists. They will refer to therapists outside themselves. We tend to be the ones who have conflated psychedelic guides with therapists. Rachel talks about how long traditional indigenously trained shamans will be considered apprentices and some of the ceremonies around the work they do. Rachel’s own experiences touch on many ancient wisdoms and draw from years of study and research beyond physical work with medicines and awareness. Rachel describes lifelong learning and an unending search through experiences, a continuous exploration of self and spirituality, of being alive in the work of medicine. She expresses the need to talk about not exactly adverse experiences but about the reality of what can be experienced, of the truths of the challenges the medicine presents. Rachel’s wisdom ignites strong memories and insight from both Dr. T and Truth Fairy and what evolves is a conversation so deep and honest that it is not to be missed. “Well, you know, these women are self-selected in a way that they've had unusual spiritual experiences, many of them, in their lives, often from childhood on. And... I write about this in the book because, to me, it's just very fascinating. Because I had this qualification, I had unusual spiritual experiences. I was missing a few other pieces, but that one I had. And so in that way I was similar to them. And I think because they have these unusual spiritual experiences, which, by the way, they don't mention to anybody ... They often say, I have never told anyone this and then they report an unusual spiritual experience, because our culture doesn't support this.” - Rachel Harris About Rachel Harris: Psychologist Rachel Harris, PhD is the author of Swimming in the Sacred: Wisdom from the Psychedelic Underground. She was in private practice for thirty-five years working with people interested in psychospiritual development. During a decade working in research, Rachel received a National Institutes of Health New Investigator’s Award and published more than forty scientific studies in peer-reviewed journals. She has also consulted with Fortune 500 companies. Rachel was in the 1968 Esalen Residential Program, Big Sur, CA. This intensive six-month program focused on meditation and bodywork. In the early 1970s, Rachel studied with Dorothy Nolte in the movement system, Structural Awareness, based on Dr. Ida Rolf’s Structural Integration (Rolfing). Rachel also co-edited the Journal of the American Dance Therapy Association for three years. Awareness of how people live and move in their bodies has always been an aspect of Rachel’s approach to psychotherapy. In 2005 Rachel traveled to a retreat center in Costa Rica and serendipitously found herself with the opportunity to drink ayahuasca with Ecuadorian shamans. The morning after her first ceremony, Rachel began asking questions about the therapeutic potential of this medicine. She conducted a three-year research project with Lee Gurel, PhD that resulted in “A Study of Ayahuasca Use in North America,” published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs (Summer, 2012). Rachel is the author of Listening to Ayahuasca: New Hope for Depression, Addiction, PTSD and Anxiety. Rachel Harris Website: SwimmingInTheSacred.com Book: “Swimming in the Sacred: Wisdom from the Psychedelic Underground” by Rachel Harris __ Resources discussed in this episode:
__ Contact Punk Therapy: Patreon: Patreon.com/PunkTherapy Website: PunkTherapy.com Email: info@punktherapy.com | |||
